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Kiss The Girls | Year: 1997 Classification: Thriller Directed: - Gary Fleder Actors/Actresses: - Cary Elwes - Morgan Freeman - Tony Goldwyn - Ashley Judd - Jeremy Piven - Mena Suvari Edge of your seat thriller! Morgan Freeman plays detective Alex Cross, who is on the hunt for a serial killer who calls himself Casanova. His only hope in catching the killer and rescuing his neice, Naomi, is the young woman who got away. This movie's filled with thrills, action, mystery, and great suspense. Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman deliver great performances. This movie is highly recommened to action, suspense and mystery movie fans. I guarntee it'll be a blast! Alex Who? I am so glad I read "Kiss the Girls" before seeing this misbegotten movie. Had I seen the movie first, I would never have read a book by James Patterson! First of all, as brilliant and wonderful as Morgan Freeman is, he is sadly miscast in this movie. Alex Cross, as described in the written series, is at least 10 years younger, and looks like "a young Ali." He also has an entirely different personality and affect. Freeman does his usually extraordinary best, of course, but he is forced to follow an inane script that explores none of Cross's humanity, none of his soul-searching, none of his deep love for his family that causes constant conflict (the brief scene where he is consoling his sister on the disappearance of his niece Naomi does not count). Cross's dear friend John Samson, such a strong and necessary presence in the books, is now Alex's cousin, stationed in Los Angeles (not in Washington DC, with Alex), and only peripherally involved with Cross's life. There is none of the hilarious repartee between the two, none of the incredible bond that has kept them together since childhood. Ashley Judd tries hard, but she is no Kate Tiernan, and the story is changed to such an extent that the viewer has no idea of the inner strength it takes Kate to help Alex track the killer after having escaped his lair. In fact, she's only in the lair a brief time, and none of the real horror of what happened to her at the hands of the would-be killer comes across. In fact, THIS Kate clearly states that she was not raped, hardly the case in the book. Casanova's twin in crime, the West Coast's Gentleman Caller, appears, but the circumstances between the two killers are so muddled that, had I not read the book, I'm not sure I would have fully understood the connection between them. The unmasking of the eventual killer comes as a disappointment, where it was a true shock in the book. I gave this movie two stars in homage to Morgan Freeman, who didn't deserve the poor script, the shoddy editing, the lackluster photography, and everything else that made this a bad movie. My advice to those who haven't read the book: Please do do before seeing this movie. For those who HAVE read the book: Get Alex Cross out of your mind. Only the name remains the same. Isn't Gonna Win A OSCAR, but It's Quality Entertainment! Washington, DC police detective Alex Cross (Freeman) receives a call that his niece Naomi has been abducted from the Durham area, and he decides that he needs to go there to help find her. Once he gets there, he is informed that one of the women abducted has been found dead tied to a tree. He, along with Nick Ruskin (Elwes) and Davey Skes (McArthur), the two Durham detectives heading up the task force, head out to the location. Alex is fearful that it's his niece, but is relieved that it's not her. Meanwhile, we meet Kate McTiernan (Judd), a doctor at the local hospital. Not only is she a doctor, but she's also a kick-boxer. But that does her little good when she discovers a stranger in her house, who knocks her unconscious. When she comes to, she finds herself in a small room. And shortly after regaining conscious, the person who has abducted her appears at her bedside. She manages to get out of the room and escapes by jumping into a river. After she recovers, she decides to help Alex out with his investigation, against his protests. But he realizes that she's his best opportunity to find his niece, so reluctantly agrees. The abducter starts taunting the police, sending them notes about the women. He signs his notes as Cassanova. Cassanova was a great lover, and Alex deduces that he isn't a killer, he's a collector. He only kills when the women disappoint or cross him. After some more investigating, he finds a connection between Cassanova and a plastic surgeon on the West Coast. It seems that there are also a string of abductions there, but these women all turn up dead, with one of their feet missing. I can't say any more without giving away too much of the plot. KISS THE GIRLS has a good story, with very good acting by all involved. When Judd's character of McTiernan is in her cell communicating with the other girls, she's so convincing that it's like she was actually there. Morgan Freeman is very good in the role of Alex Cross. The supporting cast is pretty good, as well. **SPOILER** The only real problem I have with KISS THE GIRLS is that the story, which is good as I said above, is just too similar to a lot of other movies in the thriller genre. It's really frustating to see movie after movie with the "killer is someone we met earlier" plot-line. It might have been clever at one time, but now it is just so common-place, that the viewer almost automatically look for clues as to who the killer is. I had this one pegged not too long after we first meet him. Based solely on the story of this movie, I would give it a three. It's basically the same movie the viewer has seen before, but with a different twist on the plot. But I have to give it a four because of the acting, especially Freeman and Judd. If Freeman has made a bad movie, I haven't seen it yet. I recommend this movie, but if you pay attention, you can figure out who Cassanova is without too much difficulty. Story rates a three, but the acting pulls it up to a fo Buy Kiss The Girls at Amazon.com Buy posters at Allposters.com Jamster - the latest ringtones for your phone!  Search with Walhello on the Internet on Kiss The Girls Search with the Priority Search Engine on Kiss The Girls This page in other languages: Suomeksi | Nederlands | Deutsch
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