He basically did regardless he got his revenge and he showed up and held alot of the scum involved in allowing that piece of shit out because we'll business accountable.
This film proves the claim of Ras al-Gul in Batman Begins, when he argued that criminals will never receive the punishment they deserve in law institutions because those institutions are run by corrupt bureaucrats
Meh. Clyde was being excessive. He could’ve just put a bullet in the dude and left it at that. Trauma and anger isn’t an excuse for tormenting and murdering tons of innocents.
You know what's sad? The guys wife was raped and killed, his daughter was taken and killed, and he has to live with that for the rest of his life, but the justice system releases the guys that did that to his family? Bro, this literally shows how messed up the justice system is. (Whats also unfair is there were TONS of evidence that shows the guys did it. 10 years was not enough).
That was my one problem with this movie. Nick was devastatingly outmatched, yet somehow the moment he figures out Clyde's plan, and sees that Clyde is gone, he happens sees one clue, figures it out, gets to the building, conducts a search, finds the bomb, gets it back to the tunnel, up the tunnel plants the bomb under Clyde's bed, gets out, and back into the prison, to confront Clyde, all before Clyde makes it back to the jail. I know the good guy is supposed to win, but come on. I just really hate it when they take a brilliant movie with an excellent plot, well thought out dialogs, and excellent characters, then fuck it all up because they couldn't figure out an ending.
Oh they knew the ending but when you're an "establishment" like Hollywood a movie like Law Abiding Citizen where the crux of the movie is grabbing said establishments by the balls they don't deserve and TEARING, well you can guess who didn't want blacklisted.
This movie was amazing. The guy specifically orchestrated this entire thing to make fun of the legal system. The only way for the lawyers to win against him was for them to break the rules. They HAD to break into his properties and they had to illegally find out how he obtained his properties and where they were. He could've accounted for that but he didn't. He had a death wish and a lesson to give.
Wasn't simply to make Fun of the system lmfao man was looking revenge and to hold all involved even those representing the legal system accountable for allowing a vile murderer free because it looks good on their daft records.
@@jabronisauce6833 He said himself it wasn't about revenge, that if he wanted revenge he wouldn't have waited for 10 years. He wanted to teach people a lesson and was successful when Nick broke the rules of the system and planted the bomb in his cell.
You missed the most important point, in order to stop him they had to break the law that they were sworn to uphold, they entered his property without a warrant
@@hikotai1925 What is he going to do then? Carry the tremendous trauma he faced and see the justice system continue to be fucked up? If the same thing happened to you you would do that exact same thing.
@@Bravo_BZ well, to kill the murderers that would ruin my life? Yes. But after that, it's a bit of an grey area for me. I get it, he lost his family and the court system let them go because of a deal (that I think it's bullshit of how they set that up) but he pile on bodies of innocent people just to prove a point to the justice system that you rather jail him for doing what was right than cutting him a deal like you did with the murderers.
I hated the ending of this movie. I extremely disliked the Nick as a character. I feel he learned nothing. Clyde was a better Punisher than any which have been portrayed in the movies. If a real studio exec was watching they would have cast Gerard Butler in that role shortly after this movie. How cold dead stare and menacing look was perfect. As far I am concerned, Nick should have been killed and not allowed to do that chessy hero walk off in the end.
I agree with the stupid walk in the end but I have no problem with Clyde dying since I think it was kind of his goal; to change the way Nick deals with criminals. I just wish the ending would have shown Nick beaten because he actually lost by proving Clyde's method of dealing with criminals was the right method.
Rumor has it that Jamie Foxx refused to be the "bad guy" who "lost". They had to change the ending at his demand so that's why it feels so forced and out of place. It could be an urban myth of course but it wouldn't be out of character for him either.
Thats the beauty of it all. Everyone in the story is shown to be set in their ways, both the burglars play fixed roles as 'cowardly' and 'innocent' guys. Clyde is the murderous psycho that cannot help but take things too far. Nick is supposed to be the protag who is better than all of them and everyone fully expects him to out plan Clyde and save the day. But the bittersweet ending is that when the chips are down, everyone acts the same.
