WEBBTIDE 2001-2002 @ SHORELINE COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Volume 37 No.17 Jun. 07 - Jun. 19, 2002 [ ARCHIVE ] [ FEEDBACK ] [ HELP ]
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'Changing Lanes' depicts road rage gone wrong

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      Changing Lanes starring Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson, is a film that takes place in New York City in present day. Ben Affleck is a young, arrogant, Wall Street Attorney who is married to one of his law firm partner's daughters (played by Amanda Peet).
      Samuel L. Jackson is a recovering alcoholic working as an insurance salesman. He has recently been divorced and his wife is planning on leaving New York with their two young sons to take a job in Portland, Oregon.
      Gaven Banek (Affleck) is the legal counsel for Simon Dunn who has recently passed away. Dunn was a businessman in New York known for his charity work for the children there. He established a charity organization worth over $ 107 million. Right before Dunn's death, Banek was able to get him to sign a Power of Appointment, granting Banek's Lawfirm and partners power over the charity. Immediately after Dunn's death, Banek's law partners eliminated the charity's board and took sole control of it and its money. Dunn's daughter Mita sues the lawfirm, unaware of the Power of Appointment her father signed.
      Doyle Gipson (Samuel L. Jackson) wants to stop his wife from taking his children to Oregon so he can be near his children and reconcile with his wife. He has purchased a house in Queens, New York as a place for all of them to live. He has a firm belief that boys need their father. In commitment to buying a house for them, he hopes he will persuade a judge from letting his wife take off with the kids.
      Gipson's and Banek's worlds collide on the F.D.R. Drive in New York. While stuck in heavy traffic and both late for court appearances they sideswipe each other's cars when changing lanes. Banek's car, after the wreck is drivable, Gipson's is not.
      When Gipson asks for Banek's insurance card, Banek gets out his briefcase and attempts to write Gipson a blank check for the repair of Gipson's car. Gipson wants to do things right and refuses the check from Banek. Banek decides to leave since he has to get to his court appearance and when Gipson asks for a ride Banek arrogantly says, "Better luck next time," as he drives away.
      When Banek arrives at court for the hearing concerning Mita's lawsuit he realizes that he lost the Power of Appointment file at the scene of the wreck as he dug through his briefcase. The judge tells Banek that only the original copy will be accepted and that it must be delivered to the court by the end of the day. Without this copy Mita can sue the Lawfirm for fraud and Banek and his partners could face jail time for criminal charges.
      Gipson arrives to court 20 minutes late after hitchhiking in and as he enters the courtroom his court hearing is just finishing. The judge did not want to waste time and both started and concluded the hearing without Gipson being present. He does not get the chance to present the fact that he has bought a house and wants to reconcile with his wife.
      The stage is set for the feud between Banek and Gipson. Banek needs his file back and Gipson wants his time back so he can make his court appearance. The feud gets bitter and Banek pays someone to hack into the credit computer system and destroy Gipson's credit history so that he cannot get approved for his home loan.
      Gipson loosens the lug nuts on Banek's car so that the front wheel falls of and he loses control of his car. After a long day of feuding Gipson and Banek start to realize that they themselves are not good people.
      Banek realizes this when he finds out that the two top law partners of his firm stand to each get $1.5 million by defrauding the charity. Banek questions the law's ethics and why he became an attorney. Gipson realizes that he is a very angry man and has not been a good father which is why his ex-wife wants to leave New York.
      I thought the actors in this movie did a great job in their roles. Samuel L. Jackson does a good part playing a frustrated, angry man who just wants things to go right in his life. Ben Affleck does a good job portraying a young, spoiled, arrogant attorney who has had privileges his whole life that most can only dream of. I liked how the movie kept going back and forth between the two main characters, showing the frustrations and bitterness each had towards each other and their own lives. At first I thought the movie trailer gave away too much of the movie, however the ending was a surprise that I could not have guessed. I saw the movie as a matinee, but would pay full price to see it.

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by Stephan Kullberg

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'Changing Lanes' depicts road rage gone wrong
.	Changing Lanes starring Ben Affleck and Samuel L. Jackson, is a film that takes place in New York City in present day. Ben Affleck is a young, arrogant, Wall Street Attorney who is married to one of his law firm partner's daughters (played by Amanda Peet). Samuel L. Jackson is a recovering alcoholic working as an insurance salesman. He has recently been divorced and his wife is planning on leaving New York with their two young sons to take a job in Portland, Oregon. Gaven Banek (Affleck) is the legal counsel for Simon Dunn who has recently passed away. Dunn was a businessman in New York known for his charity work for the children there. He established a charity organization worth over $ 107 million. Right before Dunn's death, Banek was able to get him to sign a Power of Appointment, granting Banek's Lawfirm and partners power over the charity. Immediately after Dunn's death, Banek's law partners eliminated the charity's board and took sole control of it and its money. Dunn's daughter Mita sues the lawfirm, unaware of the Power of Appointment her father signed. Doyle Gipson (Samuel L. Jackson) wants to stop his wife from taking his children to Oregon so he can be near his children and reconcile with his wife. He has purchased a house in Queens, New York as a place for all of them to live. He has a firm belief that boys need their father. In commitment to buying a house for them, he hopes he will persuade a judge from letting his wife take off with the kids. Gipson's and Banek's worlds collide on the F.D.R. Drive in New York. While stuck in heavy traffic and both late for court appearances they sideswipe each other's cars when changing lanes. Banek's car, after the wreck is drivable, Gipson's is not. When Gipson asks for Banek's insurance card, Banek gets out his briefcase and attempts to write Gipson a blank check for the repair of Gipson's car. Gipson wants to do things right and refuses the check from Banek. Banek decides to leave since he has to get to his court appearance and when Gipson asks for a ride Banek arrogantly says, "Better luck next time," as he drives away. When Banek arrives at court for the hearing concerning Mita's lawsuit he realizes that he lost the Power of Appointment file at the scene of the wreck as he dug through his briefcase. The judge tells Banek that only the original copy will be accepted and that it must be delivered to the court by the end of the day. Without this copy Mita can sue the Lawfirm for fraud and Banek and his partners could face jail time for criminal charges. Gipson arrives to court 20 minutes late after hitchhiking in and as he enters the courtroom his court hearing is just finishing. The judge did not want to waste time and both started and concluded the hearing without Gipson being present. He does not get the chance to present the fact that he has bought a house and wants to reconcile with his wife. The stage is set for the feud between Banek and Gipson. Banek needs his file back and Gipson wants his time back so he can make his court appearance. The feud gets bitter and Banek pays someone to hack into the credit computer system and destroy Gipson's credit history so that he cannot get approved for his home loan. Gipson loosens the lug nuts on Banek's car so that the front wheel falls of and he loses control of his car. After a long day of feuding Gipson and Banek start to realize that they themselves are not good people. Banek realizes this when he finds out that the two top law partners of his firm stand to each get $1.5 million by defrauding the charity. Banek questions the law's ethics and why he became an attorney. Gipson realizes that he is a very angry man and has not been a good father which is why his ex-wife wants to leave New York. I thought the actors in this movie did a great job in their roles. Samuel L. Jackson does a good part playing a frustrated, angry man who just wants things to go right in his life. Ben Affleck does a good job portraying a young, spoiled, arrogant attorney who has had privileges his whole life that most can only dream of. I liked how the movie kept going back and forth between the two main characters, showing the frustrations and bitterness each had towards each other and their own lives. At first I thought the movie trailer gave away too much of the movie, however the ending was a surprise that I could not have guessed. I saw the movie as a matinee, but would pay full price to see it.	.
by Stephan Kullberg