A Crooked Somebody

This is how a thriller should be written.

Although it has the look and feel of a tv movie; even the sound effects, music and feel were all very 1970/80's don't let that put you off, it is so much more.

For once we have a good story and clever writing throwing morals and honesty at every turn to make the viewer think, superb acting from virtually every character, involving and intriguing story that keeps you guessing and wanting more and the finale was for once not a let down and a joy to behold.

Even the title music at the end topped the film off for me - Reminiscent of an old Jim Reeves tune. The whole movie was crafted to play out like a TV murder mystery you used to watch on a Saturday night but with a lot of aplomb, polish and craft.

About halfway through it started to grip, and it never let go. Anchored by excellent performances, this little gem delivered. Good soundtrack, good direction and a very good story.

How far would someone go to pursue their dreams. Nice story and well built, keeps you entertained to the end swiftly, recommended.

This was another one of those films that showed up on Sky Movies Premiere and I recorded it expecting to delete it after about 20 minutes, which is what usually happens if it's a film I've not heard of before. But A Crooked Somebody was one of the 5% that I managed to watch all the way through.

What this film has going for it is its unpredictability. It frequently surprised me, often not going the way I expected, taking a left turn instead of a right. It's rare to find a film like that these days because everything seems to be dumbed down for people who can't handle anything that doesn't stick to a formula.

The lead actor was someone I hadn't seen before and at first I was a little put off, thinking he wouldn't be able to carry the film, but he does. In fact he really grew on me as the film went on. All of the performances in this film are good, and there's even an appearance from Daniel Larusso's mom and the girl from Sex Drive (who I've never seen in anything else, but she's good in this too).

The plot in a nutshell sees a dodgy psychic, Michael Vaughn get caught up in an absurd Ben Stiller style comedy, although there's no slapstick humour here, it's a dark thriller, but Vaughn repeatedly makes bad decisions and tells lies that lead to more lies. His female sidekick acts as his conscience, which helps to make it believable when he discusses his plans with her, listens to her advice and then usually ignores it, leaving you shaking your head. The whole thing escalates quite magniificently without ever taking a mis-step that leaves you rolling your eyes. The script is solid and I found myself really rooting for Vaughn even though he's a weasel.

The only negatives I can come up with are that on a couple of occasions the film dragged for a few minutes, but fortunately it always recovered. And although I couldn't predict how it was going to end, I found the ending a little disappointing. It tied everything up perfectly, but because of how the film had gone up to that point I was hoping for something a little more original. But those minor gripes aside, this film is a breath of fresh air and worth your time, in my opinion.

This movie is a great proof, that it's not necessary to hire well-known and highly-paid stars, then spend a big budget, in order to get a 10-star movie.

The story is unique and not even close to any other similar motif, and the dialogue was amazing. Locations of filming are very simple. Finally, the performance of -almost- everyone, was astonishing.