Presumed Dead

The year is coming to a close and I have a sure winner for the worst of the year. The only movie I voted 1 in 2010.

I took notes of my thoughts (as I usually do) but after 15 minutes I had listed so many problems that I decided to stop it: the list had gotten way too long. From that point on I just sat back and watched, asking myself if I should trust my eyes and ears: could a movie be that bad?

The story is ridiculous. Written by Keith Shaw under the name of Lindsay James (would that be the name he signs when he writes something that even he is ashamed of?)

Should I bother to disclose this? Well, the person we think will end up being right is - surprise! - right. Evidences are tampered, a venal "expert" is bought off - selling his "expertise" to the highest bidder -, a forensic lab technician also breaks the law, but the end justify all those less than laudable means. And, talking about laudable, the person who orchestrates all that is commended for doing that. (In 2 other movies I've watched recently where the cops planted or tampered with evidence, at least they ended up dead and looked upon in shame). I can only hope that law enforcement in my city works a little bit differently.

Direction is confusing. The director tries hard to makes us think in certain directions intending to surprise us. It certainly didn't work in my case.

Performances are laughable. I actually liked John Tench as the butler. Do you think you ever saw a stereotypical butler? The butler that jokes are made about? Well, think again and watch him. His scenes made the movie look like a spoof of horror movies. I thought Leslie Nilsen would show up next.

I may keep the DVD: it provides valuable lessons on how NOT to make a movie.

His job is to fabricate intrigues and to write them down, making money as a best selling author. He is rich, he owns a magnificent villa, he has everything, and then he dries up and finds himself incapable of writing any more. This actually happens to most authors, Steinbeck and Hemingway for example. The case is rather normal than unusual. This author resorts to desperate measures to reclaim his writing capacity, fabricating intrigue out of reality, and gradually loses control, trying desperately to sort himself out of the mess he has created all by himself, relying like Oscar Wilde on his intelligence to trick himself out of any quandary and appears to be successful - his manipulation of reality becomes more successful than his fiction. This is a marvellous thriller, like the author almost too intelligent for its own good, but it is astoundingly efficient, vying with the best of Hitchcock's. This is different in character, there is no murder committed here except two of them in a distant past, and of course anybody will expect nothing less than for the "presumed dead" to sooner or later present herself - that's what will keep the audience waiting, and it will be gratified.

After the death of her police officer husband Detective Mary Ann Cooper - "Coop" - (Fenn) is reluctant to take leave and throws herself into her work, much to the distress of her young daughter. On the night of her husband's death, he was called out to a domestic disturbance at a local writer's home. Sharing his thoughts about the man and the situation with Coop, she is left with the impression that the writer is not to be trusted. So when she hears about a possible murder at the house she rushes to the crime scene and inserts herself into the case. This is where the twists and turns begin.

This is a very clever mystery tale. However, there are times when it feels as though the writer, Lindsay James (Keith Shaw) struggles with some of the plot twists and their culmination. Which is a shame as it adds a sloppiness to the project. Though the courtroom scene is very well structured as you get to see how a writers mind can rework the facts to meet a different scenario. Loved this section of the story. Then you get the ending which feels rushed and spoils the mood and aura of the film.

The director, George Mendeluk, is adept at creating atmosphere, though a little more tension at times wouldn't have gone amiss. Also, a change of pace would have been good. There are a couple of scenes that would have improved from a different approach, especially the two in the woods.

I liked Fenn as the cop on a mission, she did well in portraying her. Fenn has had a lot of hits and misses in her career, this one is a hit. The rest of the cast also do a good job with their characterisations. Though, I wouldn't have chosen Regehr to play the writer, Seth Harmon. This character calls for a cool and cocky air to him, Regehr gets nowhere near to these traits. Then when he starts to break, Regehr struggles with pulling off this psychological side. Though, this could be what the director envisioned and asked for. However, I cannot help but think how much better the film would have been with a stronger bad guy.

This is a movie I'd recommend all mystery and thriller fans and whodunnit pundits to watch, at least once. Once the plot twists have been exposed then the power of the film has been expunged.

Laughably bad Lifetime Channel thriller about determined cop Sherilyn Fenn trying to prove that a famous mystery writer is actually a murderer. Oh, and Fenn's character is an aspiring mystery writer herself who also happens to be getting over the recent death of her husband. This made-for-cable movie has so many cliches I can't even begin to list them all (a detective told to lay off the case, a defendant serving as their own attorney in court, a cop having their badge taken away, etc. and so on and so forth). The only reason I watched this film is that I'd set my DVR to record anything Sherilyn Fenn appears in, and although she does her best with what she's got, this film is a mess beyond saving. And full disclosure, I watched this film on my iPad picture-in-picture, which is really all it deserved.

If you love a surprising twist at the end of a movie-this is it! Twist, upon twist, upon twist. The flashbacks and use of color are inventive and creative. They help the story. Does art imitate art, or vice versa? This is what the film seems to explore: the theme that sometimes creative individuals turn to crime and violence if they do not get the opportunity to express themselves, or if their creativity is suppressed-as in the case of Jack The Ripper, or Adolf Hitler. Filmically, the black and white flashbacks seem to represent what really happened, and the more colorful ones seem to be from the accused killer's point of view. It's good to see Sherilyn Fenn again. She is credible as a cop and a single mom wrestling to solve a case of murder with a misogynist as the accused, as well as heal herself from the tragic death of her husband.The credit sequence sets up the plot, which is interesting. The music is haunting. And the directing even and sure handed. The end is definitely a surprise!