Law Abiding Citizen

2009

Law Abiding Citizen

Critics Consensus

Unnecessarily violent and unflinchingly absurd, Law Abiding Citizen is plagued by subpar acting and a story that defies reason.

26%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 159

75%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 517,243

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Movie Info

Jamie Foxx stars as an assistant DA who finds himself at the mercy of a spiteful vigilante (Gerard Butler) hell-bent on avenging the death of his wife and daughter, whose murderers are set free due to legal loopholes. F. Gary Gray (The Italian Job) directs from a script by Frank Darabont and Kurt Wimmer. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
  • Rating:
    R (for strong bloody brutal violence and torture, a scene of rape, and pervasive language)
  • Genre:
    Drama, Mystery & Suspense
  • Directed By:
    F. Gary Gray
  • Written By:
    Kurt Wimmer, Frank Darabont
  • In Theaters:
     wide
  • On Disc/Streaming:
  • Box Office:
    $73,343,413
  • Runtime:
  • Studio:
    Overture Films

Cast

Jamie Foxx
as Nick Rice
Gerard Butler
as Clyde Shelton
Colm Meaney
as Detective Dunnigan
Bruce McGill
as Jonas Cantrell
Leslie Bibb
as Sarah Lowell
Michael Irby
as Detective Garza
Regina Hall
as Kelly Rice
Gregory Itzin
as Waren Iger
Emerald Angel Young
as Denise Rice
Christian Stolte
as Clarence Darby
Annie Corley
as Judge Laura Burch
Richard Portnow
as Billy Reynolds
Viola Davis
as Mayor April Henry
Michael Kelly
as Bray
Josh Stewart
as Rupert Ames
Roger Bart
as Brian Bringham
Dan Bittner
as Sereno
Evan Hart
as Collins
Reno Laquintano
as Dwight Dixon
Jason Babinsky
as Del Frisco Waiter
Richard Barlow
as Older Cop
Greg Young
as SWAT Captain
Jim Gushue
as SWAT Troop #1
Charlie Edward Alston
as Inmate
Anthony Lawton
as Trunk Cop
Julian Marzal
as Sheriff at Shed
David Villalobos
as Print Reporter
Ksenia Hulayev
as Clyde's Daughter
Brooke Stacy Mills
as Clyde's Wife
Brooke Mills
as Clyde's Wife
Todd Lewis
as Cop
Bijean Ngo
as Marvelle
Cecelia Birt
as Nick's Assistant
Cecelia Ann Birt
as Nick's Assitant
Lamont Clayton
as FBI Agent
Lynn Boianelli
as Princess on Air Mattress
Dave Huddleston
as Newscaster at Execution
Gabra Zackman
as Another Reporter
Brian Anthony Wilson
as Homeland Security Supervisor
Stephanie Humphrey
as Local Newscaster #1
Tracy Toth
as Local Newscaster #2
Patrick F. McDade
as Charlie - City Hall Security
Jim Fitzpatrick
as Messenger
Lawrence Laravela
as Bailiff #1
Lawrence Laravella
as Bailiff #1
Barbara Lambert
as Bailiff #2
Timothy Whiteside
as Prison Guard
Nakia Dillard
as City Hall Sheriff
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News & Interviews for Law Abiding Citizen

RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Law Abiding Citizen and Black Dynamite
Critics Consensus: Where the Wild Things Are Is A Wild Rumpus
Five Favorite Films with F. Gary Gray
View All

Critic Reviews for Law Abiding Citizen

All Critics (159) | Top Critics (39) | Fresh (41) | Rotten (118)

  • For large portions of Law Abiding Citizen we're not sure who is going to be the winner here, nor who we want to be, and though it won't make for much of a date flick, as far as intelligent action flicks go, it gets two big burly thumbs up.

    January 30, 2010 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…

    Giles Hardie

    Sydney Morning Herald
    Top Critic

  • While Law Abiding Citizen is in no sense a successful work of art, a film that offers the illicit thrill of cheering on an all-American terrorist is at least pursuing something more complex than ''moral clarity''.

    January 28, 2010 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

    Jake Wilson

    The Age (Australia)
    Top Critic

  • Bloodshed and torture abound in this sadistic thriller with pretensions.

    January 26, 2010 | Rating: 1/5 | Full Review…

    Sandra Hall

    Sydney Morning Herald
    Top Critic

  • Sadly, there's nothing here but bloody off-cuts from 'Death Wish', 'Saw' and 'The Silence of the Lambs', in roughly that order.

    November 27, 2009 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…

    Nigel Floyd

    Time Out
    Top Critic

  • Full of incoherent, spitting rage, ignorant, paranoid violence and a complete lack of internal logic.

    November 27, 2009 | Rating: 1/5 | Full Review…

    Wendy Ide

    Times (UK)
    Top Critic

  • It's silly and nasty at the same time: not a good combination.

    November 27, 2009 | Rating: 1/5 | Full Review…

    Peter Bradshaw

    Guardian
    Top Critic
View All Critic Reviews (159)

Audience Reviews for Law Abiding Citizen

  • Feb 29, 2016
    One of the early takes of the by now popular be-careful-who-you-mess-with cautionary revenge epics Hollywood produces, cause-he-might-be-a-retired-super-spy. Tension is quickly ratcheted up and stays there until the conclusion, all performers ably contributing. A decent thriller.
    Kevin M. W Super Reviewer
  • May 14, 2013
    Fun and exciting. I enjoyed it a great deal.
    Christian C Super Reviewer
  • Jan 10, 2013
    Law Abiding Citizen is entertaining, but not much else. The plot is so implausible and unbelievable that it's almost laughable. Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx as well as the rest of the cast deliver sup-par performances as well making Law Abiding Citizen an entertaining, confusing, implausible mess. Don't waste your time unless you want a brainless action movie.
    Raymond W Super Reviewer
  • Dec 26, 2012
    "Law Abiding Citizen" is a remarkable adrenaline-pumping movie experience that is unexpectedly very intriguing. This is one of the few movies that has the audience take sides of the antagonist rather than the protagonist; and although the movie had a remarkable plot, the ending was unfulfilling and implausible to conclude the movie as 'fully satisfying'.
    Dutch E Super Reviewer
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