Mystery Movie Review - Twisted

This 2004 film is a crime drama, mystery, noir thriller, or psychological thriller.  I saw this years ago and still remember it, so I wanted to share it with you.

What it's about:

Recently promoted and transferred to the homicide division, Inspector Jessica Shepard feels pressure to prove herself. She is assigned to hunt down a serial killer who is murdering the men she recently dated. Then she starts blacking out on the night of each murder, and she becomes the prime suspect. She needs to find and catch the killer fast.

Taglines:

-- Every murder has a mark.

-- An elusive killer. A brilliant detective. Maybe one and the same?

Cast:

-- Ashley Judd as Jessica Shepard

-- Samuel L. Jackson as John Mills

-- Andy Garcia as Mike Delmarco

-- David Strathairn as Dr. Melvin Frank

-- Russell Wong as Lieutenant Tong

-- Mark Pellegrino as Jimmy Schmidt

-- Titus Welliver as Dale Becker

-- Director: Philip Kaufman

-- Writer: Sarah Thorp

Rated R  1 hour 37 minutes

violence, language, and slight sexuality.

Rotten Tomatoes and critics reviews:

-- Critics hated this movie and trashed it vehemently. They pretty much hated everything about it from the script to the actors saying "Numbingly predictable, inept, and boring".  Such critical condemnation is probably why it didn't do well at the box office.  Audiences who did watch it were split between thinking it was an average and okay-to-good thriller to just simply thinking it was dull and not worth the time.

     

-- "I agree, that this movie is a good thriller movie to be watched. I was entertained by this movie, and I kinda guessed wrongly in the beginning." IMDB

     

-- "My expectations were fulfilled. I mean I knew that this one was not a top thriller but at least it was better than the last ones I s[aw]. I spent an entertaining evening with my wife who didn't fall asleep this time. This movie kept your attention from beginning and during all the time you are asking who the real murder is. The performance of Ashley Judd in her psycho role was very good and for all fans of her this is a must see. Yeah, it's a good psycho-thriller with a surprising end. I am wondering why so many critics are negative here. There are no doubt more movies who deserved less good votes than Twisted." -IMDB

     

-- "If pressed, I would say that this film is a noir thriller, though it's so much more. There's a great love story here too (actually there are many kinds of love stories in the film and one really twisted one-thus the title). The direction, the camera-work and acting are all great." IMDB

Noteworthy awards or rankings:

Hollywood Film Awards

2004 Winner-Hollywood Film Award

Make-Up of the Year: Ve Neill

Trivia (from IMDB):

-- "Jessica Shepard's promotion from Officer to Inspector isn't as big a jump as it sounds. The S.F.P.D., unlike nearly all other municipal police departments, does not have a traditional Detective rank. The Inspector rank is simply the next rank above Officer, and an Inspector's responsibilities are exactly like those of a Detective in most other police departments."

-- "Internationally, the movie was renamed through multiple titles. Including "Blackout," "Stalked," "I Can't Believe It's You," "Murderous Instincts," "Unexpected Twist," and "An Eclipse." Additionally, "Blackout" was the film's original title during production."

-- "Filming San Francisco practically earned co-star credit, so director Philip Kaufman fought to shoot the movie in the city he knew so well. Well-known San Francisco bars and restaurants in the film include Tosca Café and Vesuvio, both on Columbus Avenue in the North Beach district, as well as Red's Java House, at Pier 30 on the waterfront. Several scenes were also filmed at the Palace of Fine Arts, with its unmistakable rotunda and lagoon."

-- "According to Philip Kaufman, it was Ashley Judd's idea to cut her hair short for the movie because she believed that's the way a cop would wear it."

-- "The cast includes three Oscar nominees: Andy Garcia, Samuel L. Jackson, and David Strathairn."

-- "Jessica Shepard's final confrontation with the villain was filmed at the San Francisco Maritime National Historic Park. The ship behind her is the Balclutha, built in 1886."

My Thoughts:

I first saw this movie many years ago, but it stuck with me.  Which, I feel makes this movie deserving of inclusion in my movie reviews.  I re-watched it to have it fresh in my mind for the review. Many movies that were praised by critics I couldn't remember much, if anything, but this one really got to me.  

As always, Ashley Judd had me invested in her story and afraid for her. Andy Garcia gave a wonderful supporting character that you weren't sure of until the end and Samuel L. Jackson played a bit more subdued and nuanced character than his usual. 

This had many noir elements that gave the film a gritty vibe. This is a journey as Judd gives us a police officer who begins to loose time and as she becomes the only suspect she looses faith in herself and wonders if she was the killer during her black outs.

