Rating of
3/4
Interesting with many surprise twists
The M.O.W. - wrote on 08/02/08
Hollywood special effects master "Rollie Tyler" (Bryan Brown) has left the special F/X business to use the talent which made him famous in Hollywood circles to make high-tech, high-end toys for children. His latest creation is a life-sized remote control clown toy he has temporarily named "Bluey" (Cynthia Quinn) which is controlled by a suit filled with censors that would send signals to "Bluey" for it to mimic.
One day, the ex-husband of "Tyler's" girlfriend (Rachel Ticton), NYPD detective "Mike Brandon" (Tom Mason) asks "Tyler" to use his special effects talents to help capture a serial killer known as "The Peeper" who has been targeting women. "Tyler" reluctantly agrees and helps set up a sting to capture the man who uses a long blade as his weapon of choice.
However, something goes wrong and "Brandon" is killed by what is believed to be "The Peeper", who is killed on-scene.
"Tyler" believes the person who actually killed "Brandon" was a man he briefly chased down in the building's back stairs. He then proves it was that man when he zooms in on the killer's face in the footage from a lipstick camera.
The real killer then goes after "Tyler", who, along with his good friend, Private Investigator, and former cop, "Leo McCarthy" (Brian Dennehy) discovers that there is a major case "Brandon" was working on that was declared dead years ago which involves gold coins designed by Michelangelo based on the famed painting which decorates the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, Italy.
The first thing you will notice in this film is that there are many special "F/X" in this film. Many of them are, as the script calls for, are set up by "Tyler". By today's standards, the special effects are pretty average, but are pretty created for the ones "Tyler" comes up with in the story. You get the typical smoke and mirrors that Hollywood special effects artists come up with for things like gunshot wounds, but some, which are for a good chuckle, are pretty creative. One thng you might think is a special effect is "Bluey" because of its perfect mimicing of the people who are wearing the suit that supposedly controls it. However, after some investigating online, "Bluey" is actually somebody in an outfit who is doing choreographed moves.
There is some strong performances in this movie, especially from Brown and Dennehy. Brown has made "Tyler" likable with a dry sense of humor, and Dennehy has made a guy who must have been a great investigator during his days on the force who has translated his police skills into a good PI.
One thing that is pretty weak is the supporting characters. They are pretty much under developed. I did not feel that "Tyler's" girlfriend and her on-screen son (Dominic Zamprogna) should have been better written so I could cheer for them when the killer was chasing them.
One thing that is done well in this movie is the plot twists. We get a major suspect in the coin case fairly soon after "Brandon's" murder and are introduced to others involved in the coin case as the movie moves along, including one that you don't expect when we first meet the character.
There is some fairly good action, enhanced by "Tyler's" special effects. There is also some gunplay, but you have to wait to see if it's "real" or movie magic by "Tyler."
I would have to say that this would be a pretty good rental, even though I would suggest you rent the original first to familiarize yourself with some characters. I would also recommend that, if it is not up against something that you don't normally watch, you check it out on either HBO or on On Demand.
