Jeu sans issue

To pay off a gambling debt, police detective Harry Woltz (Jim Belushi) is forced to teach John Farrow (Jason Bateman) in murdering his wife. The case falls to his ex-partner Gwen Buckley (Angela Featherstone) and he starts feeling the heat.

The originating incident is convoluted. It would be so much simpler if Harry is forced to kill the wife himself. The rest is a lot of twisting and bending to get to the same place. I guess he's less emotionally guilty if he didn't intend to pull the trigger himself but that's a distinction without a difference. He's on the hook for murder either way. As for Jim himself, it always struck me as silly for him to play a hard-boiled detective. This one is a little better since he's corrupt. He's good at sleazy. He's either that or be completely silly. I can't take him as the heroic type. This would work better if he is internally corrupt rather than being a good man who did one corrupt thing.

Clumsily-plotted thriller that has framed innocent James Belushi stumbling along trying to piece together the clues that prove he is not linked with the murder of a woman. Tired script relies on cliches and Belushi--a talented comedian and just plain funny guy--is way out of his league as a serious guy who has to show real emotions. I like Belushi--I don't like this movie.

Mediocre to an extreme.

2/5 stars.

• John Ulmer

I have to admit i am a fan of James Belushi in his Comedic film roles, but he does a decent job in this thriller as top homicide detective Harry Woltz.

Due to spiraling gambling debts he is forced into training a husband(Jason Bateman) who is treated badly by his rich wife, on how to commit the perfect murder without leaving any clues behind.

Their are a good few plot twists to keep you interested to the end of the movie, but most are predictable to us as we have seen them in many other similar movies.

Overall i would give the movie 6/10

Flawed on all levels, "One Way Out" plays out with the look and feel of a low budget t.v. drama. Belushi is at the center as a homicide detective with gambling debts who finds himself on the wrong end of a murder investigation. With pervasive mediocrity, the tortuous plot is the only reason to spend time with this flick and it is so full of plot holes as to require a sort of viewer numbness to be all it can be which little more than is a nice little time waster. For couch potatoes only. C-

One Way Out, the new James Belushi movie is a direct to the video flick and it's developed and conceive such as common product nothing to more. The story of the Detective Harry Woltz and his double life between murders and night club can be much more interesting and good writer, with more intelligence, threatening expression and human evil. Also the leading role is too low and normally good for be believable and fascinating. The movie starting low with stereotyped characters, then grow up with more suspense, good facts and tension till to the end when all the good thinks fall in a sugary and foolish love story. James Belushi is good but too old for this charming and fine role, much better when he do the sympathy scoundrel as in `Made Men' or the totally obscure police man of `Gang Related'. Nothing to very bad, the movie leave it till to end, but good only for the video or TV movie. My rate is 5.