I saw the trailers to Suspect Zero (SZ) on cable and was seriously looking forward to this movie. The trailer showed the huge promise of a Seven/Silence of the Lambs type thriller. When it showed Ben Kingsley scarily extend his arm and you see the rubber glove snap up and he rises in the back of the car- I was hooked. Then the awesome so Hannibal Lector-esquire line of; 'Because I wouldn't want to do this at 70 miles an hour.' Then the tag of the genius hunter and killer of other serial killers... I couldn't wait!! Well I wished I had. SZ ended up being a torturous exercise in exquisite pointlessness and frustration. And the problem is that the above scene and line was by far the most engaging aspect of the movie. Except for Ben Kingsley and the 'promise' of excellence, SZ was terrible. I feel cheated, conned and ripped off that the producers lied in the preview and delivered tripe which was no where near the quality it implied.
Carrie-Anne Moss was a waste of space. It wasn't her fault as her character was given no depth and very little purpose. It was if the producers and casters said 'hey, Carrie-Anne Moss... Matrix, that will get people's interest.'... if I was in her position I would feel used, but then again she presumably choose the role after reading the screenplay. She was the token female.. thats it. The attempted plot of past relationship with Mackleway was never even remotely realised.
OK.. down to the plot or lack there of. It started with promise. Yet it progressively grew into a conglomerate of confused rubbish offering the audience many possibilities but resolution of none. The 'higher agency' sub plot was poorly done, it wasn't quite true when it says the story revolves around a killer killing serial killers... thats so liberal. Past lovers plot nearly made me vomit... the open hostility then next scene they are so lovy-dovy.. and all with no resolution. Whats with the whistling? a few do it - not explained. Are his supposedly insane room-mates part of the higher agency program? what happened to the program and him? Whats with the 'suspect zero? was he? whats the history? We didn't even get to see him - I understand the dynamics of not needing to see the antagonist if you set up an encapsulating emotional concept (ie the trucker from Spielberg's 'Duel') but it was not established and another reason to feel cheated. I guess the real reason I am so annoyed is that SZ held SO much promise but failed to deliver on even the basic level.
The one redeeming feature is Ben Kingsley. Without doubt one of the greatest actors, I was disappointed that he accepted such a terrible role. The potential he first displays, his introduction and the chill he brings is phenomenal. It is obvious he is the class act in this project, but even his brilliance is stunted as the screenplay progressively becomes infinitely shocking. His character becomes a watered down pathetic creep and as an audience, I was embarrassed for him... a world away from the fantastic material of Gandhi.
Overall SZ tried unsuccessfully to blend the Gothic quick edit shots of 'Seven' with a killer as cool, calm and brutally collected as Hannibal Lector... it's believable.... for about 15 minutes. Don't believe the trailer/preview for SZ, instead I recommend that you get your Ben Kingsley fix with 'Sneakers', 'Schindler's List', Death and the Maiden' etc. You will definitely save yourself disappointment and frustration.
Carrie-Anne Moss was a waste of space. It wasn't her fault as her character was given no depth and very little purpose. It was if the producers and casters said 'hey, Carrie-Anne Moss... Matrix, that will get people's interest.'... if I was in her position I would feel used, but then again she presumably choose the role after reading the screenplay. She was the token female.. thats it. The attempted plot of past relationship with Mackleway was never even remotely realised.
OK.. down to the plot or lack there of. It started with promise. Yet it progressively grew into a conglomerate of confused rubbish offering the audience many possibilities but resolution of none. The 'higher agency' sub plot was poorly done, it wasn't quite true when it says the story revolves around a killer killing serial killers... thats so liberal. Past lovers plot nearly made me vomit... the open hostility then next scene they are so lovy-dovy.. and all with no resolution. Whats with the whistling? a few do it - not explained. Are his supposedly insane room-mates part of the higher agency program? what happened to the program and him? Whats with the 'suspect zero? was he? whats the history? We didn't even get to see him - I understand the dynamics of not needing to see the antagonist if you set up an encapsulating emotional concept (ie the trucker from Spielberg's 'Duel') but it was not established and another reason to feel cheated. I guess the real reason I am so annoyed is that SZ held SO much promise but failed to deliver on even the basic level.
The one redeeming feature is Ben Kingsley. Without doubt one of the greatest actors, I was disappointed that he accepted such a terrible role. The potential he first displays, his introduction and the chill he brings is phenomenal. It is obvious he is the class act in this project, but even his brilliance is stunted as the screenplay progressively becomes infinitely shocking. His character becomes a watered down pathetic creep and as an audience, I was embarrassed for him... a world away from the fantastic material of Gandhi.
Overall SZ tried unsuccessfully to blend the Gothic quick edit shots of 'Seven' with a killer as cool, calm and brutally collected as Hannibal Lector... it's believable.... for about 15 minutes. Don't believe the trailer/preview for SZ, instead I recommend that you get your Ben Kingsley fix with 'Sneakers', 'Schindler's List', Death and the Maiden' etc. You will definitely save yourself disappointment and frustration.