Freeze Frame

To most people Lee Evans is the goofy comic off the telly, but this film shows that there is more to Mr Evans than meets the eye.

He gives a superbly chilling performance as Sean Veil an acquitted murder suspect who films himself 24 hours a day every day, (the opening sequence shows him being woken by an alarm as he struggles to put a new tape in the camera). He's being chased by a police psychologist, two cops and an investigative reporter who all seem to have dark little secrets of their own.

The film comes to a dramatic and violent conclusion, so take someone with you it your easily scared.

An excellent British thriller.

The film follows the life of Sean Veil who has been accused of the brutal murder of twin six year old girls, their mother and the brutal assault of their father. Sean knows that he is an innocent man, and although the court can't prove he is guilty, Detective Mountjoy (Colin Salmon) and criminal psychologist Saul Seger (Ian McNeice) are determined that he is and will do anything to put him behind bars. Determined to make sure he is never accused of anything again Sean sets up video cameras throughout his entire home and won't leave the house unless he is being videotaped on his "self-cam". When the police storm his home accusing him of another murder he can prove his innocence - or can he? As the specific tapes that are needed have gone missing.

The film is an incredibly dark, chilling and suspense filled thriller that uses many shots from the CCTV that follows Sean around his life. There is a distinct lack of colour throughout the entire film which adds to the eerie nature. The film uses many images of entrapment throughout by the use of camera shots and tricks and really shows the paranoia that runs constantly in Sean's head - even though the first thing he "must remember" is that 'Paranoia is a malfunction of the ability to reason'.

I saw this film during the American Film Market in Santa Monica and I was surprised by the quality of this movie. The story is very original and the lead actor Lee Evans (There's Something About Mary) showed us that he can do more than comedy.

Evans plays Sean Veil a man who was accused and acquitted of three murders and after that experience he decided that he needs a permanent alibi so he tapes every second of his life. Ten years later the police comes knocking at his door because he is the suspect of another murder. In his collection of thousands and thousands of tapes, safely hidden in a vault, there is a gap so for that time Sean has no alibi and once again he has a major problem.

Sean Veil is the ultimate paranoiac, a man so convinced that everyone is out to get him that he's even begun spying on HIMSELF. However, there is actually a method to his madness, for unlike many paranoiacs, Sean has a valid reason to be fearful and suspicious of those around him. About ten years prior to the time of the story, Sean was falsely arrested for the brutal slaying of a woman and her two young daughters - a crime for which he was eventually acquitted, although the experience has left him emotionally devastated and psychologically damaged. His reputation ruined, Sean has since devised an elaborate system whereby he can videotape himself 24/7, so that he will always have an alibi if someone ever attempts to accuse him again of a crime he didn't commit. Unfortunately, Sean soon discovers that even the latest in modern technology can't guarantee his safety if the forces out to get him can figure out how to beat him at his own game.

This quirky and original Irish film suffers a bit from the constraints of its budget and the amateurishness of some of the performances. Director John Simpson's split screen technique, though intriguing at first, becomes a bit trying after awhile, and the storyline is not always as cleanly and clearly developed as it might be, although the drab, colorless look of the film perfectly reflects the drab, colorless life of its protagonist.

The movie overrides most of its flaws thanks to one element that is the real thing: Lee Evans' searing and uncompromising portrayal of an innocent man driven to the brink of madness by his obsessive need to prove that innocence. With his nervous, soft-spoken demeanor and constant look of terrified submission, Evans makes what could have been a creepy, repulsive character into a thoroughly sympathetic figure. We find ourselves so drawn to his predicament and so involved in his fate that, even at those moments when the movie itself falls flat, we stick with it anyway.

This Irish movie is my surprise hit of the weekend so far. I've never heard of this movie, and had no idea what to expect except what is on the DVD box, which looked pretty good. The story is about a guy that was accused of a brutal triple homicide ten years ago, and was let go because of technicalities. Since he believed he was being set up the police, he started videotaping every single thing he has done since then, 24/7/52, believing the cops were trying to hang other murders on him, he's turned into a real paranoid. And for good reason, because a dying sick detective is trying to get him for anything he can, before he dies himself. Bring into this a forensic crime writer who keeps giving lectures and writing books about guilty criminals that get off because of technicalities. So, our guy even has a camera mounted on his torso pointing towards his face whenever he leaves his bunker like home, which has cameras everywhere possible. Along come the cops who accuse him again, of a murder five years ago, and when he goes to find that particular tape, it is missing. YEEKS!!!! Then things get really complicated for him, and we get into a bunch of twists and turns towards the climax of the story, that made this a great Saturday night flick that's a little off center, and somewhat disturbing. Great movie, and I hope some of the rest of you have a chance to see it. Very very original, and quite creative, with excellent performances. This is my pick of the week for something out of the blue.