Movie Review Black Los Angeles

BlackNLA Movie Reviews

*****THE REEL DEAL: Reviewz from the Street*****

by Edwardo Jackson

BIASES: Early 30s black male; frustrated screenwriter who favors action, comedy, and glossy, big budget movies over indie flicks, kiddie flicks, and weepy Merchant Ivory fare

MR. BROOKS (R)

MOVIE BIASES: Crash Davis as the serial killer next door? I'm in!

MAJOR PLAYERS: Kevin Costner (Bull Durham), Demi Moore (Striptease), Dane Cook (Employee of the Month), and William Hurt (The History of Violence)

Portland, Oregon Chamber of Commerce Man of the Year and successful business owner/family man Earl Brooks (Costner) has been straight for two years when he veers off his self-imposed sobriety at the urging of his taunting, alter-ego conscience "Marshall" (Hurt) to give himself a "treat." Instead of alcohol, Mr. Brooks' addiction is, well, murder. With his double homicide of a lovemaking couple marking the return of the Thumbprint Killer, Detective Tracy Atwood (Moore) plunges headfirst into the case, trying to block out a very messy (and expensive) divorce she's undergoing and the prospect of a killer she'd put away being out on the streets, thirsty for revenge. Speaking of thirsty, just as Mr. Brooks has sworn off serial killing for good ("That's the last time") a twisted young man named Mr. Smith (Cook) has pictorial evidence of Mr. Brooks' secret passion, blackmailing him
back into service as a kind of serial killer mentor for his own unusual ambitions.

A case study in the nature of addiction, "Mr. Brooks" is a darkly engaging, effective thriller with a slight, macabre sense of humor in its attempt to translate the nature of addiction to murder. "I do it not because I enjoy it…but because I'm addicted to it," claims a very sober sounding Mr. Brooks. That and his reciting the Alcoholics
Anonymous mantra in moments of weakness to ward off an openly goading,
sneering Marshall (wonderfully played by William Hurt with all the sneering affection of a best friend who funnels grain alcohol into the mouth of a drunk) underscores a creepy Bruce A. Evans (who also directed) and Raynold Gideon script (which Costner hopes can launch a franchise of "Mr. Brooks" films). Dane Cook's gung ho apprentice Mr. Smith is manic but committed, with Cook dialing down a lot of his
stand up comic charisma to play an unshaven pseudo-geek who shares a
sickness of Costner's Brooks but is full of the naivete of youth that Mr. Brooks is not (Mr. Brooks to Mr. Smith in Serial Killing 101: "You never kill someone you know. It's the easiest way to get caught.").

And Mr. Brooks himself? Perhaps the most surprising piece of perfect casting for this role is America's Most Gracefully Aging Male Star Kevin Costner, who cast himself as producer of this flick. Known for playing red-white-and-blue dyed heroes, iconic sports fiction characters, and fairy tale legends with faltering English accents, Costner's body of work doesn't quite prepare you for the psycho-sexual
rush his Earl Brooks enjoys in the midst of a bloody good murder. But once the first one is under your belt, you realize/remember what a damn fine actor Kevin Costner truly is. You can see the light joy Mr. Costner gets at, literally, backstabbing his movie star persona in one sense while elevating it to newer, riskier heights in another. This movie prepares Costner for a third act to what has been an amazing,
profitable, and quality acting career, one where he can reinvent himself as a struggling antihero that we kinda sorta don't want to get caught - we just want him to (as odd as this sounds for a serial killer) "get help" That's just how steeped in addiction psychology this movie is, that we're pleading with a serial killer and his demons to heal thyselves (in fact, Mr. Brooks likes hanging out at AA meetings because he feels comfortable in the company of fellow addicts).

Filmed with an edgy, offbeat style by Evans to a creepy Ramin Djawadi score, "Mr. Brooks" is poised to be that unexpected summer sleeper hit, an adult (hard R rated) entertainment amidst these multiplex, milquetoast, middle-of-the-road, cash register-ish tentpole times. We all have our own addictions. Some are addicted to chocolate; Mr. Brooks is hooked on homicide. Don't judge him. Just watch him. Carefully.

@@@ REELS
(THREE REELS)
It's pretty hot – go give it a shot.

Like what you read? Agree/disagree with The Reel Deal? Think he's talkin' out his...HUSH YO' MOUF! (I'm only talkin' about The Reel Deal!) Email him at EJAce1@gmail.com!

