Whenever a psychological thriller is released, reviews inevitably liken it to the films of master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock.
This will not be one of those reviews.
The new thriller in question is the Sandra Bullock vehicle “Murder by Numbers,” which, no matter how hard it tries, will never match the elegant tension of Hitchcock’s “Rear Window” or “Psycho.”
Bullock plays Cassie Mayweather, the stereotypical homicide detective with a chip on her shoulder. In her opening appearance, she arrives at a murder scene carrying donuts and shouting orders to the standard collection of inexperienced officers.
Unusual for a Hollywood whodunit, “Numbers” gets the pesky detail of the killers’ identities out of the way early. The culprits are Richard Haywood (Ryan Gosling) and Justin Pendleton (Michael Pitt), two high school seniors, both with an obsession with death.
The picture then becomes a ride to see if Cassie can uncover the duo’s secret before her boss pulls the plug and blames the obviously set-up, pot-smoking janitor at the boys’ high school.
Unfortunately, the ride turns out to be little more than a Ferris wheel. Screenwriter Tony Gayton’s plot is far too skewed to have any real thrills to it – mostly due to Cassie being the lead of the picture when the real interest lies with Richard and Justin.
The boys go so far as to set Richard up to be questioned by the cops, but also give him an alibi, leaving only Cassie to still suspect him of the crime. Worse yet, it is only because of her own past troubles with the “cool” boy in high school.
This leads to a pair of too-confusing sub-plots. The first portrays Cassie as a sex-addicted man-eater who sleeps with all of her partners – including the newest, Sam Kennedy (Ben Chaplin) – and then tosses them out. The other revolves around convicted killer Carl Hudson, who is up for parole and wants Cassie to testify at the hearing.
Not even the acting skills of Bullock can save the doomed Cassie, although Bullock has rarely been able to successfully play anything outside her comedic realm. Besides “Speed,” Bullock’s thrillers have been limited to such forgetful missteps as “Demolition Man.” But Bullock still rides high as one of the largest actresses in Hollywood, a title she’ll keep only if she sticks with her typical lighter fare.
Pitt is quickly turning into a young up-and-comer with his roles in “Finding Forrester” and “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” and once again pulls off the teen angst role. As Justin, Pitt fits the role of the intelligent but lonely high-school nerd perfectly.
At the opposite end of the spectrum is Richard, the rich and popular high school stud. Already a teen star in the independent world with “The Believer,” Gosling’s Richard walks the line between likable and annoying, the perfect portrayal of a popular high schooler. Gosling was fortunate enough to know where the line lies, having already progressed far into this annoying world alongside Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake in the last incarnation of “The Mickey Mouse Club.”
Even with the pair of quality teens, the most astonishing work comes from composer Clint Mansell. Once the front man of the band Pop Will Eat Itself, Mansell has turned into one of the best composers working today with his scores for “Pi” and “Requiem for a Dream.” His knack for not overpowering his films has already placed him in a class above falling-star composer John Williams.
Director Barbet Schroeder may have assembled together a talented cast, but without a solid plot to base his film on, “Murder by Numbers” falls apart before it even gets started. Fortunately for Hitchcock, very few people will ever confuse “Numbers” with any of his truly magnificent thrillers.
