Mystères croisés : Signature mortelle

With this film Hallmark launched its Crossword Mysteries series and as I write this there are three out there and three more in the works. Lacey Chabert plays the puzzle maker/editor at a New York newspaper.

Only a devoted crossword fan would pick up on the fact that someone is using submitted crossword puzzles that have clues for various art heists. Manhattan Homicide starts looking into it once Chabert spots a pattern after the owner of an art gallery surprises a thief.

As is usual in Hallmark Mysteries the clever woman sleuth intrudes in the investigation, but she knows her stuff as the detective/foil Brennan Elliott has to admit.

I'm not sure how the crossword puzzle gambit will work for a series. But there are six films already out there. This inaugural one was good viewing.

The reliable Hallmark pairing of Lacey Chabert and Brennan Elliot team up again for the first in what I am sure will be many 'Crossword Mysteries'.

This is good engaging stuff, with nice performances from both the two leads.

I think people have been a bit harsh on it. It's not trying to be anything more than a fairly light-hearted murder mystery, if you accept it as such you'll enjoy it.

A gallery owner is killed during an art heist. Police detective Logan O'Connor (Brennan Elliott) finds a strangely half-filled crossword puzzle at the crime scene. He goes to the New York Sentinel to talk to a reporter and raises the interest of crossword puzzle editor Tess Harper (Lacey Chabert). She uncovers unusual clues in the puzzle. Logan is dismissive and she decides to investigate on her own.

Chabert is adorably cute and charismatic. That goes a long way in these types of TV movies. It's not surprising that Hallmark is doing a whole series of these with her. Elliott is functional although it would be great to have someone with a lot more screen presence. The basic premise is a little overly complicated. I get that these types of movies need a hook and it's getting harder to find an original premise. It's workable enough to get this franchise off the ground. Chabert is so sweetly charming that she is able to propel this initially but the sequels will determine whether this is a success or not.

A good mystery gives clues that help you solve it before the characters. Some are good and some lead you the wrong way. This movie has both.

Many romance stories have the leads start out antagonistic and that's the case here. In this case Logan was justified for a while in looking down on the help offered by Tess which certainly appeared coincidental. I actually thought Logan warmed up to Tess pretty fast. These two actors have worked together several times, but I didn't think that was overly obvious. Still, the warmth starts to show.

I thought that the early scenes were a little choppy. Some of the acting was surprisingly stiff throughout. At times there was too much melodrama. The dialogue was not nearly as witty as you would hope in a movie like this. These are little things, but contribute to the overall atmosphere.

Overall, it's watchable with a decent mystery.

As a Hallmark TV movie, I thought this one had a decent edge to it, and the chemistry between the two leads Lacy Chabert, as Tess, and Brennan Elliott, as Lt. Logan O'Connor, worked quite well. I'm a big crossword puzzle fan, so the inclusion of them into a murder mystery heightened my interest.

Yes, some of the dialogue was trite and the ending was a little lame, but it's always fun trying to decide who the killer is. Overall, the film was somewhat better than I anticipated.