Jesse Stone: Death in Paradise

This is the third in the Jesse Stone movie series and I thought it was the best. Selleck is just perfect as the flawed, but honorable main character. What makes this series so good is what others have written; the pacing of the films is thoughtful; the characters are adult and complex; it has plot and intelligence over car crashes and special effects though it has action and romance in it to be sure. You like Selleck's character instantly and his scenes with his other officers,the State Police Detective and the shrink he see's about his drinking, are all terrific.

In the special features on Stone Cold Selleck says people have a 'hunger' for this type of adult entertainment where plot and story are more important than rapid fire visuals--and that is so true. It's surprising how good this series is--it's way better than 95% of what's in the theaters. Tom Selleck in a really good cop movie or Pirates of the Caribbean part IV--it's no contest.

I will start off by saying the overall simple style and dialogue of this made for TV movie make it a success. It is a guys version of Hallmark/Lifetime movies, with a length that is not too long to hold a viewers interest. As this is the third Jesse Stone movie, and the second that I have seen, I am glad that the supporting characters returned to keep the bond they have created up. The set locations are amazingly rural and real, although some of the cheesy freeze frames during commercial transitions could have been handled better.

The story remains as entertaining as Jesse Stone: Stone Cold. Stone's direct, no bull approach is cool to watch. The story line is a tough one to touch on national television and be appropriate, but they did a good job. The "plot twist" was simple and more of a "when are they going to realize what is going on" versus the "I have no idea, surprise me" type. The sub-stories about Stone's alcoholism could been left out, they didn't really contribute to anything. I am a fan of this series and can't wait to watch the rest, but I would not say it is worth buying on DVD. A single viewing should do ya.

Not a bad thriller. Jesse Stone's character is slowly being built.

There is not much new in the film, slow but well made.

I enjoyed watching the movie and have currently finished reading the next Jesse Stone book. Hooray for TV movies that are of the quality of big screen movies with well written, defined, true to life characters. Tom Selleck as Jesse Stone is my hero as he struggles with problems of work, alcohol, and loneliness as we all do. The story deals with the subject of child abuse and the resulting trauma that some people try to sweep under the rug or ignore rather than deal with which in this story results in a murder of an abused child. The other returning actors are great as the friends and co-workers who provide their own story lines interweaving with Selleck's.

When the body of a fourteen years old teenager is found in the margin of the river in Paradise, Massachusetts, the Chief of Police Jesse Stone (Tom Selleck) and his officer Simpson (Kohl Sudduth) seek clues in the spot. Through a graduation ring of a student that they find nearby the corpse, they identity the dead girl, the local slut Billy Bishop. Meanwhile, his department deals with a domestic violent situation with an aggressive and abusive husband that beats his wife. Along his investigation, Stone discloses that the famous writer Norman Shaw (Gary Masaraba) was too much close to the victim and intended to write the biography of the famous gangster Leo in his next book. Joining the pieces of evidences like a puzzle, Stone unravels the identity of the criminal.

"Death in Paradise" is the second excellent movie that I see with Tom Selleck in the role of Chief Jesse Stone. Both films show simple, credible and effective police stories, with great performances, magnificent cinematography and realistic screenplays. Jesse Stone seems to be tailored to Tom Selleck, who is perfect in the role of the cynical, stubborn and flawed but fair chief of police. I believe this character deserves a TV series, so good these stories are. I have just seen in IMDb that there are two other movies of this character, unfortunately not released in Brazil. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Crimes no Paraiso 2" ("Crimes in Paradise 2")