The Killer In No Mystery... Would Have Been Better As A Whodunit...

stephenabell

My Ratings:
Story 1.25 : Direction 1.25 : Pace 1.00 : Acting 1.25 : Entertaining 1.25
Total 6.00 out of 10.00.

I find TV Movies can fall into two categories. Bad or Not Too Bad. Very seldom do they encroach into the good and excellent fields. This one lands firmly in the Not Too Bad field.

The only trouble I have with this movie is the fact you know who the killer is at an early stage. This is a shame as it starts as a whodunnit, my favourite type of mystery movie. The casting department falls into its usual routine mistake. They give the role of the bad-guy to an actor or actress who typically plays the villain. So as soon as they appear on the screen you're thinking, Yeah! It's them. Then when that person's mental illness surfaces, you know without a doubt they carried out the dirty deed. It would have been nice if this had been a red herring. It would have elevated the story and film up an extra notch or two.

That said, Robert Malenfant, who wrote and directed the story, along with screenwriter, Christine Conradt, give the audience a well structured, if predictable, story.

Malenfant also does a decent job with the direction. Though a few changes in tempo would have helped with building the required tension at times. Nonetheless, the film kept my attention and amplified my enjoyment. Though it was the actors and actresses portrayals of their characters that pulled me into the story.

In particular, Daniel J. Travanti, as the busy-body ex-lawyer Stan Douglas. He gives a soft and understated performance. However, it's his actions and reactions with the rest of the cast that makes the film. Whoever he shares the scene with their skill appears boosted by his being there. For example, sometimes Barbara Niven, who plays the lead of Lauren Kessler, comes across a tad two dimensional. When she's with Travanti, though, she is more enlivened and realistic. Nearly a woman you could relate to and care about. This, for me, is also one of Gary Hudson's better roles as Brian Ellis.

Like I said at the start, this is a Not Too Bad film. In these days of CoVid lockdown, you could do a lot worse than checking out this film. So if you like your psychological thrillers, and this is on a telly channel near you, flick on the station and waste an hour and a half.

Jog on over to my The Game Is Afoot list and see where this Telly Film landed in my rankings. You may find another tasty morsel for your viewing pleasure.

Take Care and Stay Well.

score 6/10

stephenabell 17 September 2020

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw6102189/