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Movies / Upcoming / Mr. Brooks
Mr. Brooks

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Mr. Brooks (2007)

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Reviews Counted:149

Fresh:83

Rotten:66

Average Rating:5.7/10

Consensus: The setup is intriguing, but Mr. Brooks overstuffs itself with twists and subplots, becoming more preposterous as it goes along.

Runtime: 2 hrs

Genre: Detectives, Switching Roles, Thriller, Murder, Crime, Serial Killers, Theatrical Release

US Box Office: $28,424,648

Synopsis: Kevin Costner stars as Earl Brooks, a man whose seemingly perfect family and status in the community hide an ugly secret. Brooks constantly says the plea of an addict--the Serenity Prayer--but he's... Kevin Costner stars as Earl Brooks, a man whose seemingly perfect family and status in the community hide an ugly secret. Brooks constantly says the plea of an addict--the Serenity Prayer--but he's not in the grip of drugs or alcohol. Instead, his neat little bow tie belies a man with an urge to kill. Though he's staved off that desire for two years, it has returned thanks to the efforts of his evil inner voice (William Hurt, A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE). He is caught in the act by a man who calls himself Mr. Smith (Dane Cook, EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH), but Mr. Smith doesn't want to turn Brooks in. The smarmy amateur photographer wants to learn from Brooks's methodical ways and become a killer himself. Meanwhile, a tough cop (Demi Moore, BOBBY) hunts for the man responsible for deaths all over Portland while she deals with issues in her own life. MR. BROOKS presents a fascinating portrait of a man at war with himself. As the devil on Brooks's shoulder, Oscar winner Hurt adeptly alternates between menace and glee, adding to a resume already replete with varied roles. Though Costner is mostly known for playing nice guys (FIELD OF DREAMS) and charming rogues (BULL DURHAM), his performance as the tortured killer is interesting to watch, and he rises to the challenge of playing a completely different character than the kind he is known for. MR. BROOKS is an engaging thriller that goes into the fractured mind of a murderer, while also delivering an intriguing maze of multiple subplots. [More]

Starring: Kevin Costner, William Hurt, Demi Moore, Dane Cook

Starring: Kevin Costner, William Hurt, Demi Moore, Dane Cook, Marg Helgenberger, Jason Lewis, Yasmine Delawari, Michael Cole

Director: Bruce A. Evans

Director: Bruce A. Evans
Screenwriter: Bruce A. Evans, Raynold Gideon
Producer: Kevin Costner, Raynold Gideon, Jim Wilson
Studio: MGM

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Reviews for Mr. Brooks

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41 - 60 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
 
 

There's a smart, tense, creepy inside-the-mind-of-a-psychotic movie here. It's just too bad that it's buried under a huge load of ridiculous, over-the-top Hollywood claptrap.

Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
06/04/07
Brian Webster
Brian Webster
Apollo Guide

... a nice, decent, all-American psychopath like Mr. Brooks is pretty welcome company for a few fraught and well-crafted hours in the tense and muted darkness of the movie theater.

Full Review Source: Cinematical | comment Comment
06/04/07
James Rocchi
James Rocchi
Cinematical

Like its leading character, Mr. Brooks suffers from a split personality, and it's unfortunate that the wrong one comes out on top.

Full Review Source: Creative Loafing | comment Comment
06/04/07
Matt Brunson
Matt Brunson
Creative Loafing

Earl Brooks is presented as an admirable killer, because he's an upperclass, educated white man.

Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
06/04/07
Mark Palermo
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Even its most absurd ideas are tantalizingly creative and sinister, enough to make you want to see them through rather than scoff and turn away.

Full Review Source: EricDSnider.com | comment Comment
06/04/07
Eric D. Snider
Eric D. Snider
EricDSnider.com

The movie is so well made, and so compelling as a portrait of a man at war with himself, that, right up until the end, many people will probably be entertained by its intricately preposterous story.

Full Review Source: New Yorker | comment Comment
06/04/07
David Denby
David Denby
New Yorker
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Serial killers are people too, with hopes and dreams and loving spouses and kids who drive them crazy. That's the repulsive theme of this revolting film...

Full Review Source: Flick Filosopher | comment 1 Comment
06/04/07
MaryAnn Johanson
MaryAnn Johanson
Flick Filosopher

Smith is ... an insufferable, motor-mouthed douchebag that the audience will be begging for someone, anyone, to kill. In short, it's the role Cook was born to play.

Full Review Source: Film Threat | comment Comment
06/04/07
Pete Vonder Haar
Pete Vonder Haar
Film Threat

Yes, it's true that before the end the fatigue meter was registering pretty strongly, but if someone had tried to remove me from the theatre I would have put up a fight.

Full Review Source: Cinema Signals | comment Comment
06/03/07
Jules Brenner
Jules Brenner
Cinema Signals

This ghastly concoction blends sleaze, a serial killer and sex in the sort of thing that, were it not rated R, would be a television movie.

Full Review Source: Quad City Times (Davenport, IA) | comment Comment
06/03/07
Linda Cook
Linda Cook
Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Violent and implausible, it's Costner's dark field of screams.

Full Review Source: www.susangranger.com | comment Comment
06/03/07
Susan Granger
Susan Granger
www.susangranger.com

A unique and surprising movie experience. A strong alternative to the current sequelitis plaguing the industry.

Full Review Source: Maxim | comment Comment
06/02/07
Pete Hammond
Pete Hammond
Maxim

Interesting twist on "Dr. Jekyll."

Full Review Source: Denton Record Chronicle (TX) | comment Comment
06/02/07
Boo Allen
Boo Allen
Denton Record Chronicle (TX)

[Director] Evans keeps flirting with a potentially rich idea only to surround it with indigestible amounts of silliness.

Full Review Source: Time Out New York | comment Comment
06/02/07
Melissa Anderson
Melissa Anderson
Time Out New York

Only someone who hasn't watched TV for 20 years would think that portraying Brooks as a high-minded monster makes him more than a run-of-the-mill thrill-killer.

Full Review Source: Baltimore Sun | comment Comment
06/02/07
Michael Sragow
Michael Sragow
Baltimore Sun

A high-budget psycho-thriller that lets two of our more "sedate" leading men cut loose with some entertainingly juicy performances.

Full Review Source: FEARnet | comment 1 Comment
06/02/07
Scott Weinberg
Scott Weinberg
FEARnet

The last decade hasn't been kind to Costner, but he returns to form here. This is a fine little thriller that has some nice - but not surprising twists.

Full Review Source: Eclipse Magazine | comment 3 Comments
06/01/07
Michelle Alexandria
Michelle Alexandria
Eclipse Magazine

Its wickedness is irresistible.

Full Review Source: Ozus' World Movie Reviews | comment Comment
06/01/07
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz
Ozus' World Movie Reviews

Mr. Brooks had the potential to be a ridiculous thrill ride, but that requires a director who knows how to shoot a scene with more style than a Law & Order episode.

Full Review Source: UGO | comment Comment
06/01/07
Brian Tallerico
Brian Tallerico
UGO

Plays like Red Dragon reimagined by filmmakers who think they're too smart or too sophisticated or too high-minded to give themselves over to the sordid, sleazy and flat-out nasty.

Full Review Source: TV Guide's Movie Guide | comment Comment
06/01/07
Maitland McDonagh
Maitland McDonagh
TV Guide's Movie Guide
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date; Australian critics are listed first)
Text View | |< << 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 >> >|
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