Sunday, August 29, 2010

my brief thoughts on.... 'The Perfect Witness'

over the years, i've grown to enjoy Wes Bentley more and more.... so that's kind of what attracted me to this movie.... granted, i thought the plot sounded interesting.... not entirely new, but interesting.... and with him thrown in the mix i thought it was a no brainer to watch this.... at it's core, this is a pretty dark little movie.... there's not too much redeeming about any of the characters in the movie.... and no one is really innocent.... you'd like to think that our hero is just that.... a hero.... but in reality, he's just as twisted and dark as the villan.... this a fairly smart script and one that falls in the category or a character study.... a movie based around in depth characters with a lot of backstory.... you can almost feel their baggage when they're on the screen.... and it takes good actors to pull off a movie like this.... one that relies so much on being believable as someone realistic, but the truth be told is only someone's imagination....

the story involves Wes's character shooting the murder of a woman at the hands of a notable serial killer.... he uses the tape to bribe the killer into being in a documenary about the killer himself.... one that Wes plans on marketing after the killer is caught or killed only.... meanwhile, he's trying to hide his identity to protect his family and to also stay clean and sober.... as he's a recovering addict.... things slowly spin out of control as the killer begins to get the upper hand in the situation and eventually all bets are off.... Wes is just as much involved in the murders and the killer as the killer himself.... and the more we learn about each character, the further down the rabbit hole we go....
i was really intrigued by this movie overall.... it had its flaws.... some more glaring than others.... but it was well put together and moved at a rapid pace, so as not to lose the audience.... i honestly wasn't sure where it was going and was suprised at some of the turns it took along the way.... it raises a lot of moral questions and puts them point blank in your face.... it's unsettling at times and it rarely lets up on the intensity meter.... i gave it 3 out of 5 stars for effort and execution.... it could have been more than it was, but it was just enough to be worthwhile.... something to see if you've never seen anything quite like this.... plus it gives Wes Bentley a chance to shine again.... now i want to watch 'P2' again....

if you like this, watch: 'Man Bites Dog', 'How To Be A Serial Killer' and just for Wes Bentley as a crazy man 'P2'

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