Guilty by Suspicion

I consider this period of the early 90's to be Robert DeNiro's second wind, if you will, after many great films he starred in the 70's. This film, along with the excellent Goodfellas, Awakenings, Night and the City, A Bronx Tale, and Cape Fear highlighted a great actor's resume. He hasn't done many great films in a while, but his acting chops speak for themselves. He stars here as David Merrill, a blacklisted director in Hollyweird, who's basically accused of being a communist and certain government factions want him to name names. His performance, although subdued, is very solid as he struggles with the decision to either report his friends, who are thought to be Communist in order to rescue his once promising career, or refuse to give up any names so their lives and careers won't be destroyed also. There's a moving scene between Merrill and congress as they bombard him with questions and accusations. This is probably the most memorable scene, but I thought it tries to wrap the film up in a neat little ball, as opposed to letting us know exactly what went on in those supposedly communist meetings Merrill was a part of, and what was discussed there and who attended these meetings.

George Wendt does a commendable job as Bunny Baxter, even though it's difficult to see him other than Norm from Cheers, but I digress. Annette Benning and Patricia Wettig also give solid performances in this forgotten little film based on a true story.