The climax-killer reveal is a twist followed by a cat-and-mouse foot-chase at a dock/marina with fog and plenty of noir atmosphere that I thought was effective for ramping up the suspense.

Overall I really like this film and believe it's underrated.  Give it a try and please let me know your thoughts on the movie in the comments.

Movie Trailer:

     

THANK YOU for reading this blog and please recommend to friends and family who will enjoy it.

     

Join my author newsletter: Click Here. 

Mystery Movie Review - Murder at 1600

 This 1997 Crime Drama/Mystery/Political Thriller didn't start as a book. It was written for screen and for pure entertainment value.

What it's about:

"A secretary is found dead in a White House bathroom during an international crisis, and Detective Harlan Regis is in charge of the investigation. Despite resistance from the Secret Service, Regis partners with agent Nina Chance. As political tensions rise, they learn that the crime could be part of an elaborate cover-up. Framed as traitors, the pair and Regis' partner break into the White House to expose the true culprit."

      

Rated R  1 hour 47 minutes

for sexuality, violence, and some language

   

Taglines: 

-- He's a D.C. cop on the outside. She's a Secret Service agent on the inside. Tracking a White House homicide to the First Family's front door.

-- This address changes all the rules.

     

Cast:

-- Wesley Snipes as Detective Harlan Regis

-- Diane Lane as Secret Service agent Nina Chance

-- Daniel Benzali as Secret Service Agent Nick Spikings

-- Dennis Miller as Detective Stengel

-- Alan Alda as  National Security Advisor Alvin Jordan

-- Ronny Cox as President Jack Neil

-- Diane Baker as First Lady Kitty Neil

-- Tate Donovan as First Son Kyle Neil

Director: Dwight H. Little

Writers: Wayne BeachDavid Hodgin

Rotten Tomatoes (33%) and critics reviews:

-- "B- grade" Lisa Schwarzbaum-Entertainment Weekly

-- "Wesley Snipes is in top form. A top-notch action thriller." Rob Blackwelder-SPLICEDWire

-- "The last third of the film is a ready-made action movie plug-in." Roger Ebert-Chicago Sun-Times

-- "Murder is a fairly diverting game of whodunit, like a big-screen version of Clue, until it sinks into routine thriller antics and wraps up preposterously." Susan Wloszczyna-USA Today

-- "Murder at 1600 is an enjoyable thriller. ...on the whole the plot leaves the viewer in some suspense. As a "whodunnit", the movie succeeds, and as for this reviewer, the murderer and the actual conspiracy isn't evident till near the end. Wayne Beach and the late David Hodgin create enough plot twists to keep most viewers guessing. Director Dwight Little keeps things tight and well-paced. There is a good sense of logic to Murder at 1600's execution.  It's arguably one of the best films Snipes has starred in. And refreshingly for Hollywood, we do not have a male European-American hero saving the day with his African-American sidekick." Jack Yan-IMDB

-- "Murder at 1600 is an OK thriller film. The cast all does a pretty good job, especially Diane Lane and Wesley Snipes. Alan Alda also does a good sufficient job at portraying his role. The film does at least keep you guessing for the majority of the runtime. The mystery kinda builds as it goes, which is always fun. The mystery isn't the greatest one ever to be in a movie, but it is interesting to see how it all comes and works together to see who is behind everything and why in the end." DavisPittman-IMDB

Trivia (from IMDB):

Trivia (from IMDB):

-- Wesley Snipes replaced Bruce Willis in the lead role of Detective Harlan Regis after Willis withdrew from the movie.

-- David Caruso still thinks he should have been in this movie.

-- Director Dwight Little said that he had been promised Murder at 1600 would be released before Absolute Power. When Clint Eastwood heard that Murder at 1600 was getting positive test screenings, Little said Eastwood convinced Warner Bros. to release Absolute Power first, causing Murder at 1600 to look like a copycat.

-- Although scenes were filmed in Washington, D.C., primary locations were in Toronto, Canada and nearby locations in Ontario... a new Oval Office was built at Cinespace Film Studios in Kleinburg [specifically for this film.]

-- Love scenes between Wesley Snipes and Diane Lane were some of the scenes which were cut from the film, apparently because it was felt that their characters interracial romance didn't work.

-- The book on Detective Stengel's (Dennis Miller) nightstand at approx 39m is Isaac Asimov's The Martian Way.

-- There is an unused music score composed by Basil Poledouris. His name, however, appears on the trailer as being the music composer.

     

My Thoughts:

It's rated "R" for a reason, but that aside this is an enjoyable political thriller.  Wesley Snipes and Diane Lane both gave solid performances and Alan Alda, too. I always enjoy Daniel Benzali and he delivered here. 