Clyde winning would have been the wrong message imo. The movie is trying to say the justice system, as corrupt as it is, is undefeated. Systemic racism, prejudice and elitist agendas are all build into the system, and one man is never going to defeat it by himself. All he can do is act as a martyr in the hope others can be inspired to fight too, until there are enough Clydes to make the system fear them and force change.
The justice system is weak. Clyde’s decisions may have been wrong but you can’t blame him at all. Defending a criminal walking free is pure lunacy. Then going after the man who lost everything to said criminal with even more force than the criminal is just disgusting.
It's basically Nick's fault that it happened, he wanted to save his rating, to Clyde it didn't matter if he won or lost, just as long as he tried and he refused to.
@@JoeMama-xk2uq a man with everything to gain is still bound by the benefits he'll get or until he gets them. A man with nothing left to lose is the more dangerous one.
One of the most satisfying moments of this film was Darby's "punishment." Sometimes a little focused brutality is exactly what is needed to discourage the criminals from further degeneracy. Fear of pain is an excellent deterrant.
To some, there's always those are either a walking cenobyte or so caught up in their own hype they think they're beyond such a consequence. Doesn't matter if we're talking batman's ethics or the punisher's there will always be some evil shithead down the line.
Everyone is complaining about the injustice toward Clyde, but what about Rupert? I can't believe that a court can sentence someone to death based on the sole testimony of an accomplice to the crime, who clearly has a skin in the game.
they cant lol. this movie, while it does point out many inconsistencies present within the american legal system, heavily skews it to look far worse than it really is. this movie is definitely a great watch, but to use it as a model for how american criminal justice truly works is plainly absurd.
The prisoner's dilemma is a mathematical game from game theory. It models the situation of two prisoners who are accused of having committed a crime together. The two prisoners are interrogated individually and cannot communicate with each other. If both deny the crime, both receive a low sentence, since they can only be proven to have committed a less severely punished crime. If both confess, both receive a high penalty for it, but not the maximum penalty because of their confession. If, however, only one of the two prisoners confesses, he will go unpunished as a state witness, while the other will receive the maximum penalty as a convicted but unconfessed offender. The dilemma now is that each prisoner must choose to either deny (i.e., try to cooperate with the other prisoner) or confess (i.e., betray the other) without knowing the other prisoner's decision. The sentence ultimately imposed, however, is based on how the two prisoners testified together and thus depends not only on the prisoner's own decision but also on the decision of the other prisoner. The prisoner's dilemma is a symmetric game with complete information, which can be represented accordingly in normal form. The dominant strategy of both prisoners is to confess. This combination also represents the only Nash equilibrium. On the other hand, cooperation of the prisoners would lead to a lower sentence for both of them and thus to a lower total sentence.
Sad part is this shit can really happen life this in real life it is however rare for the criminal who testified to get off with out any time usually they will still get some time in prison but in some rare cases they can just be let go on probation
I have a theory about Sarah’s secret contact. What if it was Clyde all along? What if this was a way to stop himself from going to far? To not become the same monster that took away his wife and daughter. Or maybe a final way to make Nick to throw away his views of justice to end someone who is clearly a monster. Take this with a grain of salt, unless the movie already revealed Sarah’s contact identity.
Sarah's "secret contact" was Chester. Well, she never referred to a "secret contact" but instead, a "friend you don't name." In fact in one scene right before her death she says that this friend had found a loophole granting them access to Clyde's corporate expenses. Then later Nick gets an email from Chester with that information.
Up until Sarah's death, I was kinda sure that she was the person helping Clyde out...but, now that I see your comment, your point of view seems pretty accurate
"What would your family feel? What would your wife think of you doing this???" "They can't feel anything BECAUSE THEYRE DEAD!" lol such a good come back.
nick saying this to the same guy that had a picture of them up on a mirror over Darby's torture table as Clyde tells him "they get to watch you suffer" lol
He could have easily turned it around on him, too. "What does your daughter think about her daddy shaking hands with murderers and letting them go free?"
Even if I’m not naïve enough to call Clyde the hero because he definitely goes too far with his vengeance, Nick is also a villain for his complacency, greed, and hypocrisy.
@Chan Chan I’m not talking about that guy, he deserved everything that came to him. I was just talking about the other people killed throughout the movie that weren’t involved.
