Jesse Stone: Le bénéfice du doute

When two police officers are blown up in a police car while investigating a fire, Jesse Stone is brought back as the Chief of Police. The town council fired him; they now re-hire him, as one of the men on the council's son-in-law was one of the cops.

Jesse breaks into his old office, where there is no staff and no action. He calls Rose (Kathy Baker) who is staying with her mother; she says she'll think about it. Suitcase decides to stay away as well.

Jesse works to sort through what little he has: money in the trunk of the police car is but one. He speaks with his various sources: his analyst (William Devane), a Massachusetts State Patrol Captain (Stephen McHattie) a Mob kingpin (William Sandler), and the felonious Hasty (Saul Rubinek), now out of prison.

Were the cops dirty? Who made the call to bring them to the site? Can Jesse keep from drinking his way through the case? Will Rose and Suitcase ever return?

Somehow these characters grow on one. I still think Selleck is too one-note and depressed, though this script had a little humor in it. Still, people enjoy the show, and that's what counts.

Paradise Police Chief "Skipper" Butler and Officer D'Angelo are investigating a fire at "The Point". But when they get there, it appears to be a false alarm.

Or is it?

Two people are dead, and be warned--their bodies look like something out of a horror movie.

The state arson investigators won't tell the town council anything. Town council members Hanson and Hasty show up at Stone's remote house--his phone is disconnected--to offer him his job back. Stone and the state investigator Healy are friends, so maybe he will have better luck.

Healy tells Stone what he needs to know and advises him to leave the investigating to the state cops. Since when has that ever stopped Stone? His next two actions are illegal and provide two of the film's best comic moments, the other being Hasty's bow-tie.

Stone suspects the murders were the result of Butler being corrupt (Wait: why will Butler let Stone take over his job, much less get away with investigating him? There's a very good reason). But he faces a number of obstacles. Molly quit. Rose quit and took her kids to her mother's in Toledo. Suitcase is working on his father's boat where he claims to be happy, but he's not convincing. Stone has no cell reception at his house. How will this man get anything done? Believe me, he will.

Stone hasn't talked to his ex-wife Jen since he lost his job, and he's drinking again; his dog seems to disapprove. He continues to visit Dr. Dix, and he is dating Thelma, who works at Hasty's car dealership and sings standards in a club. Stone also goes out with the pretty but tough Amanda, Gino Fish's secretary, but just for information.

A third person dies, and while it looks like suicide, Stone doesn't believe it.

The mystery has just enough twists, and the conclusion is exciting.

This is a movie that can be watched by those new to Jesse Stone. Unlike some of the others, this is a straight mystery which doesn't deviate into long philosophical scenes that some might find boring. And Stone's character history is explained for those who might not know it, but this is not really necessary for a newcomer to the series.

Tom Selleck does his usual good job--just remember, this is NOT "Blue Bloods" (which I've never seen, but commercials tell me enough). Stone is flawed in many ways but basically decent.

The other leading actors also do a good job. I wish Kathy Baker had had a bigger role, but for whatever reason she didn't have a lot of lines. Suitcase was also missed.

It's worth seeing, even more so than some of the recent entries in the series.

The stage curtains open ...

"I always knew I'd get my job back. Fate wouldn't do that to me."

The 8th film in the Jesse Stone crime/drama series starts out with a bang ... literally, when a police car explodes into flames to set the scene for the entire story. This was a conscientious effort to return to form with Jesse becoming the Police Chief again, and bringing back director Robert Harmon to manage things behind the camera. Though it was great to see Jesse wearing that hat again, things still didn't really feel the same anymore. Both Suit and Rose (having quite their jobs) were only on screen for a few minutes each. I would say that out of all the films in the series, this one felt the most bittersweet.

The new police chief and a re-hired DeAngelo are investigating a report of a bonfire on the outskirts of town when their car suddenly explodes into a large ball of flames, killing them both instantly. With nowhere else to turn, Councilman Hanson shows up at Jesse's house along with newly appointed councilman, Hasty Hathaway, asking for his help. He is given his job back as the Police Chief, so he gets to work. He arrives at the office to basically find it deserted, since he is the only active officer in Paradise. He investigates the murder of the former police chief, much like he did when he was first hired investigating the death of Lou. Ironcially enough, all roads seem to lead right back to Hasty.

I enjoyed this one. The pacing was actually a bit better in this one, and the story was well written (as always). But the "feel" of the earlier episodes just wasn't here. A decline I started to notice begining with "No Remorse". There were a couple of things I really did like about this one, however. Reggie has finally allowed himself to get close to Jesse, climbing up on the bed next to him, and then at the end, on a bench to sit next to Jesse in the police station. The other was the return of Suit to the police force in the very last scene.

I liked the angle of this story. The acting was good, as it usually is in these films. The cinematography was spot on, and the direction of Robert Harmon was a welcome return. With only one more movie to go, one gets the feeling that we've seen the last of Rose, which is sad. But, life goes on. I would recommend this movie. It is solid, worth the watch. As I mentioned at the outset, it was bittersweet. It was the same, but different.

Imagine that you and I could live our lives over again - or even a portion of them - and use the life lessons we have garnered, the hard way, to help ourselves and others. Police Chief Jesse Stone, portrayed by Tom Selleck, in the small Massachusetts town of Paradise, seizes such an opportunity. Divorce, alcoholism, murder, loyalty and betrayal, stupidity, false trust and false pride, dist integrating integrity, Stone has deposited lessons in some bank inside himself; and in these made-for-television modern morality plays, ironically, he is the right man in just the right place to help both himself and the small town.

