Postmortem

A very non-convincing performance by Sheen. Does he think that mumbling his lines will have audience approval - in the worn-out manner of the drawling James Dean? I watched this video and constantly had to rewind and replay and listen again to what Sheen was saying; quite comical really when you consider that the other actors had broad Scottish accents. Poor sound and poor lighting also contributed to a frustrating movie. 4 out of 10. Strong performance from the Scottish Police inspector.

If you don't expect too much from a serial killer thriller, this movie is nice entertainment. Directed by Albert Pyun, better known for trashy made science fiction/action/martial arts movies, it introduces a disillusioned and alcohol-addicted U.S. cop (played by ex-star Charlie Sheen) to a series of brutal girl murders in the Scottish countryside. The film is nothing special, just a cop losing his mind, being suspected of being the murderer, and finally tracking down the real killer and saving the last victim from its fate. The setting is outstanding, with the dark architecture of Scottish cities and the sinister atmosphere of Hammer-Horror-like countryside. Sit back and be thrilled for 105 minutes of nice serial killer entertainment!

Albert Pyun's directing seems to be improving with age. This is a perfectly respectable thriller, a movie that you would hesitate to call "inept" in any way - unless of course you're a personal enemy of Pyun's. However, it's also a bit too long and sluggish, and not as exciting as it should be. It jumps to life only occasionally (mainly in the chase scenes). Charlie Sheen is not very convincing as a boozing, worn-out, depressed yet brilliant writer/ex-detective; he's both too young and too clean-cut for such a role. (*1/2)

Having watched numerous Charlie Sheen movies, and seen more or less the same type of performances from him in each one, I was not expecting this. Charlie Sheen manages to pull off quite a watchable performance as James Magregor, a weary but hardened cop, who goes to Glasgow for some light relief from his lifestyle...?....The film itself was quite slow, but the choice of location and the addition of a few smaller actors who are barely recognisable from other films, made the look of the film quite arthouse and cult-like compared with most of Sheen's other film work. There is a lot of use of the steady-cam, which at times becomes an annoyance,but it doesn't detract from the film The director really seems to capture the tension and fear in the film, and for a film that was shot entirely in twelve days with a mostly unknown cast, that aint bad. Overall, good thriller with some great support from the excellently cast unknowns! A must see for Sheen fans!

Charlie Sheen's career has had many highs and lows and back in the late 90s he found himself out of favour with Hollywood's elite. Before resurrecting his career on television he was only able to exploit his star power in direct-to-video releases. In an effort to be taken more seriously, Sheen tried formalising his name for films such as Postmortem. Nobody noticed. Directed by Albert Pyun, the serial killer thriller was arguably a career low. Sheen plays a borderline alcoholic ex-cop drawn back into the field of serial killer profiling when a girl is found dead. Although this sounds fairly standard, the film's location is unique. Postmortem was made in Scotland! The sight of Charlie Sheen wandering around bars in Glasgow is pretty surreal. Featuring a supporting cast of local talent and various unknowns, what Postmortem lacks in Hollywood production qualities (it's cheaper looking than an episode of Taggart) it at least makes up for in curiosity value.