@@spentlizard353 Smaller subset than you think. The only ones that didn't deserve death was that group of aids that got carbombed and the funeral goers that weren't involved with the shit that happened to clyde. Literally everybody else did something significantly incriminating where death is not out of proportion. 1. The accomplice? He could've stopped the rapist. Or at the very least not have been a criminal in the first place. 2. The judge? Literally signed to violate Clyde's civil rights because it was easier to do so than the problem clyde presented but justice isn't supposed to be easy. 3. The cellmate? Let's not forget that he literally threatened Clyde not even five minutes before he got that T bone to the jugular. Clyde made it clear that he could've killed everyone even tangentially related to the case. Sure the death sends a message, but so too does the ones he specifically spared from being collateral damage.
@@wesswise28 this is a very good life tip, i always have an 18 pounder pointed towards my door incase some one tries to break in, but i also take it a few steps further by having a whole trench system (along with underground tunnels) that spans for miles behind the 18 pounder with a small garrison of 500 thousand men in it at all times as well as mines fields and barb wire leading up to it, incase this fails i also have an airfield that can airstrike my front my door at any time of the day regardless of conditions
I’m just confused on how he was in the military, and his natural military instincts didn’t kick in when the doorbell went off ?? 😭 especially that he served for 20+ years.
A great movie with no good guys, just bad guys working against eachother. The main difference being that Clyde knew he was a bad guy and Nick never really figured out that he was too.
I think that's why people like Clyde and hate Nick. Nick lives in delusion that he's a good man. He never changes and continues to think he isn't responsible for being part of a corrupt system. Clyde knows what he's become but believes he must become a monster to get justice.
People completely miss the ending. Clyde's ultimate goal WAS NOT just revenge, but to teach a lesson, which he did. Any other ending would have completely missed the point of the movie and made it just a standard revenge film.
No one learned a lesson though? Knowing Nick, he would've just kept it hush. The fact that he let that many people die and didn't personally suffer, means he was unfazed by all of it. Face it, it's a dumb ending.
@@Wheres_my_Dragonator By the end, Nick definitely learned a lesson from it. He may still be prideful, but he learned that he was was wrong, like your spelling of the word "unphased".
I have always hoped that we could get a prequel to this movie one day. Explaining what Clyde's job really was, the targets he managed to eliminate, and that the fate of his family wasn't some random thing, but actually orchestrated by someone. The movie could show before his family died, and after they died, during the 10 years before this movie.
Justice is served only when it serves the system and those who run it, otherwise they just don’t bother. Its about how easily a conviction can be secured, even if the wrong person gets convicted. If it LOOKS like justice is served, then that is all that matters.
Nick IS the bad guy. He played a part too, in Clyde taking justice in his own hands. And then has the nerve to say 'he was doing the right thing', but he proved to be a killer too when at the end blowing Clyde. I wonder what he had done if the shoe was on the other foot, and Clyde was the cop? Please, give me a damned break...
If you cant serve justice, get the hell out and quit your job. If a crime happens and you cant serve justice. You're as much responsible as the criminal who did it. Nick acted as a complete shi*head every moment, never taking a man who lost everything least bit seriously. He's soo protective of his own family yet never cares what happened to Clyde's family. He plays JUSTICE with Clyde, where was this LAWMAN when you let Darby free? Justice demands that he too should suffer for his negligence and selfish behavior. This will happen if the members of Justice will not take their responsibility seriously.
