zardoz-13 Review of The Midnight Man

The Midnight Man (I) (2016)

Refreshingly Smart Little Crime Thriller!!!

[8/10 · 23 March 2016]

Good movies keep you wondering what will happen next in them. First-time, feature-length director D.C. Hamilton's tongue-in-cheek thriller "The Midnight Man" does an exceptional job of not only mystifying you but also defying your expectations. The Brinna Kelly & D.C. Hamilton screenplay concerns a singular sort of mob enforcer named Grady who feels no pain whether he is being struck or tortured by his adversaries. As the eponymous hero, Will Kemp is witty, debonair, and loquacious, without being mealy-mouthed. Kemp has appeared in a few big studio theatrical releases, including "Step Up 2 The Streets," "Van Helsing," and "Mindhunters." More recently, he had a part in "The Scorpion King 4: Quest for Power." The dialogue that he spouts isn't the typical tough guy stuff. Indeed, he resembles a cross-between of Roger Moore and Roger Davis. This exciting 103-minute movie borrows elements from "The World Is Not Enough" as well as "The Usual Suspects." Like the James Bond villain in 007 escapade "The World Is Not Enough," Kemp's character Grady suffers from a real-life disability known as Congenital Insensitivity to Pain Anhidrosis (CIPA) so doesn't feel a thing. He handles firearms well and radiates a charisma that makes him both amusing as well as dangerous. Hamilton and Kelly pit him against a dastardly villain as deceptive and duplicitous as murderous Keyser Söze in "The Usual Suspects." Remember, Keyser Söze succeeded in pulled the wool over everybody eyes when it came to shielding his identity. "Midnight Man" enemy Hamilton and leading lady Brinna Kelly have cooked up a slick little yarn on a low budget with nearly unknowns, and "The Midnight Man" qualifies as above-average crime melodrama from its awesome opening scene right up to its surprising ending. British hardcase actor Vinnie Jones and veteran character actor William Forsythe emerge as the most prominent thespians in the cast. Co-writer Brinna Kelly plays a paramedic who is on her first street assignment when she encounters our hero at a dead man's house. Just when you think that you have the plot figured out, Kelly and Hamilton pull a fast one on you. I thoroughly enjoyed this literate, nimbly-paced crime thriller with a sense of humor. Doug Jones is memorable as a Hannibal Lector type killer who loves to torture his victims, and "Star Trek: The Next Generation" actor Brent Spiner is almost unrecognizable as Grady's crime boss named Ezekiel.