When you want a tense movie with some action and mystery to sit back and enjoy, this is a good one. This movie didn't try for Oscar winning, it went for the entertainment value and it scored well for that. 

I didn't guess who was behind the murder or why until close to the reveal. Good job there.

If you haven't seen this before, give it a try. If you haven't seen it in a while, watch it again for a  popcorn night. Yes, I own a DVD of this movie.

     

Movie Trailer:

THANK YOU for reading this blog and please recommend to friends and family who will enjoy it.

     Join my author newsletter: Click Here. 

Review - 1st to Die

James Patterson is well known whether you read his books or not. He writes multiple books every year by collaborating with other authors. Thus, he is one of the best paid authors around. Reportedly his books often account for one in 17 hardcover books sold in the U.S. and has sold over 400 million copies worldwide as of 2022. He holds the Guinness World Record for the most #1 New York Times bestsellers by a single author. Several of his books have either become movies, television shows, and even video games. 

Patterson has been called the "world’s best-selling author and a publishing phenomenon."  He has received the Edgar Award, the National Book Foundation's Literarian Award, and the National Humanities Medal.  But did you know he founded the ReadKiddoRead website to encourage children's reading?  He also donated over $1.75 million to U.S. public schools, $1 million to independent bookstores in 2015 alone, and provided thousands of grants to school libraries and independent bookstores. 

This particular series is now up to its twenty-sixth book, but I'm starting with the first in the series here.  I haven't read any books in this series before, so let's see how I like it.

Author: James Patterson

Copyright: March 2001 (Little Brown & Co.) 488 pgs

Series: 1st in Women's Murder Club series

Sensuality: Some violence with clinical descriptions mostly, swearing, and adult topics and situations.  PG-18

Mystery Sub-genre: Police Procedural, police thriller

Main Character: Inspector Lindsey Boxer of the Homicide Squad

Setting: Modern day San Francisco, California

Obtained Through: Library

Book Blurb: "Each one holds a piece of the puzzle: Lindsay Boxer is a homicide inspector in the San Francisco Police Department, Claire Washburn is a medical examiner, Jill Bernhardt is an assistant D.A., and Cindy Thomas just started working the crime desk of the San Francisco Chronicle.

But the usual procedures aren't bringing them any closer to stopping the killings. So these women form a Women's Murder Club to collaborate outside the box and pursue the case by sidestepping their bosses and giving each other a hand.

The four women develop intense bonds as they pursue a killer whose crimes have stunned an entire city. Working together, they track down the most terrifying and unexpected killer they have ever encountered—before a shocking conclusion in which everything they knew turns out to be devastatingly wrong."

My Thoughts:

Lindsey Boxer is headstrong and determined, she isn't immediately likeable but she did grow on me as I learned more about her.  Each of the others in the club, Jill, Claire, and Cindy, are brought into the group by Lindsey. Her closest friend is Claire, the ME, and that was natural, but Cindy being a reporter that police usually avoid is a strange pick, and Jill being the Assist. DA wasn't an obvious choice either but it all works and they are becoming friends primarily. Lindsey needs a support group and so do each of these career driven ladies.

San Francisco is a big city as well as a busy tourist spot which is key to the story.  The wedding industry has become a bemouth the last few decades and this plot utilizes that as the central theme for a serial killer to target people in a large city full of local or destination weddings. It makes the murders shocking and Lindsey reacts emotionally to them.

The tension builds throughout the story. I felt the book moved along between the investigation, more murders, and Lindsey's personal life. In between all of that is the gradual formation of the Women's Murder Club. The concept of collaborating the investigation among police, ME, DA, and press is great. Wish that was the makeup of police task forces that get created today.

The climax was nail-biting tense and heartbreaking. My heart was pounding just reading it. What an emotional and adrenaline inducing killer confrontation.

The one thing I wish were improved upon is a man trying to write from a woman's perspective--it didn't work in some instances. There were little references where a woman would never have inner dialog like that.  I don't believe it was intentional, but it shows a male's viewpoint in several places (a woman's "fragile courage" is used- you would never say a man's fragile courage. That is a man's perspective). Just understand this handicap when reading it.

This is a gripping and entertaining novel with twists and turns, I appreciate the four women in the club are all strong female characters which we need more of in novels. I want to note how the human element is recognized in the story, not relegated to an afterthought or footnote. This is a strong genre book delivering a memorable police thriller.  I immediately started on the second in the series.

If you haven't read this book before and don't mind grittier mysteries, this could be for you.  If you have read it before, please leave your thoughts on it in the comments -- I would love to hear from you.