If I get to remake the ending, heres how it goes: After planting the bomb at the office full of governors, Clyde would not return back to his prison cell, instead he would initiate the next phase of his plan by escaping, labelling himself as wanted fugitive. Sometime later after the authorities (DA/Jamie Fox) discovered Clyde has escaped and are in process of a Manhunt. The DA just gotten a direct phone call from his family. Immediately after answering the call, the DA find out that it was Clyde who was the caller using the DA’s family number. In a panic state, the DA has gotten a grasp of his family (hostage) situation. And Clyde demands for the DA to come alone to Clyde’s location to try rescue his family. Putting the DA in a similar situation as Clyde’s, a father desperately trying to save/protect his own family. Arriving at the location (after few hours), the DA (armed) straightforwardly enters the building through the front door and found his wife and child all tied up to a chair with their mouth sealed with tape (unable to speak a word) with Clyde behind them holding 2 knives at their throats. The DA desperately tries to plead (make a deal) with Clyde, where he would voluntarily freely let Clyde kills him (to get revenge) in exchange for his family’s safety. But Clyde was not interested in that such deal. Instead Clyde would rather have a conversation with the DA (as a father and husband) while the hostages are still in the room. After some time passes (minutes), where the 2 parties have a proper conversation. Just outside the house there is a noise of police siren and vehicles approaching closer to the house. This enrages Clyde as this is a of breach against for the DA to come “Alone”. Now Clyde retaliates by attempting to slit the throat of the hostages. An enrage Clyde left himself vulnerable. Seeing an opportunity, the DA quickly act and shoots Clyde for the kill. Which lands, causing Clyde to drop dead down to floor. After the DA confirms that Clyde is dead. He quickly reunites with his family and frees them from their restraints. However (plot twist), after the DA had freed his wife. She gave him a message which was (surprise) from Clyde. The message was “how does it feel to desperately save your family?”. Realising that Clyde had orchestrated and execute his entire plans since the very beginning, this hostage situation was also one of them. Behind the scene (flashback) where Clyde is setting the hostage situation, Clyde has also prepare a remote phone call connected to the emergency service line, where it is set by a timer (Clyde strictly being precision in time). This is so that Clyde would fully staged the entire scenario during the hostage situation including the arrival of the police as it is mentioned above. In Clyde’s case he himself was a victim, where he lost his entire family to a crook and was betrayed by the DA for not serving “full” justice towards the crook. Which lead Clyde to take matter into his own hands in getting revenge at the crook and teaching a valuable lesson to the DA. Which is “how does it feel to be a desperate powerless Father and Husband (victim)?”. Clyde never intend to harm the DA’s family. His intention was to show the error of the DA’s way by fighting for what is right (black and white) instead of what is not right/wrong (grey area). And so the movie ends where the DA became a better husband and father to his family while carrying Clyde’s lessons at court.
There’s could also be another few endings 1) Nick learns nothing and as he goes back to his family the same thing that happens to Clyde and his wife and daughter happens to him 2) Clyde wins and escapes undetected from the cage and goes into hiding even after going off the police’s radar and goes some where’s away from the US. 3) Just as Clyde is about to make a decision after hearing Nick has learnt his lesson, Nick’s phone rings and it’s his wife and as he picks it up his wife and daughter calls out for help in quiet and panicked voice and the call ends there and both Nick and Clyde head into a car and drive to Nick’s house and get there in time before two crooks try and do what happened to Clyde’s wife and daughter.
I actually prefer your ending to the movie, I like how you came up with the letter Clyde had left behind proving that they would both become killers if it meant saving their family or exacting revenge.
Did you know: This movie was supposed to end differently with Gerard Butler's character getting his justice. However, Jamie Foxx said he wouldn't do the movie unless his character came out the winner. I wish they had cast someone else and stayed with the original plotline. It would have been a much more satisfying movie.
This movie's ending is such bs lol it's like they realized in the end that the "terrorist" winning in the end isnt exactly pretty good for publication for the movie
Though we want Clyde to win and be free. He did win regardless by senting his message across and forcing the lawyer to break the law and kill him just because he knows he's guilty and the justice system is flawed.
its not about a satisfying ending, its about clyde winning. He wanted to teach Nick that the justice system is flawed and to never make deals with criminals by becoming one himself. In the end he proved his point to Nick and won by making Nick break the law.
What is so clever about the writing is that the lawyers mentor and assistant both saw the error of their ways right before they died. This showed that Sheldon's actions , while I personally thought where justified, still hindered him, because he had made real change, but his rage blinded him to see that. The mentor saying "We where so focused on victories that we lost sight of justice" and the assistant, lamenting the loss of a piece of her, when she was only ever focused on victory instead of helping people. Def pro writing by keeping their stance neutral. The whole movie was just so much Grey Area, where you can see the points from both sides of an argument. SUCH AMAZING WRITING!
This is one of my favorite movies. Saw it in theaters as a teenager when it was first released. I just hated the ending. I wished he would have survived but now as an adult, I understand now that he accepted his own death to be with his family.
Funny thing is, Batman's justice never actually seemed to work. The criminals knew they'll break out again and the cycle starts all over again. In the end Batman had to take more serious measures to stop them. He failed at eliminating crime. All he did was to delay it.
