D-Tox

Well, having not only spent two years on the shelf but getting released straight to video AND the original studio - Universal - disowning it (removing its logo and "Universal presents..." as well as giving it to another studio to release on DVD and video) I was expecting yet another Stallone bomb. Actually, while I would never say it's a good movie, it nowhere as bad as you might think - it's certainly better than recent Stallone turkeys like GET CARTER.

It's actually starts surprisingly well. Not only is Stallone's character given a lot of dialogue, Stallone actually *acts* when delivering it. The subsequent events that traumatize his character are well done, with a genuine eerieness to them. Things continue well for a while longer, showing the utter pit of despair Stallone's character has fallen in, and Stallone once again is up to this challenge.

Then he goes to the detox center, and the movie quickly falls apart. The biggest problems are:

(1) WAY too many characters. It was extremely difficult to remember who was who with all these people walking in and out of the camera. It's also difficult to separate each person in your mind because we hardly learn a thing about each character - if we are lucky.

(2) REALLY bad editing. Scenes (and some individual cuts) go by so quickly that we often don't get the chance to properly digest what we're given to ponder. Two things happening at the same time (in different places) are cut back and forth with no seeming purpose, and no coherent flow. Though the DVD has eight deleted scenes, it's obvious that there was originally a lot more shot. I have to agree with another poster that there are signs there was a desperate effort to save the movie in the editing room.

(3) Once in the detox center, poor Stallone has almost NOTHING to do. He's given almost nothing to say, and frequently sits on the sidelines while things are happening. Not exactly a star vehicle, this movie.

Still, there is a good amount of atmosphere, the movie is briskly paced (though sometimes incoherent because of this), and the sets/production values are pretty decent. While I wouldn't have recommended anyone to see it at a theater if it had gotten released there, you have to remember there have been far worse films (with and without Stallone) that did get such releases.

This is very much a movie that went under the radar, it's a watchable enough thriller, with a decent story, the plot and outcome are a little on the predictable side, but it's decent.

I'm not the greatest fan of Stallone under the sun, but he does a decent job in a role that sees him cast against type.

Some of the characters are hilariously over the top, the therapist for one, surely Arnie would have been better casting, as this guy is clearly compensating for something. Fortunate it has the glorious Polly Walker in it, that's the real bonus.

If you like your mysteries with added testosterone you may just about enjoy it. 6/10.

The real mystery of D-Tox (hereinafter referred to by its video tile, "Eye See You") is why it never found a distributor in North America. I thought it was a good movie. You have to give star Sylvester Stallone a little credit for trying to shed his Rambo he-man image and playing a distraught and tragic hero.

The story involves a serial killer who has been murdering cops and whose murders will be investigated by FBI agent Jake Malloy (Stallone). When the killer murders Malloy's girlfriend Mary (Dina Meyer) he goes into a funk and finds solace at the bottom of a bottle to the point of contemplating suicide. Malloy's friend and partner Hendricks (Charles S. Dutton) convinces him to go to an isolated D-Tox center in Wyoming run by shrink Kris Kristofferson.

Malloy is thrown in with other cops from various locations who also have demons to exorcise. Among them are Christopher Fulford as Slater who tries to befriend him, Noah (Robert Patrick) who has a chip on his shoulder, McKenzie (Robert Prosky), Jones (Courtney B. Vance), Brandon (Mif) and Lopez (Angela Alvarado) among others. Polly Walker plays Jenny a sympathetic nurse and Tom Berenger and Stephen Lang as two suspicious workers at the facility.

It turns out that the serial killer that Malloy thought he had killed earlier, has in fact infiltrated the D-Tox Center and has begun systematically murdering the people there. But who is he or she?

Director Jim Gillespie gives us a murder mystery rather than an action film. It has the isolation and claustrophobic feeling reminiscent of John Carpenter's "The Thing" (1982) except in this case the killer is human and not alien.

Stallone is good in the lead role experiencing a wide range of emotions. Its one of his better performances in recent years. Of the supporting players, Patrick stands out as well as Fulford, Dutton, Prosky, Vance, Alvartado and Lang. Berenger hardly has anything meaningful to do and is wasted here. And watch for Ron Howard's dad Rance Howard as the proprietor of the lodge that Dutton stays at. "Eye See You" is an under appreciated film and deserves a chance to find an audience. It is hoped that the video release will give it proper visibility.

I just watched a screener copy of this movie. I was thoroughly entertained. The plot was very sharp, and for a Stalone movie the acting was better than average. The movie was filled with actors that enjoy acting. Maybe the best part of the movie was just when you think you have the plot figured out there is a complete change of direction. I think that helped keep my attention. I actually got interested in the charactors and really wanted to figure out who the bad guy was. I could recommend, with a clear conscience, this movie to anyone.

STAR RATING:*****Unmissable****Very Good***Okay**You Could Go Out For A Meal Instead*Avoid At All Costs

Stallone and the director of I Know What You Did Last Summer sound like an intriguing combination.But this belated picture isn't really.Sly's performance works more thanks to the script than to him,thanks to some emotive scenes at the beginning,otherwise he's as blank as he was in the Rambo movies.Worse than that,the story is told in a really straight-forward,unoriginal way,you can see scenes coming before you've even seen them.There are few real jolts or surprises.There's some okay action in between,but to be honest,it's hard to understand why this didn't go straight to video.**