The Contract (2007)

0% of critics liked it
(5 reviews)
30% of users liked it
(18,328 ratings)

Attempting to recover from a recent family trauma by escaping into the woods for a peaceful hiking trip, an ex-lawman and his young son stumble across a dangerous contract killer in director Bruce Beresford's forest-bound thriller. Ray Keene (John Cusack) has lost his wife, and now the grieving… More Attempting to recover from a recent family trauma by escaping into the woods for a peaceful hiking trip, an ex-lawman and his young son stumble across a dangerous contract killer in director Bruce Beresford's forest-bound thriller. Ray Keene (John Cusack) has lost his wife, and now the grieving father is looking to reconnect with his young son (Jamie Anderson) with a much-needed hike into the wilderness. But Ray and his son aren't alone in nature, because high profile assassin Frank Cardin (Morgan Freeman) has ventured into nature with the malevolent intentions of fulfilling a contract to kill an extremely powerful businessman. When Frank's hit goes awry and he ends up in the custody of U.S. Marshalls, the situation quickly spins out of control as a small army of loyal mercenaries draw their guns in a violent attempt to free their notorious compatriot. Later stumbling upon the chaotic situation, Ray does his best to protect his son while ensuring that Frank doesn't escape justice. Though Frank's men aren't willing to let their boss go to prison without a fight, Ray vows to do the right thing as help suddenly comes from the most unlikely of places. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: R, 1 hr. 36 min.
Directed By: Bruce Beresford
Genres: Mystery & Suspense, Drama

In Theaters: Oct 9, 2006 Wide
On DVD: Jul 24, 2007
Studio: First Look Home Entertainment

Critic Reviews

Urban Cinefile Critics, Urban Cinefile
Having read about the extensive problems in financing, scripting and casting of director Bruce Beresford's diaries, I was keen to see the result. Could any film overcome all those problems, including Beresford's own reluctance?
David Cornelius, DVDTalk.com
Little more than a clumsy pile-up of hackneyed themes, one-dimensional characters, and mediocre tension.
David Nusair, Reel Film Reviews
...sporadically intriguing yet thoroughly mediocre...
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com
Even Cusack fans will find his charms in short supply here.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Featured Audience Ratings

Anthony L

The Contract is completely uninteresting. It's riddled with cliches to the point where it looks like a mash up of loads of different films, not particularly good films either. Not sure how it ever got the green light really, another case of 'Big names don't necessarily… More
The Contract is completely uninteresting. It's riddled with cliches to the point where it looks like a mash up of loads of different films, not particularly good films either. Not sure how it ever got the green light really, another case of 'Big names don't necessarily make a great film' - with bells on! Lazy, pointless but above all boring. Even the actors look bored!
Lady D

My predicted rating: 3 Entertaining and easy watching, but it is just a story with nothing special to pull out of the bag. Worth watching if it comes on tv, but missable if you don't.
Jens S

Probably one of the less interesting films of such great names like Freeman or Cusack. The setting isn't even half-bad, but very constructed. The delivery is mediocre at best. Considering this is a thriller, very few exciting things happen. It all stays very predictable and… More
Probably one of the less interesting films of such great names like Freeman or Cusack. The setting isn't even half-bad, but very constructed. The delivery is mediocre at best. Considering this is a thriller, very few exciting things happen. It all stays very predictable and leaves the audience somewhat indifferent. The solution is somewhat random, too. Not boring by any means but entirely fails to enthrall or engage the audience. Which is quite a pity considering what the two male leads could be capable of.
vieras e

Oh Johnny, stop making these mediocre films.
♥˩ƳИИ &

Morgan Freeman, John Cusack, Jamie Anderson, Alice Krige, Megan Dodds, Corey Johnson, William Tapley, Johnathan Hyde, Bill Smitrovich DIRECTED BY: Bruce Beresford While on a hiking trip to reconnect with his son after the death of his wife, Ray Keene (John Cusack) stumbles into… More
Morgan Freeman, John Cusack, Jamie Anderson, Alice Krige, Megan Dodds, Corey Johnson, William Tapley, Johnathan Hyde, Bill Smitrovich DIRECTED BY: Bruce Beresford While on a hiking trip to reconnect with his son after the death of his wife, Ray Keene (John Cusack) stumbles into a nightmare scenario of paid assassins and ex-military guns-for-hire. Frank Cardin (Morgan Freeman) is attempting to fulfill a contract to assassinate a high profile businessman when things go awry and he ends up in the custody of the U.S. Marshalls. After an ill-fated attempt by his compatriots to free him Frank finds himself in the custody of ex-lawman Ray and his son (Jamie Anderson). As the trio tries to make their way back to civilization they are relentlessly pursued by Frank's friends who are intent on freeing their leader in order to collect on the contract. But one pursuer may be more foe than friend. This movie was OK. Was a bit slow and didn't really have a lot of action in it. Could have done with some more. But the acting was good by Cusack, Freeman, and Anderson. Good enough story. The slow pace and the lack of action is the only problem with this movie. Besides that, it was a entertaining enough for a lazy Sunday night.
Lanning :