The ending shot of the movie is a zoom into Nick's tie... Earlier it was talked about how Clyde had a tie that would strangle the wearer on its own. Food for thought
9:56 "But Nick still thinks he did the right thing" it would be great if such an idiotic thought could only exist due to fiction, but sadly when looking at reality we can see that it's actually very plausible and happens all the time.
One of the all-time greatest movies to watch over and over again. I still hear it mentioned in barber shops from time to time like Cage and Travolta in "Face Off" guys used to bring up alot
The directors did a great job with the ending. It enrages the audience, leaves them feeling helpless and eager for real justice. In the sense that the viewers will despise the grayhat lawyer/DA and see how only whitehat lawyers are really morally correct.
@@Gbari7 I looked into that and apparently that wasn't true at all. The ending was changed, but many films go through changes like that in development.
Honestly I still think it's a shit ending. Sure it can be provocative, but so is someone literally taking a shit on your desk. The only thing I think they got right was not showing Clyde's corpse/death because that means there could be a sequel. Unbelievably unlikely, but possible.
I know that this film wasn't reviewed well when it came out, but it's a perfect case of why you shouldn't take critic's words as gospel. It's a fantastic film that is incredibly engaging to watch as it's one of the few cases you're actually rooting for the "bad" guy. It's one of my favourite movies and undoubtedly one of Gerard's best.
Honestly "film critics" are a full on inverse measure for me anymore. If a big name critic/website says a movie is terrible ESPECIALLY if they use certain keywords you can be practically guaranteed the movie will be at least meh.
This movie was absolutely amazing, it shows the justice system with no filters but it also shows that clyde is more of a anti-hero than anything, a man driven to spill the blood of those who were responsible for takeing evrything from him. The funny commentary and summary of this video are good as well.
I remember my parents watching this at home, while i was sleeping. I was around 10-11 at that time. I couldn't sleep well so i decided to go to my parents. Of course i had the best luck in the universe and I walked in, just as the burglary happend. I stood there, terrified of what happend and rushed to my bedroom. I couldn't sleep for a few days and I couldn't close my door because I was getting paranoid, thinking that these guys are going to come in and do the same things. I still remember this scene and I think it's attached in my mind. Still a good movie, I watched it after I grew older and this time, I didn't get scared more like I was rooting for Clyde.
Nah...i completely agree with what clyde did. You step over a line once you do something to my family. I agree with what clyde did, i know killing is wrong, but your supposed to put your faith into a system that is supposed to protect you. But when they fail, you take matters into your own hands. Once you take a life that is hold dear, your life is meaningless to me. Once a killer, always a killer. And i will happily become one if you take something like my daughter and or any family member.
I don't know if there's a directors cut or not. But in the final scene Nick the lawyer attended his daughter's recital and the camera angle is focused on his neck tie. In the secret meeting with Clyde's associate he mentioned a hard to kill most wanted man died by a necktie. Just a what if but if there's a directors cut when the camera focusing Nick's necktie goes black there could be whirring sound indicating his neck guillotine is starting to execute. Clyde might have not known he would die but he must have prepared a conditioned weapon against Nick as he prepared for 10 years and he knew their mindset and their behavior even their schedules without being spotted.
@@marcellusb5942 Maybe since he looked very satisfied when Nick denied his deal saying he doesn't deal with killers. Maybe that was his goal since he cut out the corrupted parts.
Clyde didn't have an associate. He did everything himself. This was possible because of the tunnel he had dug to the prison. That's why he wanted a bed, because he could make it look like he was in it, sleeping, whenever he left his cell.
Great film! Gerrard character was well and truly driven to get revenge on the system that let him down, the so called “good guys” who failed him and the perpetrators that ruined his life. He uses all his knowledge, skills and training to prove a point even if it means he loses his own life and privileges in the process.
The first mistake people make is thinking they have a justice system. You don't. You have a legal system. And the difference between the two is as night and day.
The acting skills from Jamie Foxx and Gerad Butler deserves and award, also shout out to the directors, writers and producers this movie is a classic and it makes you think from all perspectives.
