Troubles

Wolfgang Petersen (Poseidon & the Neverending Story)'s Neo Noir starring Tom Berenger, Bob Hoskins, and Greta Scacchi about a West Coast developer who has amnesia after a car accident and begins to suspect his wife of treachery.

This begins in a pretty mundane way. It runs like any one of thousands of films of the early 1990's, and there doesn't appear to be anything special about it until you get a little bit of the way into it. Roughly one third through, you begin to see the subtle idiosyncrasies of this work, and soon, you are wholly absorbed.

This features some great intrigues, a nice well paced plot, and a really twisty ending. Dialog delivery isn't as bad as you might expect, and the story itself steals the show. Camera angles are a bit odd at times, but nothing like some of those 1970's flicks!

All in all, though it was done as recently as 1991, it is horribly dated but I was still completely entertained by this film, and while it's not Friday-Saturday night quality, it makes for a great Saturday or Sunday afternoon diversion.

It rates a 7.6/10 from...

the Fiend :.

This movie has got to be the best surprise I've ever gotten from a last second pick at the video store. The first time I saw this movie was in college, we watched it one night and it continued to be shown in our apartment almost non-stop for the next 4 days. People could not get enough of it.

I won't go into the plot, etc. but will tell you it offers many twists and turns and will keep you interested and surprised at the end.

You cannot go wrong renting this movie!

Late one night, I found myself working late in my college apartment, studying or trying to study for Spanish and it just so happened that I also had the TV on (which I wasn't really paying much attention to) when I just happened to look up and see that a new movie was starting called "Shattered". Seeing that it was directed by Wolfgang Petersen, I became a little curious but didn't really plan on watching it. Well, that thought went out the window when the movie opened with a bang. Husband and wife Dan and Judith are involved in a devastating car crash. But despite all odds, both survive; however the husband (played by Tom Berenger) is in critical condition and is left with no memory of who he is or what happened. His seemly loving wife (Greta Scacchi) does everything she can to help him readjust after getting out of the hospital but, alas, something just doesn't seem right. He slowly begins to realize that everything may not have been as rosy as his wife would have him believe and things get even more interesting when he learns that he paid for services by a street wise private detective named Gus (played by Bob Hoskins).

"Shattered" is one of those unassuming movies that, going in, you're not expecting to find anything too shocking or surprising and that's where you'd be wrong. I've seen a lot of thrillers and mysteries, so much so that eight out ten times, I can probably tell you what the ending will be. However, I got to tell you, the twist at the end of this movie is so well done and so shocking that I didn't see it coming for a million miles, and believe me, that's saying something. The movie also does a good job drawing you, the viewer, deeper and deeper into the movie without even realizing it with the direction of Petersen, the story, and the actors; Tom Berenger does an excellent job in his role, as does Greta Scacchi. However, my favorite actor out of this is probably Bob Hoskins, since he's able to provide a little bit of comedy and heart to his role. If you're one who's looking for a lost gem of a film or is just looking for a good surprise at the end, then I highly, highly recommend "Shattered". You won't regret it!

Petersen's skillful direction and a cleverly constructed script combine to make this a thoroughly entertaining and absorbing thriller. On the first viewing, you're likely to dismiss the shocking and unpredictable ending as "far-fetched" and "unbelievable" (at least that's what I did), but see it again and you'll realize that the story DOES stand up to scrutiny; there are no scenes that cheat the viewer here. Bob Hoskins steals the show as the likable private detective. And overall, this a movie worth seeing. (**1/2)

After surviving a car crash, real estate developer Dan Merrick (Tom Berenger) finds himself with Amnesia and begins to begin rebuilding his life with the help of his wife Judith (Greta Scacchi). As Dan examines the pieces of a life he can no longer remember and people he no longer knows his path crosses private investigator Gus Klein (Bob Hoskins) who reveals Dan's life may hide darker secrets.

Part of a wave of films in the 90s that tired to be updates on Hitchcockian suspense thrillers (Final Analysis, A Perfect Murder, etc.), Shattered was released to middling reviews and lackluster box office most likely due in no small part to having the misfortune of being released less than two months after very similar (and much more financially successful) Dead Again. And while Dead Again is objectively a stronger film on the whole, Shattered still deserves credit for being a smart thriller with engaging performances and a genuine sense of style and suspense.

Berenger is quite good as Dan Merrick and makes for a convincing everyman who tries to determine who can and cannot be trusted as he tries to piece together a mystery whose clues he can't seem to make sense of. Greta Scacchi is equally good as Dan's wife Judith and does a great job serving as a Hitchcock type enigma. But easily the best performance is Bob Hoskins as Private Investigator Gus Klein, a cynical, misanthropic, animal lover who commands the screen every time he's on camera.

The narrative is solid in terms of it's structure and Wolfgang Petersen's direction and writing effortlessly come together to create the needed amount of intrigue and engagement expected in a film of this ilk. Throughout the first half of the movie we (the audience) are very much in Dan's shoes following down every lead as he finds them with answers leading to more questions. To say anymore would be to spoil the movie, the ending it builds up to is suitably twisty and surprising but whether it strains credibility will be dependent on the person who watches it.

Shattered is a well made thriller with good performances and an intrigue rich hook. The film for the most part successfully emulates all the tricks and trappings familiar to Hitchcock's films and while it doesn't quite stick the landing for its ending (at least for me personally), it is still a solid thriller that'll keep you engaged til the end.