Review of A Perfect Murder (1998) by Nikki M — 09 Mar 2010

Director Andrew Davis has a deft touch with thrillers, always giving you what you pay for even if there's not much going on underneath the surface. Sometimes he knocks one out of the park (The Fugitive), but more often than not he churns out the adequate (Above the Law, The Package, Under Siege).

A Perfect Murder is closer to the latter but remains agreeable due to a solid cast and good source material (it's a remake of Alfred Hitchcock's "Dial M for Murder"). Michael Douglas is appropriately diabolical, Viggo Mortensen slithers as a murderer for hire flip-flopping between love and greed, and Gwyneth Paltrow gives us a vulnerable adulteress stuck between the two evil men she allowed into her life.

Note to the ladies out there: if you are a wealthy heiress, it's a bad idea to cheat on your cold, calculating husband with a playboy scam artist.