Mike's Murder

My experience with this film differs from some of those who seem to be objecting to both the plot and the cast.

I thought the idea of a 20's something woman who immerses herself in a quasi-relationship with a person on the fringe of society to be interesting. Winger turns in a terrific performance. Part of the human experience or journey is that one encounters difficult moments in one's life - including anticipating relationships one wants desperately to work out.

Betty is in the unfortunate position of having to view Mike from afar as the latter is caught in a nightmarish world of drugs and deceit. I found Mike's drug partner in crime very compelling. One had a real sense of dread and doom as he tried to "make-up" for an irredeemable mistake. Paul Winfield is spot on as the record producer who has also suffered a loss.

All in all, what we have here is a subtle film which is compelling and which a typical focus group would probably pass over. One good example of why film producers and directors should stay away from them and let their artistic visions guide their actions.

The 1980's saw the release of a lot of silly and trashy movies, that were heavy on style but light on substance. "Mike's Murder" is not one of those films. This is a very well constructed mystery thriller; a "film-noir" in broad daylight,if you will. Los Angeles provides a deceptively bright backdrop for this story, which is quite dark and sinister. The fact that we get to see into a dark, seedy L.A. Underworld of drugs and prostitution, through the eyes of a "normal citizen," like Debra Winger's 'Betty,' makes everything so much more believable. Betty's tennis coach and sometime lover, Mike, is living a double life. By day he is a tennis coach to rich older ladies, but by night he deals cocaine, and at times sells his body to both women and men, in order to maintain his flashy, drug fueled lifestyle. The viewer is along for the ride, finding out bits and pieces of a sinister puzzle, alongside Betty Parish, after she is told that her lover was violently murdered in a drug deal gone wrong. Being a normal, law abiding girl, with a straight job as a bank teller, Betty quickly finds herself out of her league and terrified at what she is discovering about her lover. The great thing about "Mike's Murder" is how well it is constructed; the story unfolds slowly, but deliberately, and keeps it's audience truly on the edge, waiting to find out just how far it will go. It helps if the viewer has a fascination with the lifestyles depicted here; others might just be lost, and wondering what the point of it is. This is not a flashy film, that relies on impressive camera angles or quick cut editing. Instead we have an old fashioned style movie, that tells a tale with facial expressions, and music, and a masterfully told story. I imagine the critics of this gem must surely have the attention spans of children; I just cannot understand how anyone could consider THIS a bad movie. It isn't really a commercial film, and it's no surprise that it did poorly at the box office; films like this rarely become "blockbusters." Still, it seems to have stuck in the memories of a lot of people, including mine; I saw it as a young teen in the mid 80's; and I never forgot it. I found the world of Mike to be fascinating and terrifying; and I still do. And I've known a few guys like Mike, and they are all no longer living. I recommend this exciting film to those who can appreciate a good mystery.

This movie is compelling because the character of Betty is so innocent about what is going on in this murky tennis coach. It makes it easy to see how a normal person could find themselves in way over their heads without knowing it. The kitchen scene with the pal of Mike's who manages to get away from the bad guys is gut wrenching. Debra Winger has never gotten the breaks that she richly is due. I feel that it is compelling that the late Bette Davis stated that of the new actresses that Ms Winger was the most like her and I don't think that she was merely referring to their bad press.

I confess I had a hard time with this one.

I am a big fan of Debra Winger. This film was written by James Bridges and produced by a wonderful friend, Jack Larson, Jimmy Olsen of Superman fame.

Given the talent involved, I was disappointed. One reason was studio interference, which you can read about on IMDb. The other reason for me was the story itself.

Jim Bridges was a wonderful writer and director. He's responsible, in fact, for one of the all-time most terrifying Alfred Hitchcock episodes ever - An Unlocked Window - talk about sleepless nights for weeks. I went to bed with a knife.

The film concerns a young woman, Betty (Winger) who works as a bank teller and is infatuated with her tennis instructor, Mike (Mark Keyloun). They wind up in bed together once. After that, he says he'll call, he wants to see her, but it doesn't happen.

One day she runs into him while driving and gives him a ride. Its obvious he's in trouble. He admits he owes a drug dealer money and is staying out of sight.

Okay, someone keeps promising to call and doesn't, and I hear the words drug dealer, I am so done with this person. I know she's young. I was once young myself. I would have been gone. What was she thinking?

Somehow Betty is still interested. He makes a late night date with her. He and a friend go out to make a drug deal. While there, the dealer steps out, and Mike's friend has Mike watch for the dealer while Pete steals some coke. Is the problem that these guys never saw Breaking Bad? What would possess someone to do that?

The next day Betty learns he's dead and tries to find out what happened. She winds up in horrific danger.

Winger is terrific, and Darrell Larson as Pete is terrifying.

The film moves slowly until the last thirty minutes, which are scary as all get-out. I would have liked to have seen Bridges' original vision. However, I had so much trouble with these characters being so foolish, I wonder.

In LA, Betty Parrish (Debra Winger) is dating tennis instructor Mike Chuhutsky. He's a drug dealer on the side with his buddy Pete. They steal from their dealer. Mike gets murdered. Betty starts digging and uncovers a darker world.

It is not a spoiler to say that Mike gets murdered. It's in the title and that is a problem. It also takes 45 minutes to get there which is a long time for the slower part of the movie. I would have liked to see the murder. It seems to be a very bloody affair. I don't think that the movie is holding back on the violence. It is rated R. The other problem with Mike is that the actor is not that charismatic. Quite frankly, there is only Debra in the coupling. I would like a bigger star playing Mike. I just never got into the relationship in the first place. It would be better if he is her brother. Once the murder goes down, the stakes go up and Debra takes over. Pete is fine on the other side. This seems to be a forgotten thriller at the height of Debra' career. At least, it has Debra.