Review of Blue Caprice (2013) by Mister C — 17 Oct 2013

"I've created a monster," John says to Lee,with a satisfied smile. John is proud of his protege,and proud of himself for being such an effective mentor. He is also speaking the literal truth. He and his young friend,the main characters in Alexandre Moors's psychological thriller "Blue Caprice" which is based on John A. Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo,who in 2002 terrorized the greater Washington and surrounding Maryland and Virginia areas with a series of murderous sniper attacks where innocent lives were brutally murdered. Under John's guidance,Lee,a lost and lonely teenager,has been transformed from an-All American kid to a steady-deadeye cold blooded killer. "Blue Caprice" sets the story at the year after September 11,at a time of raw nerves and war fever,the Beltway sniper shootings were front page news across the country and at a time when people in the D.C. and surroundings areas were living in constant fear of who was going to be next in a city on the brink of terror. This Alexandre Moors' feature film debut who was known for his music videos in a film that would have been better if it were directed by big name Hollywood talent....Jonathan Demme who directed the Oscar winning "Silence of the Lambs" was set to take over this project,but instead the producers wanted a fresh talent for this.

But most of "Blue Caprice" takes place before the shootings in Washington State,and its emphasis is the bond that formed between the killers. There are two ways to tell a story like this,but in aspects this is an exercise in psychological explaination(in the manner of numerous serial killer movies and TV shows)or as a study of the limits of interpretation.

The story sets off as a bonding between Lee(Tequan Richmond),and John(Isaiah Washington)where it starts from their first meeting with John's three younger kids on the Caribbean island of Antigua to the suburbs of Tacoma,Washington where Lee follows John there where they end up at the home of an Army buddy(Tim Blake Nelson),whose wife (Joey Lauren Adams) has mixed feelings about the houseguests. John refers to Lee as his son teaches him to drive and to shoot,and demands proofs of filial love in the form of acts of violence. His kindness is punctuated by strange and cruel disciplinary actions,as when he leaves Lee tied to a tree on a rainy night,trusting that the boy will escape and come home for breakfast. On the trip to the supermarket,John lays out a vision that will mutate into a plan. A series of random,bizarre murders,he says,will ultimately bring down the shadowy,oppressive system that he believes is at the roof of all his problems. His worldview is a stew of vague political and racial.

Resentments combined with specific grievances. "They" stole his children,his marriage,and messed up his life,and his adopted son will be the instrument of his revenge. John,unhinged though he maybe,is more readable than Lee,whose brooding,wounded silence is the film's center of gravity. You feel the vulnerability he is unable to express,and Mr. Richmond(who was known for his television work as the oldest son on the television series "Everybody Hates Chris",as well as his movie roles from "Ray" to "You've Got Served")care and restraint make this young man's fate all the more heartbreaking in the outbreak role of his young career with gives a solid performance all around. The same can be said by Isaiah Washington who gives the role of John Allen Muhammad a sinister more evil menace which is shocking in detail. But for the way the story ends,both John Allen Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo were captured and were sentenced for their crimes. John Allen Muhammad was executed in 2009 while Lee Boyd Malvo is serving a life sentence without parole. To the relief of the public around the District of Columbia and surrounding areas of Maryland and Virginia,the Beltway sniper case was solved years ago. But Moors' film suggests it is still a mystery to this day.