Sir Ben Kingsley’s good at chewing up the scenery, but even Kingsley can’t seem to find the right take on his character.
Suspect Zero (2004)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:127
Fresh:22
Rotten:105
Average Rating:4.4/10
Consensus: Other than Ben Kingsley, there's not much to like in this preposterous thriller.
Runtime: 1 hr 39 mins
Genre: Dramas
US Box Office: $8,570,393
Synopsis: It's 4 AM and torrents of rain pour down on a dusty roadside New Mexico diner. Inside, an innocuous looking salesman sips coffee while catching up on his fishing magazines. After the front door... It's 4 AM and torrents of rain pour down on a dusty roadside New Mexico diner. Inside, an innocuous looking salesman sips coffee while catching up on his fishing magazines. After the front door creaks open, an unusual looking man startles the salesman by sitting down at his table and displaying frightening drawings that send the salesman fleeing for the safety of his car. We meet Agent Thomas Mackelway on his first day of work at the Albuquerque field office of the FBI. Mackelway, wrestling with secrets and demons from his past, is plagues by headaches and feels that he is being watched. And in fact he is... but by whom? Mackelway finds himself mysteriously drawn into a bizarre series of murders: the salesman from the diner found dead in his car on the deserted New Mexico border; a sixth grade teacher from Boulder, Co. discovered in an abandoned vehicle in the diner parking lot; and Mackelay's own personal nemesis, killed while attacking a young girl. Mackelway's former partner, Fran Kulok, who knows Mackelway's deepest secrets, is sent to Albuquerque to assist him on the case. Together, they set out to solve this lethal puzzle. What do these murders have in common? The case becomes increasingly personal as Mackelway's determination turns to obsession. The killer seems to be taunting him, faxing him hundreds of maddening, chilling clues, all of which point to a cunning renegade named Benjamin O'Ryan. Trained in a secret government remote viewing program which enabled five elite agents to get into the hearts and minds of killers and their victims, O'Ryan became consumed with tracking the ultimate manifestation of a killer -- Suspect Zero. -- © Paramount Pictures [More]
Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Ben Kingsley, Carrie-Anne Moss, Harry J. Lennix
Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Ben Kingsley, Carrie-Anne Moss, Harry J. Lennix
Director: E. Elias Merhige
Director: E. Elias Merhige
Screenwriter: Billy Ray, Zak Penn
Producer: Paula Wagner
Composer: Clint Marsell
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Reviews for Suspect Zero
Just doesn’t make sense. In a movie, you can’t just have the giant pretzel and the ice cream cone. You’ve got to explain why it’s all there.
The film is undeniably flawed, yet the things that work do so beautifully.
There are some surprising turns of the story, and Eckhart and Kingsley are watchable performers, but Suspect Zero never escapes the rut of a standard serial-killer whodunit.
It never builds characters to care about or a story that gets much better than its tricky, paranormal premise.
Suspect Zero hits the middle ground, with a modestly compelling storyline ...
Instead of building suspense and tension, Suspect Zero devotes its efforts to creating a weird and creepy milieu that will leave fans of police procedurals wanting and avant-garde enthusiasts scratching their heads.
Here's a tale of when mediocre movies happen to mega-talented talents...
This movie isn't talking to us, it's talking to other serial killer movies.
Another serial-killer mystery in which no one gets out alive, least of all its clueless leads.
The laziest and least inspiring of movie genres has gone self-referential.
The film echoes the sometimes too-dark, sometimes too-bright, sometimes overexposed Se7en. But I wonder whether it will satisfy folks who insist that thrillers should thrill. I doubt it.
It's so drenched in deviant style and cinematic trickery that its peculiar story almost becomes overwhelmed.
Essentially an X-files episode that wishes it were as disturbing and visually arresting as David Fincher's Seven (it's not).
This absurdly obvious movie doesn’t deserve Ben Kingsley and it certainly doesn’t deserve to be seen by any of you.
Merhige gets plenty of mileage out of these visions and the creepy, metallic sound design and score, almost managing to snuff out the film's more ordinary attributes.
Latest News for Suspect Zero
July 06, 2007:
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At first I was completely annoyed when I read the news. Then I heard who was writing the remake, and I felt a little bit better. More...
April 28, 2006:
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June 13, 2005:
Weinsteins Snatch Up Bruce Willis' "Lucky Number"
Despite the fact that Bob & Harvey Weinstein still don't even have a name for their new movie company, that certainly hasn't prevented the boys from doing some business.... More...
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