Partners in Crime

Basically this movie isn't anything new or refreshing, I mean movies like these are made dozens of times every year. This is one of those movies were not an awful lot is wrong with but its just to unoriginal or not refreshing enough to make this movie a must see. It's one of those typical 6 out of 10 movies.

The movie is a standard police/crime movie in which the main characters has to solve a case. No the movie most certainly isn't filled with any new or original moments and elements but it serves its purpose well and the movie is technically not badly made.

Finally a movie in which Rutger Hauer can show again how a great actor he is. Also Paulina Porizkova really isn't a bad actress despite the fact that she already had received a Razzie nomination for her role in "Her Alibi" from 1989. Hauer and Porizkova make a great screen duo and make the story believable and likable enough.

The story and the sidelines of it are interesting enough to fill 95 minutes. None of the dramatic and perhaps cliché sidelines of the story are ever getting distracting, which of course is a positive thing to say.

Yes of course you're ten times better of watching a good English detective series but this movie certainly is a watchable one, despite the fact that it isn't anything new or really special.

6/10

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I guess it's a straight-to-vid, and you won't find any great surprises in it, but it's a pleasant enough way to pass a little time.

Rutger Hauer, now about double his fighting weight, plays a local detective who has to co-operate with the FBI's supervision of a murder/kidnapping. It turns out that the FBI hotshot called in on the case is his ex-wife. And he is now a single dad, and has a precocious ultra-cute daughter from a subsequent wife.

So you can see the cliches will fall fast and furious. And they do, especially when all the clues seem to point to: Rutger Hauer!

Anyway, the most pleasant surprise of the movie is an excellent performance from Paulina Porizkova as the FBI agent. She is natural in the relaxed moments, and capable when she needs to be in charge, and totally believable in the role. You know any other supermodels who can convincingly play a top bureau agent? I really believe she will be top actress, and not in cutesy glamour roles, either.

Rutger Hauer solves a chilly murder mystery set in rural Utah in Partners In Crime, a low budget DTV thriller that is, thankfully, a lot better than some of the same type of flicks he's found himself in over the years. He plays county sheriff in a small community where a rich newcomer has been kidnapped and menacing ransom demands are sent that may have ties to a murder years before. An FBI agent (Paulina Porizkova) flies into town who also happens to be his ex girlfriend from a decade back, causing additional friction beyond the investigation itself. Now, the intrigue here is a tad vague and not the most scintillating mystery until the third act drums up an eventual antagonist for Hauer to face off against, but the real fascination here lies in the relationship with his preteen daughter (Sarah Ashley), full of genuine affection and really good chemistry between the two actors. Rutger so often just plays larger than life villains and when he does get to be the hero it's still within very stylized, often sci-fi settings that don't lend themselves to the subtlety of real life human drama. This is an exception though and he's a joy to watch as a kind, compassionate, down to earth small town lawman just trying to keep his community safe and be good dad to his kid. That's enough to make it a great film for me. Streaming now for free on YouTube.

This enjoyable film reminds me of a more pedestrian version of Last of the Dog Men, at least in feel. The landscape is compelling and the performances all around are quite good. The director has an easy hand which works well even with the mystery and pseudo-action sequences. Good job by the young girl that plays Hauer's daughter. Too often these child roles fall into the maudlin, but she comes across convincingly here.

The highlight isn't the none-too-convoluted plot, but rather the interaction between the two leads. You need to suspend disbelief for some of the story line elements, but the reward is a fun film that was made with obvious care. And it is quite refreshing to see Hauer with some decent material to work with. He may play a good villain, but is at his finest when exploring the layers of a troubled good guy.

The film is worth watching primarily because of the beauty of the father (Rutger Hauer) - daughter (Sarah Ashley) relationship. Touching scenes take place between the two characters, showing the true love between a parent who raises his child alone, without a mother. This puts the film in the category of Melodrama. The Crime or Thriller category is a bit softer, well, that's how the script is written. In my humble opinion, an experienced police detective (Hauer) and an equally experienced FBI agent (ex-wife played by the charming Paulina Porizkova), seconded by two more FBI agents, would have realized from the very beginning who the perpetrator could be, more precisely, immediately after the moment when Gene Reardon (Hauer) and Lloyd Dyer (Andrew Dolan) searched, just the two of them, the lockers in the changing rooms. That's how it is in the movies! And, from my own experience, it's not easy to make a perfect film. The important thing is to make one worthy of being watched.