Twisted

I had heard several people say, "Don't rent this movie; it stinks," but took a shot anyway because Ashley Judd is appealing to me. Well, I wouldn't buy the film but it worth the rental. It wasn't bad at all. It was a decent "serial killer movie" except for the ending which went on too long and got a bit sappy, but a lot of movies are know for that. However, by the end, all the characters (including Judd's "Jessica Shepard") had worn thin and I was glad to see it end.

I also had heard that the ending was easy to figure out but I didn't find that. Actually, I thought I, but I guessed wrong and I assume others did as well. So, don't believe everything you hear; it's a decent film. Nothing to spend a lot of money on, but you could do a lot worse. With Judd, Andy Garcia, Samuel L. Jackson and David Strathairn, the same could be said about the cast

* ½ out of ****

I've mentioned it before and I'll say it again; I'm a sucker for mystery thrillers, especially when they involve methodical serial killers. So despite the fact that Twisted was clearly one of the worst reviewed films of the year, I still rented it based on both my preference for the genre and for the film's cast, as I am huge fans of Samuel L. Jackson and Ashley Judd. Andy Garcia, Russell Wong, and Leland Orser are in the film, too, and that's definitely not a shabby supporting cast.

The film stars Judd as San Francisco patrol officer Tess Shepard. After busting a murderer, she's promoted to inspector by the commissioner (Samuel L. Jackson), who also happens to be her legal guardian thanks to a rather sordid past. Tess' new partner is Del Marco (Andy Garcia), and they're quickly assigned to their first case when a corpse is discovered by the shore. The crime is murder but there's a catch; Tess recognizes the dead man, a mere stranger she picked up at a bar a month ago. Another murder occurs, and it's yet another man Tess slept with. And considering she keeps blacking out the night each of the men is killed, she begins to suspect if she's the very own killer they're looking for.

For all that's very wrong with this film, Twisted isn't nearly as bad as I though it'd be. Don't take that as high praise, because the movie's still bad, just not horrible enough that I'd put it on any personal bottom 10 lists.

Because I saw this film just a day after Taking Lives, there was the occasional bit of déjà vu. Remember how I mentioned that film introduced us to the heroine by showing how clever and resourceful she was? Pretty much the same case here, except we also see that Judd's Tess Shepard can kick ass. Her cleverness is displayed through her ability to perfectly describe people and objects she's seen after a brief glance; a fine ability, no doubt, but not something that really impresses in terms of plot and characterization.

The movie's various attempts at building a sense of mystery are suspense are quite pathetic. Examples? Judd keeps hearing a metallic clinking outside her apartment every night before the murders, and she keeps drinking alcohol on those same nights and consequently blacks out. This is a repeated process, so you'd think it take her more than the majority of the film's running time to figure out her drink might be tainted with a drug or that whoever's making that noise might somehow be associated with her blackouts.

Figuring out the identity of the killer is almost too easy. Just follow Roger Ebert's little movie rule about how the culprit is almost always the person who has no other reason to be in the picture and you'll be able to narrow it down real fast.

Twisted is blessed with a surprisingly high-profile cast, and while most everyone is nothing less than decent, it's a bit of a surprise actors of such high-caliber would choose a script that plays out more like 'TV movie of the week' material. I can maybe see the appeal to Ashley Judd in playing a tortured but tough heroine, but Samuel L. Jackson has arguably the film's most thankless role, and he's barely in the picture for more than fifteen minutes. Competent acting is always a great plus in the genre, but it also takes plot and suspense to actually make a thriller with thrills and this movie has absolutely zilch in that department.

Seeing one popular site with a verdict of 101 bad reviews to just 2 good ones, I almost didn't go, but my S.O. likes some pretty so-so movies if they are exciting or suspenseful, so I took her. I did not find the plot so obvious. I actually enjoyed it a lot--a bit raunchy of course, but "normal" for this kind of flick. I actually recommend it as a thriller. Reviewers are really a bunch of whole assets, arent they? They probably are not too good at acting, screenwriting, directing or producing (though they might do okay as continuity persons!). Jackson, Garcia, Judd and several lesser players are just fine. Reviewers write to keep themselves working for a living, and that requires them to diss a goodly percentage of the movies they review.

Police officer Jessica Shepard (Ashley Judd) has just been transferred to homicide and promoted to detective inspector. Her first big case is a murder investigation of a man she had dated. The next day, another man shows up dead with the same cigarette burn on his hand, and he had also dated Jessica. The police are now looking for a serial killer who has the propensity to kill men Jessica has dated. Jessica begins to have dreams about her past, and she opens a box that belonged to her father. Jessica's father was a police officer who went crazy and killed his wife and her lovers, and then himself. His partner and later police commissioner (Samuel L. Jackson) raised Jessica, and taught her everything about police work. When a third murder occurs, her partner, Mike Delmarco (Andy Garcia) begins to watch and protect Jessica. Jessica goes to jail after the fourth victim ends up in her bed. She has no memory of any of the murders, because she blacks out before each murder. The story's twist is the identity of the real murder. You should be able to figure it out before the end, just look for the clues. (Paramount Pictures, Run Time 1:37, Rated R) (7/10)