Morgan Freeman and John Cusack. Two of my favorites. A dream match-up, right? Well, yes and no. Can't say I could recommend this one, even for one viewing, The plot's thinner than the curry at Paradise Palms, despite a decent premise. Just because we all begin with… More
Morgan Freeman and John Cusack. Two of my favorites. A dream match-up, right? Well, yes and no. Can't say I could recommend this one, even for one viewing, The plot's thinner than the curry at Paradise Palms, despite a decent premise. Just because we all begin with curry powder does not necessarily mean we will all be heralded as heroes of curry cuisine by all of our curry-loving acquaintances once our various concoctions are plated up and served. I do especially like the idea of Freeman as a professional killer; however, he's definitely needing a stronger story to give him more to work with. Gentlemen, I give you both mulligans. One more time, gentlemen. Please.
Dan S

One of the dumber movies I've seen in a while. Two A-listers in Cusack and Freeman are completely wasted, with a script that has some of the worst dialogue I've ever heard, as well as a plot that is so formulaic and full of dumb cliches and unconvincing characters, I… More
One of the dumber movies I've seen in a while. Two A-listers in Cusack and Freeman are completely wasted, with a script that has some of the worst dialogue I've ever heard, as well as a plot that is so formulaic and full of dumb cliches and unconvincing characters, I don't know why it was even made.
Film C

i liked it relli good its different to some films the con has already been arrested and its just reli good worth a watch!
Al S

A riveting and pulse-pounding cat and mouse action-thriller. Stunningly exciting and explosively entertaining. Smart, sharp and fantastic. Packed with intelligent action and white-knuckle tension. A heart-racing film righ till the end. Morgan Freeman and John Cusack are teriffic. A… More
A riveting and pulse-pounding cat and mouse action-thriller. Stunningly exciting and explosively entertaining. Smart, sharp and fantastic. Packed with intelligent action and white-knuckle tension. A heart-racing film righ till the end. Morgan Freeman and John Cusack are teriffic. A great standoff between two captivating and dynamic talents. Freeman creates a slick, likeable, charasmatic and unpredictable villian. Cusack is calm, collective and satisfying. Character driven, intelligent and complex. Top notch excitment that never lets up for an instant. Wickedly cool and brilliant. It will keep you on the edge of your seat. Gripping and relentlessly memerising. This is an awsome movie.
Bruce B

Two of My Favorite Male Actors are in this one. John Cusack and Morgan Freeman. Seems liek any movie Morgan is in is Gold these days, Slowly creeping up on Sean Connery. Excellevt theme great shots, watching how they made the movie is as good as the film. Just shy of 5
Craig S

