The Factory
2/4
Starring: John Cusack, Jennifer Carpenter, Dallas Roberts, Mae Whitman, Gary Anthony Williams
Rated R for Strong Violence including Disturbing Images, Language Throughout and Some Sexual Material
Despite starring A-lister John Cusack and "Dexter" co-star Jennifer Carpenter, "The Factory" was released four years after it was shot and bypassed theaters altogether. Not a good sign. A movie as troubled as this usually signals a disaster, but that's not the case here. Like "Shanghai," which suffered a similar fate (and coincidentally, also starred John Cusack), "The Factory" is simply mediocre.
A number of prostitutes have gone missing in Montreal over the past few years. Detective Mike Fletcher (Cusack) is convinced that there's a serial killer at work. It's not a popular theory since there have been no bodies of the missing women have not been found. The only one who believes him is his energetic partner, Kelsey Walker (Carpenter). Mike has long since been obsessed with the case, but when his daughter Abby (Whitman) goes missing in a way eerily similar to the unfortunate ladies of the night, he will stop at nothing, to find the killer. However, neither Mike nor Kelsey have any idea of who they are dealing with.
"The Factory" is a Z-list script starring one movie star and a host of character actors. Given that, I guess it's about as good as could have hoped to be. John Cusack, an actor whom I like, tries to expand his range with mixed success. Cusack does his best work as the sardonic everyman, such as in "High Fidelity" or "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." He can do more dramatic work, like in the little-seen and controversial "Max" or "Love & Mercy," but intensity is not one of his strong suits. I'll give him points for making a game try, but the results are decidedly mixed. This is partly due to his lack of range, and also partly because he is simply not trying. The role of the eager beaver partner Kelsey is within Jennifer Carpenter's limited range, but there are times where she goes over-the-top. The weak link in the cast is Dallas Roberts, who plays Carl the killer (since he is the first major character to appear on screen, this revelation is not a spoiler). He's simply not creepy enough. The role calls for someone with an Anthony Perkins level of evil, and Roberts doesn't come close. He's about as intimidating as a housecat.
The best I can say about the work behind the camera is that it's in focus, is coherent, and moves at a decent clip. There are a few neat looking shots in the movie, but that's as far as it goes. This isn't an especially well-made movie, but at least it doesn't have any pretensions about being something it's not. That's more than I could say about "Blade Runner 2049."
The problem with this movie is that the screenplay forces Mike and Kelsey to be convinced that Darryl (Williams), not Carl, is the killer. Adding insult to injury, Darryl is Carl's unwitting and unwilling accomplice. Revealing the killer's identity at the beginning while sending the main characters on a dead end for the majority of the film dilutes almost all of the film's tension. We feel like the movie is wasting our time.
The less said about the ending, the better. I guessed it pretty far ahead of time, but I didn't for once believe the filmmakers would be stupid enough to use it. Turns out, they were. Had I been more than rudimentarily invested in the film, I might have cared. As it is, it's just another mediocre film trying to shock the audience with a twist so cliche it's a wonder that no one has trademarked it yet.
"The Factory" is best viewed when you can't sleep and have nothing else to watch. And I mean nothing.
Starring: John Cusack, Jennifer Carpenter, Dallas Roberts, Mae Whitman, Gary Anthony Williams
Rated R for Strong Violence including Disturbing Images, Language Throughout and Some Sexual Material
Despite starring A-lister John Cusack and "Dexter" co-star Jennifer Carpenter, "The Factory" was released four years after it was shot and bypassed theaters altogether. Not a good sign. A movie as troubled as this usually signals a disaster, but that's not the case here. Like "Shanghai," which suffered a similar fate (and coincidentally, also starred John Cusack), "The Factory" is simply mediocre.
A number of prostitutes have gone missing in Montreal over the past few years. Detective Mike Fletcher (Cusack) is convinced that there's a serial killer at work. It's not a popular theory since there have been no bodies of the missing women have not been found. The only one who believes him is his energetic partner, Kelsey Walker (Carpenter). Mike has long since been obsessed with the case, but when his daughter Abby (Whitman) goes missing in a way eerily similar to the unfortunate ladies of the night, he will stop at nothing, to find the killer. However, neither Mike nor Kelsey have any idea of who they are dealing with.
"The Factory" is a Z-list script starring one movie star and a host of character actors. Given that, I guess it's about as good as could have hoped to be. John Cusack, an actor whom I like, tries to expand his range with mixed success. Cusack does his best work as the sardonic everyman, such as in "High Fidelity" or "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." He can do more dramatic work, like in the little-seen and controversial "Max" or "Love & Mercy," but intensity is not one of his strong suits. I'll give him points for making a game try, but the results are decidedly mixed. This is partly due to his lack of range, and also partly because he is simply not trying. The role of the eager beaver partner Kelsey is within Jennifer Carpenter's limited range, but there are times where she goes over-the-top. The weak link in the cast is Dallas Roberts, who plays Carl the killer (since he is the first major character to appear on screen, this revelation is not a spoiler). He's simply not creepy enough. The role calls for someone with an Anthony Perkins level of evil, and Roberts doesn't come close. He's about as intimidating as a housecat.
The best I can say about the work behind the camera is that it's in focus, is coherent, and moves at a decent clip. There are a few neat looking shots in the movie, but that's as far as it goes. This isn't an especially well-made movie, but at least it doesn't have any pretensions about being something it's not. That's more than I could say about "Blade Runner 2049."
The problem with this movie is that the screenplay forces Mike and Kelsey to be convinced that Darryl (Williams), not Carl, is the killer. Adding insult to injury, Darryl is Carl's unwitting and unwilling accomplice. Revealing the killer's identity at the beginning while sending the main characters on a dead end for the majority of the film dilutes almost all of the film's tension. We feel like the movie is wasting our time.
The less said about the ending, the better. I guessed it pretty far ahead of time, but I didn't for once believe the filmmakers would be stupid enough to use it. Turns out, they were. Had I been more than rudimentarily invested in the film, I might have cared. As it is, it's just another mediocre film trying to shock the audience with a twist so cliche it's a wonder that no one has trademarked it yet.
"The Factory" is best viewed when you can't sleep and have nothing else to watch. And I mean nothing.
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