Year:
1999
Studio:
Universal Pictures/Columbia Pictures
Movie:
4/5
DVD:
3/5
Teaser
Lincoln Rhyme (Denzel Washington) is a brilliant New York City
forensics expert, working for the police department and having
published several classic text books on the subject. Unfortunately,
four years ago he was rendered a C4 paraplegic, leaving him with "one
finger, two shoulders, and a brain". He still has a brilliant mind and
is often consulted by the NYPD, but it is a hard and lonely life with
only himself and his dedicated caregiver Thelma (Queen Latifah).
Lately, Lincoln has contemplated suicide, or "the final transition".
You see, he has seizures that have been getting progressively worse.
Eventually one of those attacks will leave him a vegetable and that's
something he greatly fears. Lincoln has already made arrangements and
only has to wait for his friend and personal doctor to return on Sunday
from a medical conference.
But, he has one unusual case left to solve. Detective Paulie Sellitto
(Ed O'Neill) brings Lincoln a case -- a wealthy industrialist murdered
and buried near train tracks. Officer on the scene Amelia Donaghy
(Angelina Jolie) had the presence of mind to stop an approaching train
and then take good photographs of the evidence. Lincoln is intrigued
with the puzzle and with Officer Donaghy, in whom he sees a natural
aptitude for forensics.
Lincoln and Amelia match wits with the mysterious serial killer, who
leaves clues behind pointing to his next murder. As the bodies pile up
the police get closer and closer, but will they be able to catch the
killer before he commits his final murder?
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Movie
"The Bone Collector" is a murder mystery and thriller first. Perhaps
not completely fair since they used several actors to play the masked
murderer, so the audience can't tell who the real murderer is until he
reveals himself. The movie has an unusual protagonist in the paraplegic
Lincoln Rhyme, who uses Amelia Donaghy as his eyes and ears. There is
also a bit of a romantic subplot between the two as Amelia tries to
bring Lincoln back in from the depths of suicidal despair.
This is a good movie, a taught drama with interesting characters and a
good amount of suspense. There are multiple suspects, though not enough
of a mystery movie so you don't get the clues needed to pin down
whodunit.
Actors
Using only his head, Denzel Washington is still a commanding presence.
He delivers a character who you can believe is brilliant and alive,
even though he is almost motionless. Angelina Jolie is beautiful and
talented in a scary sort of way. She is a less inhibited spirit in real
life and she brings a hint of that into the role. The two characters
just click and the relationship is believable.
DVD
Letterbox format movie in English or French. Optional English
subtitles. Commentary track by Director Phillip Noyce is insightful and
he keeps talking about many things. 22-minute Spotlight on Location
feature. Production Notes repeats a lot of the commentary. Cast and
Filmmakers section give mini-biographies. Theatrical Trailer, Universal
commercials, and Windows-only DVD-ROM extras round out the package.
Recommendations
A serious drama that I heartily recommend. |