Rating: Near Perfect - Buy two copies: one for you and one for a friend. 

THANK YOU for reading this blog and please recommend to friends and family who will enjoy it.

Join my author newsletter, Click Here  

Here is a great interview with James Patterson, well worth watching.

Musings - Police Procedural, Thriller, and Intrigue

I did a prior post on the differences between Cozy, Traditional, and Amateur Sleuth novels (click here).

Now we will tackle the difference between the detective fiction, police procedurals, thrillers, and intrigue sub-categories of the mystery genre.

Some believe that all mysteries started with detective fiction in mid 1800s and everything from police procedural and thrillers to cozy mysteries has evolved from it.  Whether that is true or not, these categories have developed a lot, particularly in the last few decades.  

This isn't an exhaustive breakdown and analysis but it provides a fair guideline.  These categories are defined differently depending upon who you read/talk to.  I have tried to provide plenty of examples to help illustrate these categories only to aid in understanding what you like and how to find similar novels.  

Detective Fiction to include the Private Detective and CSI,
 

Detective Fiction: For our purposes to define a slice of the bigger mystery genre: The detective (private detective or other professional that is adjacent) investigates a crime, often murder.  Includes the hard-boiled and noir fiction as well as historical detectives.  These range from not much graphic details to gore, depending upon the author.

Many of the historic detective fiction may have a titled or influential/wealthy person investigating even though they don't get paid.  That is a detail of the time period because the titled nobility weren't to "work" for a living, but they still classify as detectives sought out to investigate and use their influence. These can vary from cozy to very gritty. Examples follow:

CS Harris's Sebastion St Cyr

Charles Finch's Charles Lennox series

Andrea Penrose's Wrexford and Sloane series

Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone series

Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series

Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot series

Dorothy Sayer's Lord Peter Wimsey series

Dashiel Hammet's Sam Spade series

Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe

Jeffrey Dever's Colter Shaw series

CJ Box's Joe Picket (Game Warden) series

Police Procedural

The police procedural is focused on the official law enforcement and its procedures, including police-related topics such as forensic science, autopsies, gathering evidence, search warrants, interrogation, and adherence to legal restrictions and procedures.  They may have more graphic descriptions, swearing, and the harsher side of life shown.

While many police procedurals conceal the criminal's identity until the crime is solved in the climatic killer reveal or confrontation (the so-called whodunit), others reveal the perpetrator's identity to the audience early in the narrative for a twist and more suspense.  Examples follow:

J.D. Robb's In Death series

James Patterson's Detective Alex Cross series

Tony Hillerman's Leaphorn and Chee series

James D Doss's Charlie Moon series (early books)

Ian Rankin's Detective Inspector John Rebus series

Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch series

Louise Penny's Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series

Robert Galbraith Cormoran Strike series

Tana French's Dublin Murder Squad series

P.D. James' Adam Dalgliesh series

Jeffrey Dever's Lincoln Rhymes series

Thriller: Suspense, Political, Action, Psychological, Women-
in-jeopardy, Legal etc.

The thriller genre has taken off and contains many subcategories including Suspense thriller, political thriller, legal thriller, medical thriller, psychological thriller, conspiracy thriller, military thriller, and even the serial killer thriller.  Thus, it makes it difficult to provide general description that adequately includes each of these sub-genres.

The thriller umbrella often includes a race against a ticking clock--a sense of urgency, bigger stakes, and higher tension and suspense.  A "thriller" doesn't have to be non-stop action and thrills, although they can.  Thrillers are more about stopping something from happening with little time rather than finding out who already committed a murder or crime.  They can range anywhere from cozy to gritty to violent with sex.  Examples follow:

Dan Brown's novels including Robert Langdon series

Mary Higgins Clark's (Queen of Suspense) body of work. 

David Baldacci's The Camel Club series

Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan series (some could be intrigue as well)

Steve Berry's Cotton Malone series

James Patterson's Shadow Thrillers

Andrew Mayne's Jessica Blackwood Thrillers

Catherine Coulter's FBI Thrillers

John Grisham Legal Thrillers: The Firm etc.

Lisa Scottoline's Mistaken Identity etc.

