Expectations are everything when watching a film and this well-acted character study suffers some from a title that makes fans of typical detective stories, and Pulp Fiction, expect something with more action. But give it a chance. Mo Collins, one of the great comic television actors, is capable of far more than big vapid eyes and respiratory tics in a Mad-TV sketch. And Patrick Coyle, the writer and director, shines equally as male lead, Jack, with a look somewhere between Robert Culp and William H. Macy and a distinctive voice perfectly paired to the noir style with its voice-over segments.
Over time the film's strong writing and acting overcome one's early disappointment that this isn't going to be a typical thriller, but a relationship story painted in noir tones. Once one lets go of expectations and follows the story Coyle has to tell, there is ample entertainment, empathy and fuel for thought to be derived from this tale of a couple's fight to overcome the loneliness togetherness has come to mean for them. It's well directed too, with clever shots and subtle juxtapositions that relieve tensions the dialogue creates and make the watching interesting, even though it's basically a filmed play.
Especially fun for Twin Cities residents are the many familiar streets and buildings, from the old Koscielski's gun shop, with its big smiley face and bullet entry sign, to the classic Parkway Theater and seedy parts of the warehouse district, which have been edited together to suggest a whole city block of adult entertainment (none of whose activities appear on screen).
People who enjoy good acting and films about relationships will appreciate Detective Fiction. It's a well wrought film, better than the average video store offering. Collins and Coyle are real talents and movie fans would benefit from more film work by both.