Edwardo Jackson is the author of the novels EVER AFTER and NEVA HAFTA, (Villard/Random House), a writer for UrbanFilmPremiere.com, and an LA-based screenwriter. Visit his website at www.edwardojackson.com




			BlackNLA Movie Reviews ***THE REEL DEAL: Reviewz from the Street*** by Edwardo Jackson BIASES: Early 30s black male; frustrated screenwriter who favors action, comedy, and glossy, big budget movies over indie flicks, kiddie flicks, and weepy Merchant Ivory fare MR. BROOKS (R) MOVIE BIASES: Crash Davis as the serial killer next door? I'm in! MAJOR PLAYERS: Kevin Costner (Bull Durham), Demi Moore (Striptease), Dane Cook (Employee of the Month), and William Hurt (The History of Violence) Portland, Oregon Chamber of Commerce Man of the Year and successful business owner/family man Earl Brooks (Costner) has been straight for two years when he veers off his self-imposed sobriety at the urging of his taunting, alter-ego conscience "Marshall" (Hurt) to give himself a "treat." Instead of alcohol, Mr. Brooks' addiction is, well, murder. With his double homicide of a lovemaking couple marking the return of the Thumbprint Killer, Detective Tracy Atwood (Moore) plunges headfirst into the case, trying to block out a very messy (and expensive) divorce she's undergoing and the prospect of a killer she'd put away being out on the streets, thirsty for revenge. Speaking of thirsty, just as Mr. Brooks has sworn off serial killing for good ("That's the last time") a twisted young man named Mr. Smith (Cook) has pictorial evidence of Mr. Brooks' secret passion, blackmailing him back into service as a kind of serial killer mentor for his own unusual ambitions. A case study in the nature of addiction, "Mr. Brooks" is a darkly engaging, effective thriller with a slight, macabre sense of humor in its attempt to translate the nature of addiction to murder. "I do it not because I enjoy it…but because I'm addicted to it," claims a very sober sounding Mr. Brooks. That and his reciting the Alcoholics Anonymous mantra in moments of weakness to ward off an openly goading, sneering Marshall (wonderfully played by William Hurt with all the sneering affection of a best friend who funnels grain alcohol into the mouth of a drunk) underscores a creepy Bruce A. Evans (who also directed) and Raynold Gideon script (which Costner hopes can launch a franchise of "Mr. Brooks" films). Dane Cook's gung ho apprentice Mr. Smith is manic but committed, with Cook dialing down a lot of his stand up comic charisma to play an unshaven pseudo-geek who shares a sickness of Costner's Brooks but is full of the naivete of youth that Mr. Brooks is not (Mr. Brooks to Mr. Smith in Serial Killing 101: "You never kill someone you know. It's the easiest way to get caught."). And Mr. Brooks himself? Perhaps the most surprising piece of perfect casting for this role is America's Most Gracefully Aging Male Star Kevin Costner, who cast himself as producer of this flick. Known for playing red-white-and-blue dyed heroes, iconic sports fiction characters, and fairy tale legends with faltering English accents, Costner's body of work doesn't quite prepare you for the psycho-sexual rush his Earl Brooks enjoys in the midst of a bloody good murder. But once the first one is under your belt, you realize/remember what a damn fine actor Kevin Costner truly is. You can see the light joy Mr. Costner gets at, literally, backstabbing his movie star persona in one sense while elevating it to newer, riskier heights in another. This movie prepares Costner for a third act to what has been an amazing, profitable, and quality acting career, one where he can reinvent himself as a struggling antihero that we kinda sorta don't want to get caught - we just want him to (as odd as this sounds for a serial killer) "get help" That's just how steeped in addiction psychology this movie is, that we're pleading with a serial killer and his demons to heal thyselves (in fact, Mr. Brooks likes hanging out at AA meetings because he feels comfortable in the company of fellow addicts). Filmed with an edgy, offbeat style by Evans to a creepy Ramin Djawadi score, "Mr. Brooks" is poised to be that unexpected summer sleeper hit, an adult (hard R rated) entertainment amidst these multiplex, milquetoast, middle-of-the-road, cash register-ish tentpole times. We all have our own addictions. Some are addicted to chocolate; Mr. Brooks is hooked on homicide. Don't judge him. Just watch him. Carefully. @@@ REELS (THREE REELS) It's pretty hot – go give it a shot. Like what you read? Agree/disagree with The Reel Deal? Think he's talkin' out his...HUSH YO' MOUF! (I'm only talkin' about The Reel Deal!) Email him at EJAce1@gmail.com! Edwardo Jackson is the author of the novels EVER AFTER and NEVA HAFTA, (Villard/Random House), a writer for UrbanFilmPremiere.com, and an LA-based screenwriter. Visit his website at www.edwardojackson.com © 2007, Edwardo Jackson