C.G. Abbot's The Society (click here)

David Baldacci's First Family (Maxwell and King series)

Espionage and Intrigue

This is spy fiction: as in spy vs spy, discovering a spy in your midst, the world of assasins for national security, or domestic terrorist threats.  Typically this involves nations but with real world corporate espionage occuring, that has become furtile ground for novelists, too.  They can vary on violence, language and sex depending upon the author.  Examples follow:

Robert Ludlum's Jason Bourne series

Stella Rimington's (real life former Director General of MI5) Liz Carlyle series

Gayle Lynds' The Assassins and The Last Spymaster

Daniel Silva's Gabriel Allon series

David Baldacci's Will Robie series

John le Carré books

Mark Greaney's Gray Man series

Mick Herron's Slough House series

Ian Fleming's James Bond series

There you have the differences between these sub-categories of the Mystery genre.  I hope these give you clarity and aid you in finding what you enjoy so you can find more of that type.  Or, perhaps you have some new books to look into and widen your reading horizons.  That to-be-read pile is getting bigger :-)

Review - Killing Trail

Apparently fans of Nevada Barr and C.J. Box will love this explosive debut.  "This suspenseful series kick-off introduces small-town Colorado's best crime-fighting duo, Mattie Cobb and her police dog partner, Robo"  This is a new for me series although it was published several years ago, so lets see how I felt about this debut.

Author: Margaret Mizushima

Copyright: December 2011 (Berkley) 320 pgs

Series: 1st in Timber Creek K-9 Mysteries

Sensuality: clinical death of a teen, drug mules

Mystery Sub-genre: Police Procedural

Main Characters: Officer Mattie Cobb and pollice dog partner, Robo, 

Setting: Modern day, Timber Creek, Colorado

Obtained Through: Library Find

Book Blurb: "When a young girl is found dead in the mountains outside Timber Creek, life-long resident Officer Mattie Cobb and her partner, K-9 police dog Robo, are assigned to the case that has rocked the small Colorado town.

With the help of Cole Walker, local veterinarian and a single father, Mattie and Robo must track down the truth before it claims another victim. But the more Mattie investigates, the more she realizes how many secrets her hometown holds. And the key may be Cole's daughter, who knows more than she's saying.

The murder was just the beginning, and if Mattie isn't careful, she and Robo could be next. Suspenseful and smart, Killing Trail is a gripping read that will have readers clamoring for more Mattie and Robo for years to come. " 

Mattie Cobb comes with wounds having grown up in foster care. Thus she trusts her dog partner, Robo, more than any human. She is the only female deputy, and she also won a cross country endurance test to be Robo's handler. She is all business and doesn't have much of a soft side except towards Robo. She may not be for everyone, but I think she makes an interesting lead.  Robo is a star.  He is well trained, works hard and plays hard, and is loyal to Mattie without question.  

Cole Walker is recently separated and a work-a-holic veterinarian who could be a romantic interest for Mattie. But he needs to grieve before he is ready IMHO.  Detective Stella LoSasso arrives to handle the investigation and becomes a temporary mentor as she works with Mattie.  Sheriff Abraham McCoy is a mountain of a man who sees Mattie's potential and encourages her.  Chief Deputy Brody has never forgiven Mattie for winning the endurance test and being Robo's handler, thus he makes her life difficult at every opportunity.

Mama T is Mattie's foster mom and a great character I want to seem more of in future novels.  And then there is Rainbow, the hippy-raised dispatcher who is the optimist continually trying to make friends with Mattie.

Timber Creek is a smallish town developing a bigger town's drug problems. It sits in the middle of the majestic Rocky Mountains which are well described to place the reader in the splendor. Thus providing the ugly side hiding within the beauty. Well done.

I liked this police procedural more than I usually do the subgenre.  It is well balanced with Robo and the scenes from the Veterinarian's point of view to keep it from being the gritty big city style. The plot shows the struggle to fight the creeping of drugs into the community without being completely jaded. I devoured the book so the pacing kept me glued to the pages.

The climax was a nail biting suspenseful confrontation where Mattie learns to fully trust Robo and he delivers. The killer wasn't entirely a surprise, but wasn't my top choice so, that was well done.  The wrapup sets up for ongoing adventures.

I liked that the romance is a slow burn since both Mattie and Cole have some serious baggage to deal with. I absolutely love Robo and how he is portrayed. Mattie could have been a dark character, but she is evened out with moments of growth and the character has tremendous potential.  I also love that Rainbow and Detective Stella LoSasso are supportive women for Mattie, fantastic touch. 

The opening is my favorite for its humor:

     "Pulling her cruiser up to a stop sign, Mattie stole a quick glance.  Born in Russia, he was a handsome guy: straight black hair, intense brown eyes, and white teeth that flashed when he grinned.  Large and muscular, strong and rugged, he was the only one in the department who could outrun her in cross-country foot race.

     In addition to all that, he could sniff out a missing person.

     He was Timber Creek County's new police service dog, a German shepherd name Robo."

Rating: Excellent - Loved it! Buy it now and put this author on your watch list