The Hawk

(1992) The Hawk SUSPENSE THRILLER

Helen Mirren practically had to carry this movie on her shoulders, for it's effectiveness may have been better had it been short and tighter. She plays Annie Marsh, a housewife of two children, suspecting that her husband can possibly be a serial killer, people are calling "The Hawk" because victims are usually found with their eyes gauged out which is similar to what a hawk would do. With a fast forward button on specific scenes while playing on some unnecessary scenes, this movie isn't that bad, considering what the actors/ actresses had to work with. Some viewers may be disappointed with the fact, that there's no explanation regarding the serial killer's motivations for going on to this killing spree in the first place.

A slight British thriller, with a strong cast, and a different take on the murder-mystery genre. Mirren plays Annie Marsh, who starts to believe her husband is 'The Hawk' a serial killer preying on lone women drivers, who has eluded police capture and is still on the loose. Her mounting paranoia is only exacerbated by a police force who refuse to take her seriously because of her previous history of mental illness, and her own mind, which is cruelly playing tricks on her.

Rather than the conventional narrative of following the police investigation, or the killer himself, the story is told predominantly from Annie's point of view. Mirren's performance holds the film together, and despite it's limitations it still manages to keep you guessing right up to the last minute.

A tedious thriller which feels a lot longer than its 88 minutes. Mirren's performance as is solid as you'd expect, but that really isn't quite enough and it's hard to see why this was a film as opposed to a one off TV-drama. I suppose there is something to be said for the fact the film really only let's us experience Mirren's character's perspective and the fact that the audience is kept guessing for much of the movie, but really you can't help feel this could have been a lot better. Compare it to an episode of Cracker or Prime Suspect, and it's nowhere near as dark and brooding as it likes to think it is, and nowhere near as dark and brooding as we know British drama can achieve.

I found the taut atmosphere of this film, present from the very outset, set the scene perfectly for the dark content of the film. Although obviously shot on a relatively low budget, I found that the tension kept me uneasy throughout.

Mirren's performance as the uncertain housewife becomes all the more intriguing when the characters history of mental illness is revealed. This leads to a real conflict between her and her husband, and the viewer is never sure who to side with.

Overall I think this is a great bit of British cinema, and for tension and a realistic darkness, matches any Hollywood blockbuster.

A woman with previous mental problems comes to believe that the brutal serial killer preying on the local neighbourhood is her husband. This is less of a whodunit and more of a "is she right about whodunit?", well acted by Helen Mirren (who keeps her clothes on!) as the suspicious wife, and George Costigan who is the dodgy travelling salesman husband. As she follows the case, checking up on dates and times and growing ever more convinced, her suspicions are ridiculed by friends, family and police, all convinced that her previous mental illness is causing her to imagine the whole thing. Unusually, the film concentrates on the wife and the details of domestic life as they fall apart with the strain of suspicion, and the sadistic sexual murders are scarcely touched on - there's little in the way of gore or action here. The film does keep you unsure of whether she's right or wrong right up until the end, but the dreary domestic details and focus on the wife's mental state make this quite hard work - it felt so much longer than an hour and a half.