Double Deception

the main character in this little story is very likeable , but the story itself is in need of some focused action . too many subplots make for a very thin main plot . alice krige is hot as always and can act circles around her cast , however she doesn't get enough screen time and the twist at the end gets WAY too confusing . DOUBLE DECEPTION is standard t.v. movie fare and never comes close to rising above this. watch only if no other viable choices exists.

Bad acting, pathetic script, utterly stupid tale from start to end. Watching James Russo I couldn't help wondering if he studied every James Caan film ever made or if he just happened to have all Caan's mannerisms: the thrown back shoulders, the cocky walk, the facial expressions; all were there. His character is in a warm climate with everybody in summer wear and he is never without a heavy leather jacket. How painfully pretentious. This boring murder mystery, which isn't worth the effort of explaining, was so dull I didn't know whether to laugh or go blind. After the first 3 minutes I saw where this junk was headed as Russo stared down a gun wielding punk, told him he wasn't going to shoot, then snatched the piece out of the thug's hand. Later he grabbed the same weapon from a woman's hand by the muzzle while it was cocked. Hello, moron? Russo's cornball toughguy antics were silly beyond description, not to mention far from the real world of private investigation. Awful.

You have quite the interesting and intriguing ensemble here. Actors that I do like and of whom I think a lot - also in their profession. But this is overall poorly executed. No pun intended. If you are into 90s action B-movie fare you might win something out of this for yourself, but overall dissapointment is more likely to set in.

To circle back to the actors: the japanese female lead of this seems completely derived of emotions when she speaks. Now one could attest that to her not being able to act, but I do think it's just lost in translation. You can see how comfortable she is when she talks in her native language and how much more charisma she sends out that way. But it's not just her and the uncomfortable position she is being put in ... it's the dialog she and others have been given. I would like to have liked this more (James Russo, Luis Mandylor and so forth), but I just can't in good conscience