| Harsh Times | |
| Director: | David Ayer |
| Producer: | David Ayer Andrea Sperling |
| Starring: | Christian Bale Freddy Rodriguez Eva Longoria Terry Crews Noel Gugliemi |
| Music: | Graeme Revell |
| Cinematography: | Steve Mason |
| Editing: | Conrad Buff |
| Studio: | Bauer Martinez Entertainment Crave Films |
| Distributor: | MGM Distribution Co. (United States) Summit Entertainment (International)[1] |
| Runtime: | 116 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Budget: | $2 million |
| Gross: | $6 million[2] |
Harsh Times is a 2005 American action crime film written and directed by David Ayer in his directorial debut. Set in South Central Los Angeles, the film stars Christian Bale and Freddy Rodriguez. The film was distributed by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Bauer Martinez Entertainment. Ayer says that the film's characters are largely based on the people he knew when he lived in South Central Los Angeles.
Former U.S. Army Ranger and GWOT veteran Jim Davis suffers from PTSD. Jim has a Mexican girlfriend, Marta, whom he is determined to marry and bring into the United States to start a life together. With this in mind, Jim returns to Los Angeles, California.
There, Jim meets up with his best friend Mike Alonzo. Mike's longtime girlfriend, Sylvia, a young attorney, is "on the warpath" over his failure to get a job (his previous job was outsourced) and she encourages Jim to help Mike hand out resumes. After being denied a position in the LAPD for failing the psychological profile, Jim gets drunk with Mike.
The two visit Jim's ex-girlfriend. When her current boyfriend shows up, a fight ensues in which he is backed up by a group of friends. Jim manages to get the upper hand and when Mike produces a gun, they subdue the men and rob them of their possessions, including marijuana and a handgun which they decide to sell. Jim later leaves messages on Mike's answering machine with different voices, pretending to be companies responding to his resume.
The next day, Jim goes to Mike and finds Sylvia in a good mood due to the fake callbacks. Jim and Mike go to a "paisa" bar to try selling the gun but leave after their potential buyer is killed. Mike is horrified, but Jim is excited by witnessing death again.
When Mike arrives back home drunk, Sylvia is upset, so he plays back the answering machine, unaware that his friend did not hang up early enough and his voice is heard on the tape. Sylvia is enraged and throws Mike out. He stays at Jim's place. Jim gets shortlisted for a position with the Department of Homeland Security, but, after cheating to pass a urine test, he fails a polygraph test due to a question about his drug use. The only hope left for him is a government agent working out of Colombia, who appreciates Jim's ability to "get things done"; Jim accepts the position but is warned that he must not marry a foreigner. Jim is told to report to FLETC in a few days. Meanwhile, Mike gets a job with a company managed by an old friend.
Mike goes to visit Sylvia and tells her he has a job for real. She calms down and the two make love. Impatient, Jim goes inside and tells Sylvia that Mike is coming to Mexico with him for the weekend, as it is their last chance to hang out. Sylvia is angry and against the idea, but Mike decides to go with Jim and Toussant to Mexico.
In Mexico, the trio attends a big party where Marta reveals she is pregnant, and Jim responds violently, threatening to punch her in the stomach and shoot her in the head. Seeing this from afar, Mike urges Toussant and Jim to leave for home. After Jim drives home in a belligerent state, Toussant urges him to get help. Toussant will cut off all contact until Jim does so. Afterward, Jim reveals to Mike he is transporting 20 kilos of marijuana. When Mike protests, Jim pulls a gun on him, before breaking down in tears, horrified at what he is becoming. Mike, filled with pity for his friend, agrees to accompany Jim to the deal. After arriving, they realize one of the buyers was the same man they had earlier robbed.
Hostility ensues with both Jim and the other gang members pulling out guns, resulting in the man's death. The rest of the buying party plead for their lives, but Jim nonetheless kills them. While Jim and Mike are escaping, a man comes from the house and shoots at their car; Jim is hit in the back and face and subsequently paralyzed.
He urges Mike to "step up" and shoot him, thus ending his suffering. After some hesitation, the two say their goodbyes, and Mike kills Jim. Mike then returns to Sylvia. While they embrace, Mike breaks down crying.
Christian Bale won praise for his portrayal of Jim Davis. The website's critical consensus reads, "Despite a dedicated performance by Christian Bale, Harsh Times suffers from a heavy-handed and overly bleak plot."[3] According to Metacritic, which calculated a weighted average score of 56 out of 100 based on 24 critics, the film received "mixed or average reviews".[4]