Playmaker

Playmaker doesn't make sense to me. At first you thought `Ross' was some master but actually was a fake. I missed the point of the movie, or is there one? The ending - so Jamie Harris got away with murder ?

This movie is one of the best and moving I have ever seen, because of the terrible good performance of the main actress Jennifer Rubin as Jamie Harris, who really makes you feel with her. Also the music by Mark Snow is wonderful.

I guess, to be honest, I'm giving this 10 of 10 stars just because I like films like this and, when it came out when I was 14 I really loved those moody independent mysteries that really wanted to buck for film noir and mostly never achieved it.

And now as an adult, I still like them, but with the refined taste of preferring the ones that were actually done right... or at least the ones that hit the troupes with a bit of success.

Looking at it through a critical eye, however, the plot doesn't stand up to analysis. If you are the kind of critical couch coach you're going to be yelling at the television and facepalming more than a few times... but that's kind of part of the charm of films like this. The ones that are done well keep it to a minimum, but even then the "WTF were they thinking!" moments are a source of entertainment themselves.

And it has Jennifer Rubin, who does decent jobs and should have had bigger roles in her career. In this case she does a fine job of balancing naive and stupid enough to not turn to the camera and yell at the writers because of the above mentioned moments, and still comes across as someone that can solve the mystery.

And it's the "Mystery" again, that is keeping this from being a truly good film. It's that dark sort of total suspension of disbelief, if you don't just shrug and go with it you'll be irritated to no end kind of mystery.

Because, honestly, outside of that the acting is pretty stellar, Firth and Rubin both nail their roles, the film is moody enough to fit the genre, it's got that 90s indie Hollywoodphile vibe that everyone loves... but it just does it with a lot that makes you want to strangle the writer and situations that will leave a nice large red mark on you forehead.

Honestly though, despite all of that, it actually manages to entertain. You won't be bored watching it, this is a film you can still enjoy and, at the end of the day, that is the only reason to make a movie. That is the one goal that all films should place above all objectives.

If you like subtle psychological dramas/thrillers this is a movie for you. Those who want to see an ordinary sex'n'crime erotic thriller surely will not understand this movie, as Colin Firth obviously did when he called it "rubbish". But Jennifer Rubin is the real star of the movie anyway. She is such a brilliant and beautiful actress! Along with the twisting and turning storyline, that gets more and more psychological and makes you think about yourself, the wonderful directing, photography and especially the music make this movie a masterpiece. Also the small parts are very good, especially Belinda Waymouth is terrific in her small scene. I hope it gets released on DVD soon, and a soundtrack album would be a dream coming true!!

This one works if you can suspend your disbelief just a wee bit more than you'd normally allow. The reward is a twisty ride through smoke and mirrors, stopping along the way to ask some pretty hefty questions.

Jamie is an aspiring actress who is long on ambition but short in the confidence department. Out of desperation, she hooks up with a brilliant but eccentric acting coach. He teaches her that nothing is what it seems, but what she really learns is that if you're good enough at deception, you can get away with murder. However, the real lesson here is that success achieved by becoming more ruthless than your enemies makes you the enemy.

Because your sympathy is with Jamie at all times, you are encouraged to believe that she is forced to take this position by people more evil than herself. This is a highly suspicious concept, I think. But it is an interesting idea and fairly well presented in a funhouse structure with enough surprises to keep you intrigued.