The new Philip Kaufman movie "Twisted" (** out of ****) lives up to its contorted title. This provocative but unconvincing erotic thriller starring Ashley Judd, Samuel L. Jackson, and Andy Garcia emerges as a less suspenseful distaff version of the Clint Eastwood serial killer saga "Tightrope" (1984), but with a heroine who behaves like the nymphomaniac in 1977's "Looking for Mr. Goodbar." A first-rate cast flounders in freshman scenarist Sara Thorp's darkly-themed, neo-film noir, crime melodrama that casts sexy brunette Judd as a thuggish San Francisco policewoman with a bit of "Dirty Harry" Callahan in her blood. Thoroughly unoriginal with an artificial 'gotcha' ending as contrived as many of the antics in this improbable police procedural about a mass murderer on the rampage in the city by the bay, "Twisted" lacks a sympathetic heroine. This gal gulps wine like a fish and has an attitude problem that would have prevented her from earning a promotion above traffic patrol in the most backwater town. When a fellow detective insults her in front of her peers, she staggers him with an unceremonious kick in the kidneys. Nevertheless, Kaufman, who has helmed consistently better movies, like "The Right Stuff," "The Unbearable Lightness of Being," the 1978 "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" remake, and "The Great Northfield Minnesota Raid," makes this implausible potboiler palatable, with laudable help from "Scream 2" cinematographer Peter Deming. San Francisco has never appeared moodier, and SF native Kaufman stages the action in several atmospheric locales which enhance the film's harsh, gritty subject matter.

Policewoman Jessica Shepard (Ashley Judd of "Ruby in Paradise") is one tough cookie. "Twisted" opens as she tangles with sexual predator Edmund Cutler (Leland Orser of "Pearl Harbor") who sticks a knife in her throat. Little does this potential rapist know he has picked the wrong policewoman as his prey. Suddenly, Jessica turns the tables on Cutler and claps him in handcuffs. Down on his knees in front of her, Cutler pleads for mercy. Our plucky protagonist responds with a stunning kick to his face, smashing his nose. While it's a case of police brutality, this scum deserves more than just a broken beak. Nonetheless, Jessica finds herself in hot water and attends sessions with straight-arrow department psychiatrist Dr. Melvin Frank (David Strathairm of "Passion Fish") who wants to assess her mental stability. This couldn't have occurred at a worst time. No sooner does this happen than SFPD Commissioner John Mills (Samuel L. Jackson of "Basic") has her promoted to the rank of inspector. Turns out Mills raised Jessica as his own after her cop father went crazy, murdered her mom, then committed suicide. Jessica gets a new partner, veteran detective Mike Delmarco (Andy Garcia of "Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead"), who shows her the ropes on the homicide squad. When Jessica isn't in conference with Dr. Frank, she spends her time getting drunk on Napa red and blacking out. During her mysterious blackouts, a serial killer starts knocking off guys Jessica has picked up at seedy bars she cruises when off-duty. Mills objects to her promiscuity, but Jessica ignores him. Initially, her homicide superior, Lieutenant Tong (Russell Wong of "The Fast and The Furious"), wants to take her off the case, but Commissioner Mills rejects that idea. "I'm not pulling her from her first homicide case! It would kill her career." Everybody on homicide, except Delmarco, believes Jessica is killing these guys. After all, she flies off the handle at the least suggestion of impropriety. When Delmarco makes a pass, Jessica grimly reminds him, "Anyone who kisses me turns up dead." Even Jessica begins to suspect she might be doing it during her alcohol-fueled blackouts.

The biggest problem with "Twisted" is its gallery of suspects. Indeed, audiences have more than enough possible candidates to choose from, but most are either deceptive dead-ends or obvious red herrings. For the uninitiated, red herrings are conspicuous clues made to mislead moviegoers. More red herrings and dead-ends turn up in "Twisted" than the scores of seal lions lounging on the piers of San Francisco. Naturally, the pleasure of any whodunit is discovering the killer's identity before the cops catch him. Sadly, when Kaufman and Thorp unveil their villain in the last reel, you feel cheated by the outrageous revelation of his identity. Just when you think you have the killer identified, the moviemakers whip the rug out from under you. Make no mistake, the villain here truly qualifies as the last person you would suspect! Most of the time, the last person you suspected really turns out to be the last person you suspected. However, the moviemakers stand logic on its head and refuse to provide you with all the incriminating evidence until the heroine figures whodunit herself. No, I won't divulge the identity of the psychopath, except to say nothing about his motives seem remotely credible. Watch the Ashley Judd & Morgan Freeman movie "Kiss The Girls," if you want to see a better serial killer thriller. Moreover, when the villain outs himself, his story sounds so preposterous you cannot help but shake your head. All-in-all, Camryn Manheim gives the most interesting performance as a "Quincy" style OCD forensic technician. When "Twisted" doesn't qualify as downright implausible, this 97-minute, R-rated opus remains largely impenetrable.