Töte oder stirb

The plot of this TVM revolves around Jeffrey Quint who visits a bar and lets himself get talked into a game of liar's dice by a man called Neil Jones who he has just met and I think the producers might have a problem in getting the audience involved because this set up is difficult to relate to unless you play liar's dice in bars with strange men but I guess all the other plots like being stalked by a policeman who attended to your house after you've been burgled or being stalked by a nanny who looks after your children or being stalked by a flat mate have already been used as plots in films so this only leaves getting stalked by a man you've just met in a bar who plays a game of liar's dice with you as the premise for a story . I've no idea what liar's dice is either

As you might expect Jeffrey rants and raves to the police that someone is trying to kill him while he police don't take him seriously and why should they because we see Neil in a variety of disguises bringing flowers to Mrs Quint which is very nice of him . Well it would be if he wasn't a raving psycho . Why can't we see a film where a stalker is just stalking someone because it gives them a hobby ? I'm sure that's the one plot we haven't seen yet

This is a weak entry in the serial killer genre directed by actor Tim Matheson, with a teleplay by Miguel Tejada-Flores based on a short story "Liar's Dice" by Bill Prozini. At the centre is Ted McGinley, who seems to think sighing is acting, as a family man who is the 13th target of the attentions of Corbin Bernsen. Matheson draws parallels between Bernsen and McGinley, with a satanic stone figure on a bar after Bernsen exits, and a pan from McGinley's lunchtime motel sex with his own wife to the touch of their weddings rings then to a painting of angels. Although Bernsen is livelier than usual his persona is still non-threatening, and McGinley is such a pain that we never empathise with his victimisation. It's like watching a Punch and Judy who never connect. The dice/game metaphor isn't extended, though it may explain the lack of reality of Bernsen's previous behaviour. Matheson casts himself as a private detective with a buzzcut, a Southern accent, and a stuffed alligator on his desk. It's easy to imagine him playing McGinley's role, at times they even look similar, but his part is as negligible as any other here. He supplies the thriller cliches like a frightened cat, but also a Brian DePalma split screen and hand-pans. There is some suspense created from scorpions placed in a bed, but an unsatisfying resolution to their appearance. Perhaps because of the short story source material, this TVM actually reads like an extended anthology episode, with an underpopulated universe and wooden supporting parts, and the DePalma touch is later echoed in McGinley's nightmare, though Matheson's vision isn't as dark.

My continued exploration for movie's with unusual concepts or storylines continued last night when I read about a movie whose plotline looked interesting, a man who chooses his victims at random. This reminded me of one of my favourite parts from 'The Jerk'.

However I found the movie only loosely interesting. I disliked the dream the main character has (that tells you something about the movie - I can't even remember the main character's name) right at the end, it even made me angry.

Potential wasted.