by Heather Lyon

Created on: June 15, 2007

Mr. Brooks is a smart and interesting thriller. It was filmed and edited very well and some of the cinematography is unique and eye catching. The plot sounds overly simple but it works rather well in this film. This is a smart and enjoyable film.

Mr. Brooks (Kevin Costner) is the man of the year in his town. He is a self-started wealthy man who donates time and money to the community. He has a wonderful family including a lovely wife Emma (Marg Helgenberger) and a daughter who is off at college. The only hitch is his life is that he is addicted to killing people. He is so good at it that he never leaves any evidence and has managed to avoid all suspicion that is until his latest murder. A nosy neighbor across the street from his latest victims sees Mr. Brooks murder the couple, but instead of going to the police the neighbor, Mr.Smith, insists that Mr. Brooks take him on his next kill.

There is also a side plot to this movie about Detective Tracy Atwood (Demi Moore). She is an excellent cop who just happens to have 60 million dollar bank account (inherited not dirty) and she is going through a bad divorce. She is the expert on the thumb print killer (Mr. Brooks) and is frustrated by the lack of evidence he leaves behind. These two plots weave themselves together to make a fine cohesive movie. The key to the plot and perhaps the best part of it is the banter between Mr. Brooks and his alter murdering ego Marshall played by William Hurt. Will Atwood catch Mr. Brooks? You will have to watch to find out.

This movie features some good acting and some eye-catching cinematography.
This could be a come back film for Kevin Costner. He plays the role of Mr. Brooks wonderfully well. He imparts realness to the character that makes the character believable. I enjoyed him in this role for the same reason I liked Tom Cruise in Collateral. They usually play the good, trustworthy guys and in these films they play the bad-guy. Its unexpected and they are surprisingly good at it. William Hurt is perfect as the alter ego that talks Mr. Brooks into killing people. He is a smart and interesting character. Dane Cook is Mr. Smith the prying neighbor who gets in too deep. Demi Moore is great in this film as Detective Atwood. Her character is bright, head-strong and she is a real made her-self woman. Marg Helgenberger (Catherine from CSI Las Vegas) plays Mrs. Brooks. This is a small role but she does a good job with it. Danielle Panabaker plays Jane Brooks, Mr. Brooks's daughter. She comes back from college with some rather interesting and startling news. Overall I thought the acting well-done.

There was some very interesting and eye-catching cinematography displayed in Mr. Brooks. In some of the gun battles, they mute out the normal sounds of the battle and play cool music instead. These scenes are also slowed down and done sort of shakily so they seem more raw and real. It really added to the film rather than being distracting.

I have no complaints about this movie. You should give this one a try, you won't regret it.

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