Unforgettable

I do not know why people tend to rate this film low. Of course, I am slightly prejudiced as i always thought that Ray Liotta may be a cousin until I found out he was adopted. That doesn't take away the quality of his acting, especially in this film.

He really has to lay it on thick as he takes the mind of others through an experimental drug developed by Dr. Martha Briggs (Linda Fiorentino) in an effort to find out who killed his wife (Stellina Rusich).

Fiorentino (Dogma, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back) does a really good job as the research scientist who helps him through his ordeal.

The film had other favorites: Kim Cattrall and Peter Coyote, who added to the mystery and suspense.

I really like Liotta for his range and you could do a lot worse than spend two hours with him as he catches a killer.

Let me preface this review by saying this movie started off great with a great original idea. In fact the movie treaded on a good path besides a few stumbles here and there.

The movie is about a doctor, Doctor Krane (Ray Liotta), whose wife was murdered. The case was never solved although he was tried for the crime but acquitted. Later he comes across another doctor, Dr. Martha Briggs (Linda Fiorentino), who has a highly experimental drug that can transfer one person's memories to another person.

Well, Dr. Krane uses this drug to try to track down his wife's killer. At first the movie was rolling along fine, in fact is was down right captivating. But somewhere along the way it got predictable and then they didn't know how to end it. And when I say predictable, I mean reeeeally predictable.

This movie could have done itself justice by not being as long as it was and by not making the culprit so obvious. It made out to be just an average movie after all.

The best points of this sci-fi/mystery/thriller, I thought, were: 1 - very good suspense; 2 - a different-angle story; and 3 - an involving "whodunit" story; 4 - and a fast- moving for a two-hour film.

Another big plus: John Dahl directed this, and in his prime. This movie came on the heels of Kill Me Again, Red Rock West and The Last Seduction.....all of them very entertaining films.

This would be best for the first-time viewer, but I still have enjoyed it the three times I've seen it. I just wait about 4-5 years between viewings so as not to remember everything. One thing unusual: Linda Fiorentino actually plays a nice lady! Usually, she's brutal! Ray Liotta, Peter Coyote, Christopher McDonald and David Paymer all provide good male performances with Liotta playing the central character.

Be warned that this story is a bit unbelievable. It's pretty far out, and it can get on the gory side, but it's different and will keep your attention.

This roller coaster of a thriller is a powerful assault on the viewer's nerves. Ray Liotta is the puzzled hero who was acquitted of killing his wife but has no idea who really did it. Liotta, here in a sympathetic role, has kind eyes and likes kids, so is far from being the villain he sometimes plays. I am somewhat puzzled by the actress Jenafor Ryane, who plays Liotta's sister-in-law in this film and has the custody of his children. Am I going mad? Or is she really Jenny Franks aka Jenny Anderson aka Jenny Price? After all, IMDb has no biographical information about her at all. Does Jenafor Ryane exist? The question is: Who Framed Jenafor Rabbit? Or is that too sci fi a question? Linda Fiorentino is the winsome love interest here, looking very cute as a scientist who has invented a new technique of transplanting selected memories of traumatic incidents (what are known to neuroscientists as 'amygdala memories' because they are laid down in the amygdala of the brain, though this is not mentioned in the film) by injections of neuro-transmitters, etc, and there are excellently directed and filmed sequences of a cat chasing mice through a maze, some taken at mouse level. There is a certain amount of technical banter about this to give it credibility. The serum having only been tested on rats in the lab, Liotta hastily injects himself in a madcap attempt to try to find out who murdered his wife. He survives, even though Linda Fiorentino keeps telling him it will damage his heart and kill him. The plot thickens, and thickens again, and thickens again. Peter Coyote is suitably ominous and creepy as a cop who knows more than he lets on. Kim Coates as a druggie villain is super-sleazy, rather terrifying. John Dahl directed this fast-paced and nail-biting film.

Ray Liotta is convincing enough in this mystery film with scifi overtones as Dr. Crane, an accused but acquitted suspect in his wife murder whom steals an experimental mind- expanding yet incredibly dangerous drug from scientist Marta Briggs (Linda Fiorentino) in order to solve the crime and deduce the true killer.

The film is able to keep up a tense mood throughout despite it's more fantastical conceits and I enjoyed myself. While it may be far from perfect (one or two of the supporting actors drop the ball, the movie as a whole seemed a touch derivative),, it's still perfectly adequate,

My Grade: C+

Where I saw it: Instant Netflix