Perhaps it was my slightly lowered expectations, but I found this movie to be perfectly adequate and competent. I thought it was interesting and I was drawn to the screen until the end.
It's got that moody film noir look to it, and there were times when the lighting wasn't too flattering on the cast. I guess kudos should go out to the stars who didn't mind being seen in such a light (though none of them ever looked really bad). And true, the plot was somewhat complex at times, but I didn't have too much trouble following it, and I am notorious for forgetting characters' names and losing track of extremely intricate plot details.
Tom Berenger gave a very convincing and heartfelt performance as an
antisocial policeman who, admittedly, is no longer in the full blush of youth. While Berenger may be thicker around the middle than he was in the days of
"Major League", he looked just fine for the (presumably) 40-something character he was playing. Besides, his hair always looked great, so that's gotta be worth something.
Lori Heuring never seemed to give off much charisma as far as I am concerned
(but I may not be appreciating all of her assets, since I am female). But, she was competent in her role. Barry Newman, Soon Tek-Oh and the rest of the cast
were fine as well.
The plot was interesting, with plenty of twists that kept me guessing until the end. I enjoyed seeing a film that was a little more unpredictable. Extra points go for keeping me on my toes! (I usually pride myself in being able to guess "who dunnit" early in the film, but not so with this movie.)
While the pace of this movie may have been slow at times, it didn't bother me that much. The romance in this movie (such as it was) seemed rather flat as
well. However, this was still a perfectly satisfactory movie, and while far from perfect, certainly is worth a look if you are interested in moody noir-type
mysteries.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****SPOILER ALERT*******SPOILER ALERT******
DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO FIND OUT A VAGUE BUT IMPORTANT DETAIL ABOUT THE END OF THIS FILM!
There is a scene early in the film where the Berenger character is talking to the guy who works in the morgue, and says to him, "Boy, I hope I never end up on
one of your slabs." My ears pricked up, and I had this sinking feeling that
Berenger's character would, indeed, end up on a slab in the morgue by the end of the film. I was SO glad when my hunch turned out to be incorrect. I guess I'm turning into an old softie, but I hate seeing the protagonist / hero end up on a slab at the end of a movie!
It's got that moody film noir look to it, and there were times when the lighting wasn't too flattering on the cast. I guess kudos should go out to the stars who didn't mind being seen in such a light (though none of them ever looked really bad). And true, the plot was somewhat complex at times, but I didn't have too much trouble following it, and I am notorious for forgetting characters' names and losing track of extremely intricate plot details.
Tom Berenger gave a very convincing and heartfelt performance as an
antisocial policeman who, admittedly, is no longer in the full blush of youth. While Berenger may be thicker around the middle than he was in the days of
"Major League", he looked just fine for the (presumably) 40-something character he was playing. Besides, his hair always looked great, so that's gotta be worth something.
Lori Heuring never seemed to give off much charisma as far as I am concerned
(but I may not be appreciating all of her assets, since I am female). But, she was competent in her role. Barry Newman, Soon Tek-Oh and the rest of the cast
were fine as well.
The plot was interesting, with plenty of twists that kept me guessing until the end. I enjoyed seeing a film that was a little more unpredictable. Extra points go for keeping me on my toes! (I usually pride myself in being able to guess "who dunnit" early in the film, but not so with this movie.)
While the pace of this movie may have been slow at times, it didn't bother me that much. The romance in this movie (such as it was) seemed rather flat as
well. However, this was still a perfectly satisfactory movie, and while far from perfect, certainly is worth a look if you are interested in moody noir-type
mysteries.
*****SPOILER ALERT*****SPOILER ALERT*******SPOILER ALERT******
DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT TO FIND OUT A VAGUE BUT IMPORTANT DETAIL ABOUT THE END OF THIS FILM!
There is a scene early in the film where the Berenger character is talking to the guy who works in the morgue, and says to him, "Boy, I hope I never end up on
one of your slabs." My ears pricked up, and I had this sinking feeling that
Berenger's character would, indeed, end up on a slab in the morgue by the end of the film. I was SO glad when my hunch turned out to be incorrect. I guess I'm turning into an old softie, but I hate seeing the protagonist / hero end up on a slab at the end of a movie!