DECEIVER RATING: 7.5 / 10 --> Re-watchable
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This film is reminiscent of two other films helmed by brother writer-directors. The first would be 1996's BOUND (8/10) by the brothers Wachowski, and the other would be BLOOD SIMPLE (8/10), by the ultimate in brother-tandems in the film industry, Joel and Ethan Coen. The twin Pate brothers have orchestrated a solid follow-up to their first film THE GRAVE, which had debuted at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival.
PLOT: A wealthy, arrogant, manipulative alcoholic by the name of Wayland gets interrogated by two tough cops in regards to the murder of a prostitute found chopped in two pieces. Wayland suffers from a serious case of temporal lobe epilepsy, and has had a history of deception. The intense officers also have their own demons, and struggle to determine the truth and the identity of the real killer in this meandering murder mystery.
CRITIQUE: Dark, gritty, engrossing whodunnit, with strong performances by all of its leads, effective storytelling by the way of the Pate brothers (despite its convoluted plot) and a unique, if somewhat overdone, style of directing. This film suggests film noir, but with its proverbial femme fatale chopped in two, I suppose. The entire story basically takes place in one interrogation room, with two uncompromising cops grilling a wealthy suspect, but the superior performances by the actors, the interesting story line, and the unique flashbacks from directors Pate, make this film a suspense filled, original tale of tantalizing inquisitiveness.
It's the type of film that continues to leave you guessing as to the identity of the perpetrator, even after the final frame of the film has been faded out. And it's not in the nasty sense of the plot being too complex, but in the good sense of being able to sit down and discuss it thought-provokingly with others afterwards. If you are the type of person who likes to have their films delivered fresh and clean on their plate, then you will definitely not enjoy this film's unique sense of serpentine narrative. But for all those who relish the idea of actually paying close attention to a film, and utilizing most of your brain's capacities to solve a well-developed mystery, then straddle yourself up for a good time with this enigmatic confection.
Michael Rooker pulls off another convincing performance as the tough guy with an attitude, and Penn demonstrates his capacity to act decently, without having to resort to a swear word every two lines. Tim Roth does come across as the strongest of the bunch with an excellent portrayal of a man whose ambitions, dreams and hopes were lost a long time before his extreme wealth and epileptic condition drove him to psychologically deceptive distractions. The directing is also uniquely envisioned to take full advantage of an otherwise dull setting, but the twin brothers do tend to ambitiously overwork the camera at some points. All in all, this film demonstrates an involved story line with many twists and turns, solid performances by its leads, a unique filming style and an all-around good time for all those looking to untangle a quirky murder mystery.
Little Known Facts about this film and its stars: Renee Zellweger met producer Peter Glatzer and the Pate Brothers at a bus stop in the snow at Sundance in 1996. They had just seen Zellweger in THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD and were so impressed with her performance that the role of Elizabeth was written for her. Shortly thereafter, Zellweger was cast opposite Tom Cruise in the critically-acclaimed hit JERRY MAGUIRE (7.5/10). Renee took her first acting class to ensure graduating from The University of Texas with a literature degree, made her film debut while still in Austin in Richard Linklater's DAZED AND CONFUSED (7/10). Jonas Pate graduated from Princeton University in 1993. His twin brother Josh graduated from Chapel Hill in 1992. The duo joined forces with Peter Glatzer to create THE GRAVE, their first feature film, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 1996. Don't blink because you will miss Ellen Burstyn doing her best impersonation of a "struggling, aging actress playing a bit part in an independent production", as she portrays the bookie Mook in this film. HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER was Michael Rooker's first movie which was filmed in 1986, but was not released until years later. This film was originally titled LIAR. This film was shot entirely in South Carolina, home of the Pate brothers.
Review Date: November 7, 1998
Directors: Jonas and Josh Pate
Writers: Jonas and Josh Pate
Producer: Peter Glatzer
Actors: Tim Roth as Wayland
Chris Penn as Braxton
Michael Rooker as Kennesaw
Renee Zellwegger as Elizabeth Loftus
Genre: Mystery
Year of Release: 1997
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(c) 1998 Berge Garabedian
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