Sacrifice

Michael Madsen plays Tyler Pierce, an ex-con who escapes from jail to find out who murdered his only daughter Lisa. With the help of Naomi Cohen (played by Jamie Luner), he finds out who murdered his daughter and some of the reasons why she was murdered. "Sacrifice" is very gripping, and keep you at the end of your seat. A must see for all Michael Madsen fans.

"Sacrifice" is a gripping story of convict Tyler (Michael Madsen)who escapes from jail in order to find and punish the serial killer named "Sweetwater" because the killer murdered his daughter. With the help of a ex prostitute (Jamie Luner), Tyler pieces together the twisted mind of the killer. Although unrealistic, "Sacrifice" doesn't go on too long nor does it leave one bored.

Sometimes I watch B-movies that are flat-out silly and ridiculous that I can't help but be entertained. That's the case with SACRIFICE, a TV movie made in 2000 and shot in Alabama which sees Tarantino regular Michael Madsen playing a bank robber who busts out of jail in order to get revenge on the serial killer who's just claimed his daughter as their next victim.

The plot is an unwieldy amalgamation of serial killer movie with a more predictable cops 'n' robbers flick. Michael Madsen spends the whole movie on the run from sweaty FBI man Bokeem Woodbine, although the FBI are so useless in this movie that I was regularly laughing at how bad they were. They need to be too - Madsen is flabby and past his prime in this one, and looks incredibly bored with the material too.

The other half of the film is a typical slasher movie, with some thrown-in nudity and a couple of half-gory murders inserted into the mix. A weird masked and ritualistic murderer is offing nubile women, and the writer desperately adds a whodunit angle in an attempt to grab the viewer's attention. Just who's responsible? Could it be THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT's Joshua Leonard, playing the boyfriend of Madsen's slain daughter?

It's all very silly and far-fetched, and it ends up in a set-piece that's both ridiculous and expected. I like the way the writers keep pushing their anti-abortion agenda with the presence of the protesters as well as the motive for the killer. SACRIFICE is far from a good film but it is a mildly entertaining one if you're in the right mood.

To be honest, I didn't expect much of this film, given that it was being shown at 1 o'clock in the morning when no one would be watching, and the trashy title but it's a good little film.

Michael Madsen is good as the main character, who you root for despite his unsavoury nature. The supporting cast are also good, especially his ex-wife and her new husband and Agent Gottfried.

The tension ratchets up well, and the film moves along in a logical progression. Also, unlike many thrillers, there is enough revealed for the audience to work out who the Sweetwater killer is, without it being obvious. There are no illogical twists and turns which is always nice to see. The scenes with the killer are suitably scary, especially when the killer attacks his third on-screen victim.

The ending is good and well done, as is the rest of the film. It's not a classic, obviously, but watching the film is not a bad way of spending a couple of hours.

Laughable dialogue, terrible camerawork, and a ludicrous script make this an all-around BAD movie. And yet, like so many other bad movies, you just can't seem to change the channel. Maybe it's to see if Jamie Luner will get naked again, maybe it's to see if Bokeem Woodbine, who gets second billing, will get another 5 minutes of screen time this hour, maybe it's to see exactly how Mr. Blon... I mean, Michael Madsen's character will manage to get away from the cops, maybe it's because ALL the movie channels are playing similar stupid direct-to-video movies at this hour of the morning.

From the serial killer with the box of boobs, to the gratuitous dream sequence with Madsen's dead daughter in the restaurant, this is one completely silly movie. Watch it anyway, what else are you going to do at 3:30 AM?

-Mikey