The Barber

The main reason why I was curious about THE BARBER for years it's because it's one of the last movies where Scott Glenn played the lead and as I saw it I found it better than the tiepid 5,8 score. But it still has some problems, and we'll look them.

This is a movie split in two stories that eventually interwine. In the first, Chief Gary Hardaway (Stephen Tobolowsky) is looking for murderer Eugene Van Wingerdt (Glenn) known as the barber because he uses a straight razor for murdering his victims. In the second, a young wannabe killer named John McCormack follows Van Wingerdt as his mentor up until the truth comes out that Eugene was using him all the time. When the two stories interwine it's a bit too easy see where it's going but it's best if you see it for yourselves.

As I said, the acting by Glenn and Tobolowsky was good as usual with them. But I can see why some don't like it. First, you have to have high tolerance for gruesome atmospheres (if you saw and liked SILENCE OF THE LAMBS, RESURRECTION and the recently released LONGLEGS it will help) and second, the direction is at times unfocused. But taking it as it is, it's still a good thriller worth a view for fans of the genre.

An alleged veteran is forced to come out of hiding by unforeseeable circumstances, he must employ his skill once more to overcome the problem. No, this is not John Wick or Taken. The Barber is more of a noir detective movie that matches two different characters with hidden identities. The two are embroiled in a quite interesting mind game, however the plot relies too heavily on far-fetched plot devices and coincidences which feels underwhelming and contrived at latter half.

The Barber Eugene (Scott Glenn) meets with the young ambitious John (Chris Coy). Right at the introduction, John is very aggressive in his approach, claiming that Eugene is in fact a serial killer. The two try to outsmart each other and the movie is pretty good on creating layers for both of them. Scott Glenn delivers the character with precision, often looking feeble but still charismatically bizarre when needs be.

For his counterpart, Chris Coy performs admirable as well. He exhibits the contradicting youth to Glenn's more experienced nature. The chemistry is there as each finds more about each other's secrets. Visually, the movie has fitting noir look, it sets in a small town and some of the scenes are beautifully shot.

Unfortunately, it often resorts to cheap plot devices. Characters would need to find or do things just in the right time and right place. The chances of these occurring are astronomically low, especially since they speak in vague manner, yet the movie pushes the scenes as if they are destined to be. Either because the alleged killer is near psychic or the victim is dumb. It is not a clever scheme or even a planned one, at some points the movie even utilizes more subplots and flashbacks, creating inconsistent pacing flow that never feels resolved.

This is a shame because it could've been more engaging if the plot was simplified, instead it becomes forced as it tries to set overly elaborate twists. If one can get pass the irregularities, there is a good acting presence that might just entertain more on human drama aspect than its murky mystery thrill.

My review will differ quite much from the others. I don't why this movie is so low rated..!! Yes, I think the ratings should be higher.

The movie slowly advances while revealing the characters true motivations with twisting at every corner. I have to say that, I haven't see some of the things coming. As the movie moves slowly, audience can get a little bored but the climax makes up for it fully.

"The watch trick" is something I truly liked. It was inevitable that a women will respond to it. 'The barber' has a charming and respectable appearance attracting "yummy" women.

The movie in total gives a view that it's the quite and innocent guys you won't see coming... ;)

Smart protagonist and smart antagonist- thats what makes this movie so great. An unceasing game of cat & mouse keeps the tension going through the story, with some nice plot twists and really good timing on the reveals. 5.9? REEEE diculous. This movies is far and away better than that score. I think ppl were looking for car crashes or nudity. Not w/ this one. Good dialogue, superb acting. Just a taut, smart little thriller. Worth every minute of your time.

With a fairly engaging back story, good overall acting, and plot twists that make sense / don't feel overtly contrived, The Barber has plenty going for it as a thriller. However, there's just something overall missing, something that could have probably made it a much better film.

The pacing is so-so; it doesn't drag and in fact there are a few points where I felt things were skimmed over leaving me guessing. The dialog, perhaps, is where things got lackluster. I just had a tough time empathizing with the main characters. I was definitely interested in what they were going though but I felt no emotional involvement.

Still, you could do a lot worse if you're looking for a bit of entertainment, and its darker themes may even leave you with some philosophical musings after the credits have rolled.