The 27th Victim

Author(s): Patrick D.
Location: Long Island, NY

"The 27th Victim"

Directed by James Mangold
Written by Andrew Kevin Walker

Main Cast

Matt Dillon as Ray Barnes
Patrick Wilson as Matthew Hunter
Harvey Keitel as Lieutenant Dunbar
Naomi Watts as Amanda Flitcher
Roger Bart as Mike
John Turturro as Jacob
Zoe Saldana as Kaitlyn
Domenick Lombardozzi as Derek
Alan Arkin as Frank

Tagline: "The body of one, the mind of six"

Synopsis: Ray Barnes (Dillon) is the lucky detective assigned to a recent string of murders ruining the town's reputation. After going through a tire-less investigation, he is led to Matthew Hunter (Wilson). At first, Matthew seems like the kind of person who wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone murder a human being. But when Ray looks in his room, he finds a dead body under Matthew's bed, so Matthew is arrested.

Baffled by this, Ray begins to interrogate Matthew almost every hour of every day. Matthew says he doesn't know how the body got under his bed, he's just as confused as Ray is. Ray is convinced that Matthew is innocent, but all the evidence leads directly to Matthew. So, Ray hires a psychologist, Amanda (Watts) to talk to Matthew and try to figure out why he seems so innocent. After a couple hours of talking, Amanda finds out that Matthew suffers from split personality, and according Matthew, there are more dead bodies that the police have not found. Ray then finds out that Matthew has six other personalities. Mike (Bart), Jacob (Turturro), Kaitlyn (Saldana), Derek (Lombardozzi), and Frank (Arkin). It's up to Matthew to figure out who committed what murders, and where the remaining bodies are.

Seperate stories of the personalities are interweaved with the interrogation between Ray and Matthew. The story of Mike, a homosexual who begins to kill people he suspects of being homophobic. Jacob, who kills people he thinks are judging him. Kaityln, who can't accept the fact that she's a female personality traped in a man's body. Derek, who thinks he's a mobster. And Frank, who's tired and can't handle all the things that the police are making him and Matthew go through. While interrogating Matthew, Ray begins to get the truth and fiction mixed. Some personalities begin to try and trick him, some of them pretend to be others, some purposely begin to lie about their stories. Ray must win the mind game between him, Matthew, and his personalities. But can he find the truth, or will he be lost in the sea of lies?

What the Press would say:

This is a mind-f**K like no other. Okay, now that I got that out of the way, on to the review! In the set-up, divorced detective Ray Barnes is forced to work on a serial killer case. He finds the killer and just can't believe it. The killer seems like a nice guy, innocent, caring, etc. He asks a psychologist to talk to Matthew (the killer), and finds out that Matthew actually has split-personality. What follows is a ensemble film like no other. Extremely personal scenes of the Personality's pasts, reveal why they are the way they are. Matthew's flashbacks also provide some information on how he developed split personality. The interrogation scenes are interesting and amazingly emotional, bringing out the best in the actors in them. Matt Dillon (Ray) brings a sense of cool in the beginning, and then throws it out the window, exchanging it for obsessed and paranoid. Patrick Wilson (Matthew) throws everything to see if it sticks. He plays innocent, sad, old, tired, angry, raging, every emotion you can name, he does it. But out of the personalities, the most intriguing is that of Roger Bart (Mike). A homosexual, and part of Matthew's mind, he doesn't play it safe. He's not the cliched, flamboyant homosexual man that's part of a movie trend that never ends. He's a stone-cold killer. Killing for the wrong reasons. He truly stands out. If you're interested in seeing a movie that doesn't give you everything straight, and keeps you thinking 110% all the way, this is the one for you.

Best Picture
Best Director - James Mangold
Best Actor - Patrick Wilson
Best Supporting Actor - Matt Dillon
Best Supporting Actor - Roger Bart
Best Supporting Actor - John Turturro
Best Screenplay - Andrew Kevin Walker