Colors of Crime

An appropriately scruffy-looking Jeff Fahey turns in a believable and energetic performance as a police sketch artist who draws what he believes may be his wife based on a description by a murder witness, and must then balance his work duties while trying to figure out what happened. Sketch Artist is a typical 1990s crime thriller in pacing and plot development, for good or worse, but the direction is slick and the film plays out like a sexy foreplay; the premise is intriguing, the music enticing, and there is steam in the air. That is until the finale, which features cardboard bad guys who would seem more at place being cuffed by Mickey Mouse than exposed by a wolf-like Fahey. A young Drew Barrymore impresses in the few scenes she has as the witness.

Jeff Fahey stars as a sketch artist who basically takes a witness's(Drew Barrymore) details who then describes the sketch artist's wife (Sean Young) in denial about this Fahey launches his own investigation finding out secrets about his wife and her lover's shaky business ventures. Sketch Artist is actually far better than you would expect, for instance the film is downbeat and features characters who are cynical and willing to protect their own interests. Which brings us to our hero in Jeff Fahey who draws the picture wrong because he wants to keep his wife from being suspect. In real life things like this are not black and white, although people tend to find these antics unlikable it goes without saying that it gives more reality and dimension to a story that could be easily routine and transparent. While the story itself is routine, the story's downbeat angle and film noir style make this an interesting effort. A better than average TV movie if there ever was one.

* * * out of 4-(Good)

Daisy (Drew Barrymore) encounters a woman on her delivery. Sketch artist Jack Whitfield (Jeff Fahey) helps Daisy recover the woman's face who is suspected have killed Tommy Silvers. He is shocked to see the resemblance to his wife Rayanne (Sean Young). He changes the picture before handing it in to Lieutenant Tonelli. There is strain in his marriage and he wonders if she has something on the side. As his fake sketch leads to a suspect, he starts investigating on his own. He is shocked again to find out Rayanne is working for Silvers.

This needs much more intensity. The idea of a thriller centering on the police sketch artist is interesting. The movie sets it up pretty well. It needs more Barrymore as the damsel in distress. The movie falls flat as Fahey is left to his own device. The premise may be good but it's a long slow downhill slide in this non-thrilling thriller.

Sketch Artist is a rare and hard to find TV movie that is vastly under rated. Jeff Fahey plays the lead role and turns in a solid performance (even sporting his epic mullet and smoking a LOT of cigarettes). There are some fine supporting actors like Drew Barrymore, Sean Young, and Charlotte Lewis. The film plays like a big budget sex thriller and keeps the suspense and double crosses high. Its one of the better thrillers I've seen recently. Another good flick to check out is Past Midnight with Rutger Hauer. Added to the queue and enjoy. Great soundtrack as well. The sequel ("hands that see death") isn't as enjoyable but is competently made.

"Sketch Artist" feels like just about everyone involved in making the movie - the actors, director, and writer - has the life sucked out of them before filming started. To begin with, take the title character, played by Jeff Fahey. There is no particular reason why we feel we should get involved in his plight. He is almost completely without emotion or passion, his appearance is sloppy, he makes some pretty dumb decisions, and his investigation of the mystery is done incredibly slowly, like he just doesn't care about what could happen to him. The director didn't seem to care about his character as well. There's no feeling of tension or panic anywhere in the movie, and the climax has the impact of a wet noodle hitting the ground.

I will admit that Drew Barrymore, in a limited role, does give a surprisingly decent performance. And it's always fun to see bald-headed actor James Tolkan play another authority figure, though his role is limited as well. But neither actor is given enough to make the movie worth watching.