Probable Cause

"Probable Cause" is a 1994 TV-movie starring Michael Ironside and Kate Vernon, and featuring Craig T. Nelson.

Someone is killing police officers, but Gary Yanuck (Ironside) has his own problems. He is accused of sexually harassing another officer (Brooke Adams, in a minuscule role) and has refused to apologize, claiming he did not lay a hand on her. He's under a cloud. He's assigned a new partner, Lynn Reilly (Vernon) who is an odd duck. She occasionally passes out and other times seems out of it. Worried, Yanuck approaches her psychiatrist and, after handing him a phony warrant, learns that Lynn was married before but doesn't remember her marriage. Later we learn that something terrible happened to her that she can't remember. In the meantime, she appears to sleepwalk.

When she discovers an important pattern to the murders, Yanuck realizes that she's in danger and may be, in fact, the next victim.

This is a slow film and because Kate Vernon plays a psychologically repressed woman and has to walk around pretty zombie-like most of the time, her performance doesn't add much spark to the movie. Michael Ironside as a cop was very good, but I didn't find him particularly likable. So I wasn't very invested in either character.

The end was not surprising on one hand and on the other, had a slight twist. Not sure it was worth it.

Kate Vernon was around a lot in the '80s, and she's still very active, but I never watched Battlestar Galactica or other shows in which she appeared. She is a better actress than you would believe in this film.

Wasn't impressed.

Police detective Gary Yanuck (Michael Ironside) is facing sexual harassment accusation from his previous partner (Brooke Adams). He's told to treat his new partner Lynn Reilly (Kate Vernon) with extra care while searching for a cop killer. She is struggling with sleepwalking and other personal issues.

This is a police crime mystery drama. There are way too many long slow quiet scenes. They are trying to build atmosphere, but it comes off as filling empty space. Initially, I couldn't buy that he's not suspended although it is a different time. It's nice to see Ironside leading. It's a TV mystery movie filmed in Canada. There are surprisingly some veteran recognizable actors in support. Mostly, it's the pacing that is the problem. The director needs to push harder on the pacing and give some more thrills.

Made for TV movie, early, gruesome deaths of police officers (8 in all) and no paranoia of any cops on the force, no Mayor or News reports of a string of deaths of the city's' finest...a sleepwalking female Detective and her horny Detective partner, already accused of sexual harassment by his former partner, and what you have is easy, slide-by movie making with no flavor and no interest for a cultured movie watcher. I watched only for Kate Vernon who literally "sleep walks" thru this whole travesty. Avoid. Craig T. Nelson was probably added to this roster for accountability, he offered his usual best, but Brooke Adams needs to search for a better plastic surgeon.

"Probable Cause" is a nice showcase for Michael Ironside in a lead performance as the good guy for a change. The plot revolves around a series of cop killings, with suspicion pointing early on to the likely suspect. What is intriguing about the film, is the real mystery is the motive behind all the stabbings. With Ironside slowly uncovering the facts, a bang up conclusion finally reveals the "why" in flashback mode. M. Emmet Walsh makes a brief appearance as a Doctor who happens to be an expert regarding sleepwalking. The acting overall is totally acceptable. Seek this one out if you like your slasher movies to actually have a plot. You will not be disappointed. - MERK

i found this Canadian production to be a very good murder mystery.it stars Kate Vernon and Michael Ironside.the identity of the murderer is pretty much shown early on in the film so instead of being a who done it kind of mystery,it's more of a why they did it,and to a lesser extent how they did it.(the how is revealed much sooner than the why)this is an interesting twist.the dark tone of the movie is very consistent throughout and doesn't change until the movie fades to black.all in all,it's a very compelling and engrossing murder mystery from the opening frame to the closing credits.for me,Probable Cause is an 8/10