Detective

Another Tom Berenger special, this time courtesy of Hallmark. For some reason they have two TV stars in supporting roles: Cybil Shepherd and Bruce Boxleitner.

There wasn't enough content to stretch to three hours, but it's three hours.

I believe the main story is the detective and his messy private life. Malcolm (Berenger) is an ex-priest, separated from his wife, and his detective girlfriend is a councilman's daughter.

However, we never find out about his life in the priesthood, any guilt he may have about that and shacking up with someone else while he's in marriage counseling, or any angst over the fact that his son is angry with him.

Instead he concentrates on the vicious serial killings in the LA area. I suppose Hailey made the character an ex-priest so he could recognize signs at the crime scenes from the Book of Revelations.

All this added up to not much. The serial killings were gross beyond belief as were the suspects. In the end, you really didn't care about any of it.

As usual with many movies, the "Sound Engineers" on this film should never work again. There was "background music and sound effects" where none should be and it was much too loud covering up the actors.

Tom Berenger plays Malcolm Ainslie, a former priest turned detective, and he has one big case on his hands. A madman is killing elderly residents in gruesome fashion and his actions seem to be somewhat borrowed form The Book of Revelations. As a former priest, Ainslie might just prove to be the perfect one to solve the case.

Mixing in Ainslie's troubled personal life, Detective has a good story throughout it's running time. I can't help thinking this could have been even better had it not been a Hallmark presentation. There's no gore here (but plenty of opportunities) and the suspense seems to watered down somewhat, especially during the climax. It's totally got that TV feel to it, but director choirs are well handled by David Cass, a seasoned television director.

The cast is mostly good. Tom Berenger is good as Ainslie, handling all aspects of the character well. Cybill Sheperd is fine as his wife but Annabeth Gish is completely stone-faced all the way through. It's fun to see Charles Durning but his role is a small one.

Had this movie gotten the theatrical treatment it could have been one hell of a thriller. Sourced from a good book by Arthur Hailey, it really cries out for better production values and some bloody set pieces. Still, it's quite good all the same.

not a bad movie. just not a good one. it is tolerable, the kind of movie you will end up watching if you are sick in bed and can't find the remote. it's a "movie of the week" paced like a mini-series event scheduled during sweeps. Tom Berenger is good (as he always is) and Cybill Shepherd is, well, Cybill Shepherd. Annabeth Gish is totally wasted. She seems to actually be absent through most of her performance except for the occasional shrill outburst towards the end. You can't really blame the actors because the real flaw is the story line and script: back-to-back pointless and clichéd conversations that do nothing to move the plot along.

Tom Berenger is once again a great detective. Like his characters Michael Keegan (Someone To Watch Over Me), Harry Dobbs (Love @ Large), Clifford DeBose (A Murder of Crows), and Rem Macy (True Blue)- his wit, take-charge attitude, and Noble authority - combined with his personal side - give depth to what could have been a staid character. Most of the supporting cast were perfectly cast. I was pleased to see that the movie kept very closely to the book, except for Malcolm's turning atheist. Was even more pleased that Hallmark did not show gruesome close-ups like was shown in Tom Berenger's Eye See You. Mr. Berenger shines in Alex Haley's Detective. A great movie to watch and re-watch :)