Ask this to your selves. What you would've done if you were in Clyde's shoes. I would've made the video public so no lowlife ever, even in his dreams would even cook up such a thing and all prosecutors, judges and cops wouldn't even dare to muster the courage to help the ones responsible. It may sound uncivilized to many, but you wouldn't understand until this happens to you. The people who cook shit up like those thieves may appear human, but i assure you they're not. And that's why they should be made examples so others never feel this invulnerable. They just had to make Clyde a psycho. So that people dont get whats the actual idea of this movie.
I do understand. Revenge is a primal emotional reaction to both prevent further loss to your tribe and to enact a basic form of justice. It is always a poor choice in regards to society, as it leads to spiralled chaos, but I wouldn't ever judge those who do as I would the ones who perpetrated the first offense.
Interesting, so if someone raped and murdered both your wife and 8 year old daughter you would be content with him getting a five year sentence? He'll be out in 3 years. You wouldn't be upset about this because "revenge is a poor choice in regards to society". Well, i don't want to be a part of that so called society. The industrial revolution and its consequences has been a disaster for the human specie.
Good idea! In ye olden times, they'd cut off your hand for stealing. I mean, let's be honest, that worked better than the threat of some jail time. Death sentence should be normal practice. Hell, if I did something to deserve it, I'd choose death over life in prison and spare everyone's time and money.
@@wesswise28 I'll correct you a bit. First there was an inquiry on why he stole and what he stole. If he was really poor and stole for food the punishment was reduced. If not, hand were cut off so it does not happen again. And the punishment was public. As for rape, publicly hit the guy with stones until he's dead. I doubt any criminal no matter how strong will ever want that fate. The main thing is that it inspires fear in criminals and sounds pretty reasonable as well. Lets just face it, what would you do if the victim was a loved one of you.
Awesome movie with a great meaning behind it with how the justice system works. On another note I love the scene @6:07 when he really gives it to the judge.
You know, this type of trope really pisses me off. But I guess it's more rooted in reality with how criminals get off after commuting crimes. So, when these sort of psychopaths commit heinous crimes against innocents, the lawyers and cops are like 'oh, they too deserve a fair trial', 'there was not enough evident', 'they signed a plea deal'. But when the ones who are denied justice take matters in their own hands, they're like 'you're not above the law', 'I won't rest until I've put you behind bars'. The sheer hypocrisy.!
This would've been an awesome Punisher type of series if they would've ended this with Clyde disappearing somehow!!! This was one of the biggest missed opportunities in Hollywood!!!
This is one of my favorite movies to watch. Law Abiding Citzen made me like Gerard Butler because he lost his wife and child and took revenge and justice in his own way because he trusted Jamie Foxxx(Nick) from the beginning, but unfortunately cut a deal with the same killer who murdered Gerard Butler's family which pissed me off, but unfortunately Gerard Butler found and got revenge against the murderer of His loving wife and child. Jamie Foxxx should have done his job better as a lawyer, but unfortunately was too caught up in his own ego and I always felt Jamie Foxxx was a sellout because he was working with these people so that he could look better with them and was too hard headed to understand the difference between who he was and what he is. Jamie Foxxx made me hate his character because Gerard Butler's wife and child were tragically murdered and Jamie Foxxx didn't do a damn thing to help him get justice and Jamie was too blind to see that because he was trying to kiss up to these people that he was working with in the government world and throughout the movie were getting killed left to right such as his coworkers, his boss, even the female judge who was killed by answering her phone in front of Jamie Foxxx and his boss, who was killed later on during the funeral service of their coworkers who were killed in a bomb explosion at the government parking lot. Even though Gerard Butler was killed in the end of the movie, but he was the real hero because he did his own brand of justice for his late wife and child, unlike Jamie Foxxx who was the real villain. Don't get wrong, I like Jamie Foxxx and respect him, but this movie was the one movie that I didn't like Jamie Foxxx because he was too busy being a "sellout", "Uncle Tom ", in this movie because he was trying to fit in into something that he wasn't and always try to prove something to fit his own agenda to advance in life like he was going to be the head of the council or be President of the United States, which was never going to happen. Every I watch this movie, I cheer for Gerard Butler over Jamie Foxxx because not of color, but character.I never respected Jamie Foxxx throughout this movie because of his character. He always proves too much in everything like he was God, which he was not.