Directed by: Bruce Beresford. Starring: Morgan Freeman, John Cusack, Jamie Anderson. I am going to have fun writing this review..... I walked through the video store tonight with literally nothing on my mine… More
Directed by: Bruce Beresford. Starring: Morgan Freeman, John Cusack, Jamie Anderson. I am going to have fun writing this review..... I walked through the video store tonight with literally nothing on my mine to see, The Contract caught my eye and I saw two big names on the cover...John Cusack and Morgan Freeman. All of a sudden, I had this urge to see it, not because of the actors, but because of the fact that I hoped the film would be so bad, that my point might become clear to the narrow minded mainstream audience that 'actors do not make films'....I was glad that I was right. The story follows a mercenary assassin planning his next big hit, he has the team ready and everything set to perfection....until he is involved in a car accident. The doctors find a gun on him and call the police, who run him for prints and find him to be Frank Cardin, an assassin supposedly MIA 30 years before. When the FBI transport him to the station, his men try to rescue him, but the car falls into a river and is carried by the drift downstream. This is where ex-cop Ray Keene comes in, where his wife has died and his son is distant, he tries to 'bond' by taking his son on a camping trip, this is where they find Frank and an injured FBI agent floating down river and Ray believes it to be the right thing to take Frank to justice, but Frank's men and an undercover agent are chasing the group with different expectations. I really couldn't believe how terribly bland the film was from start to finish, I really tried to dig deep for some good quality, but I couldn't find one. The screenplay was so badly scattered and terribly written, not to mention the many holes for you to drive your car through. Each individual character is so vastly undeveloped, that we never grasp onto them, which is what the film aims for. You have the assassin, who has no depth or characteristics to be compelling, a group of men who have little to no logic in any situation, from their dry humor to their pure stupidity, there is no point for them to be there. We also have the father and son, where the screenwriters try to create sentimental depth for the relationship but the key thing they forgot to do was actually focus on it.....and the random women who enters halfway through the film, who gets one line of dialogue asked to her about 'who she is and where she comes from' and then BAM....she enters the life of the father and son in the end....I was just waiting for the son to turn around and say "Would you be my new mummy?". The direction is bland, lifeless and vision less, there are no redeeming qualities of Bruce Beresford's direction that can lift the film out of the massive hole it is already in (the man directed Double Jeopardy, so it was expected). Now this brings me back to the actors, as I mentioned, the marketing for a majority of films are the actors, where they happily stick big faces of them on DVD's covers. This draws in the mainstream audience who hire it purely for that fact, thinking it will be a good film...I'm very happy to say (again), that they are wrong as always. Morgan Freeman, as we all know, is an outstanding actor of great depth and in the right roles, he shows brilliance....he comes across as lifeless and bland here for good reason....taking on a character with no depth, smarts or characteristics of what he is meant to be. John Cusack really does try but with nothing to work with, he sits in the background and never takes off auto-pilot....and I hope Jamie Anderson never works again (enough said). All this mixed together terribly with a ending so stupid (the assassin suddenly has a heart......where?), that it keeps the film way down in the shit pile. I wish I could have said that it is a decent thriller to watch on a Saturday night....but you can find better toilet paper then this.
Dean M

Great gripping action-adventure with John Cusack and Morgan Freeman that makes an excellent companion piece to survivalist thrillers like Cliffhanger and The Hunted.
Arash X

A good way to waste 96 min
Sol C

The film in my opinion is a modern version of 3:10 To Yuma. Morgan Freeman in the Russell Crowe role and John Cusack in the Christian Bale role. Some scenes in the film are too similar to 3:10 To Yuma. On a positive, both Cusack and Freeman shine in this film. Alice Krige also does a… More
The film in my opinion is a modern version of 3:10 To Yuma. Morgan Freeman in the Russell Crowe role and John Cusack in the Christian Bale role. Some scenes in the film are too similar to 3:10 To Yuma. On a positive, both Cusack and Freeman shine in this film. Alice Krige also does a good job too. On a negative, the cinematography and editing in the film isn't good. Scenes at night aren't done well. They aren't lit well. It is hard to tell what is going on action wise during night scenes. I think another director could have done a better job. I say the film is worth checking out for Freeman and Cusack's performances, but I liked 3:10 To Yuma better.
Deb S

Disappointing!
Aurelius D

Notthe greatest movie ever. John plays a dad looking after his son after they lose their mom. Morgan plays a guy who hires people to kill other people. Just like star crossed lovers they meet and bam there is this movie. Rather slow and nothing to write home about. If you got nothing… More
Notthe greatest movie ever. John plays a dad looking after his son after they lose their mom. Morgan plays a guy who hires people to kill other people. Just like star crossed lovers they meet and bam there is this movie. Rather slow and nothing to write home about. If you got nothing better to do this isn't a horrible choice.
Angela A

Watched about 20 minutes of it and I was bored bored bored.
Stefan P

Pretty good premise and cast but the plot is very thin and surrealistic. The story is predictable and in the sentimental scenes it's hard to feel sympathy due to bad character development.
ken j

The Contract starring John Cusack and Morgan Freeman is a pretty good suspense triller but does come with the usual holes in story and character. When Ray Keene played by Cusack decided to take his son camping to reconnect it doesnt go as well as he had hoped while walking along the… More
The Contract starring John Cusack and Morgan Freeman is a pretty good suspense triller but does come with the usual holes in story and character. When Ray Keene played by Cusack decided to take his son camping to reconnect it doesnt go as well as he had hoped while walking along the river they stumble upon Freeman handcuffed and the agent that was bringing him to justice the agent dies and it is up to Cusack to bring him in while a group of hitman are hot on his trail. all and all worth checking out performances arent top notch for these two but a fun movie none the less
Lee K

Considering the cast i found this disapointing and boring at times.