Stone is no Ebenezer Scrooge. The ghosts that terrified him back in Los Angeles where he took to binge drinking and lost a high profile law enforcement job, are within his soul still, permanently goading and guiding him.

From 2005 through 2012, I watched, with increasing curiosity, involvement, and enthusiasm, as Tom Selleck and his cast maneuvered through five movies about Jesse Stone. Now, I have the distinct feeling that Selleck has assembled his favorite fellow actors to join in producing art and serious fun.

Thirty years ago, after "Magnum P.I.," Selleck is still refining and perfecting his acting skills. The actor who lost the Indiana Jones franchise to Harrison Ford, is selecting his vehicles carefully, systematically.

The dialog in the Stone movies is unusual, like the repartee one might overhear, by accident, between aged, battle-scarred warriors, or experienced EMT workers, in private, or out of ear shot, making ironic comments about life and love, death and destruction treating very serious subjects in a manner that sounds like light banter.

The Jesse Stone movies will not be for everyone's tastes. Its humor evolves out of people continually reminding themselves of how easily they could become corrupted or dead, the kind of humor that keeps characters and audiences on edge. Serious drama tipped just enough on edge to allow the audience to glimpse just a bit of Abbott and Costello or "Waiting for Gogot," reflecting on what well-intentioned but often self-deceiving creatures we human beings are.

Stone's drinking and womanizing somehow make him a sympathetic character where another actor might come across as a cad or pervert, a creep or monster. That is acting skill. This is Horation satire. It mocks and ridicules wrongs and weaknesses, but it is forgiving, unlike Juvenalian satire which is serious, grim, caustic and unforgiving, going straight for the jugular.

Selleck and cast treat even gruesome death with the dark humor MASH surgeons use to keep their sanity as they continually patch up wounded soldiers sending them back again and again to try to kill other human beings.

Some of the wittiest repartee since the 1980's "Equalizer" starred Edward Woodward and Robert Lansing, shows the verbal counter punching skills of Selleck and McHattie.

This movie may appeal to students of successful failures. It may even appeal to people who believe in atonement and forgiveness, reformation and redemption.

The movie manages to evoke an almost Vaudevillian humor out of events which in reality might feel like distilled sorrow or overwhelming grief.

Devane, shrink, ex-cop and almost ex-drinker, is a reflector for Stone's struggles and misadventures with both women and the bottle, and their interludes are played both for serious intent and droll comedy, as men, as lovers, as drinkers, and as human beings struggling to help themselves and others.

Aristotle said that a memorable character is (a) true to life (b) true to type and (c) true to self. The Stone movies turn the first two definitions on their heads a bit, but we know that it takes all kinds to make a world. Being true to oneself entails continual contemplation and application of the Serenity Prayer.

The eighth film in the Jesse Stone series based upon the characters created by Robert B. Parker. If you had read all my previous reviews of this series, you would know how much I'm looking forward for this. Not like I'm happy with the series to continue, but the last couple of films were below par than usual Jesse films. Like always, I went for it expecting the series could get better, and does it fulfill my desire? I won't say it did, but surely a decent one. It had the opportunity to become much better than that, but it was the story, like they wanted to start off again from the scratch. So it was kind of a refresher in the series, there's big changes you would find from the very first scene itself.

Jesse received his PPD cap, that mean he's back, but he's the only one left in the force. This time he brought in to investigate the death of his rival in the department. He also has a strong back from the town council, as well as from his Boston boss. So this is an important case for everyone, particularly for Jesse to get back like he always say this is his last stop. This is not a detached story, I mean not some new characters comes in, commits crime and got punished. This is really well improvised story within the available characters. So the viewers can be optimistic about guessing the events including the finale.

Kind of depressing to see one man doing all the job. I mean it was always been like that in the series, but this time feels it was a slow presentation. Jesse is no Rambo, yet feel he's isolated. I liked how the film developed with the existing characters. That means there's a serious change in characters, like many are from the previous films went missing and some of those who appeared in this were involved in termination. So the next film will be very interesting, whether there will be a bunch of new ones or the old ones return.

"Cop deserves the benefit of the doubt."

Regarding the case he's on, he deals it on his usual way. But nothing seems a masterful, the twist and turns are ordinary. So don't anticipate any masterstrokes. Jesse was just roaming around seeking information and then suddenly he gets a clue he was looking for. With that he uses a bait to catch the bad guys and they fall for it. But while dealing it, the event takes an unexpected turn, leaves the story might continue in the following sequel as well. That's the confusing, because the film ran for nearly 90 minutes and did nothing to end on high as it does always. So with this kind of drag, I don't know where the series is heading.

Like I always say, Tom Selleck is the reason I'm still hooked to this series. In this installment, it is all about him, because like I mentioned earlier, the next to his roles like Rose and Luther are off the hook. That means the Jesse's therapist like the third string characters automatically taken the leap forward, but nothing much expectable from them. Particularly Thelma, the Hasty's assistant seems interested in Jesse, but it does not tell us how serious it is. Because fighting crime takes over the this romance, or maybe we can call a flirtation like Jesse does to gain information. I think, again the follow-up is to answer that question.

After getting into the rock bottom with the last film, this one looked much better, but still not the best I was looking for. It's just trying to be a normal film, like a television film from the old days and it succeeded somehow. So definitely it is a decent comeback and there's only one film to go for me to end the Jesse Stone series. Oh, I almost forgot that the original director returned for this, that's really amazing news for the series fans. Like the old team coming together, somewhat the series back on the track. The next film that released in the 2015 was received well, that's what I've heard, so can't wait to watch it. The final review on its way, meet me there.

7/10