Review of Murder at 1600 (1997) by Michael R — 30 Jul 2009

This motion picture is an excellent example of what a whodunit ought to be. By no means should it be classified as Hollywood drivel, even though called that here and there. We find, admittedly, a few cliches in it, and some bad acting, especially by the miscast Alan Alda, but who is able to fully avoid all of such pitfalls in our time? The recent batch of crime dramas, FRACTURE is a good example, show very little imagination, do not titillate the viewer, and hence fall way short of being an acceptable entertainment package.

MURDER AT 1600 is definitely one of Wesley Snipes best films. The fact that the storyline calls for a D.C. cop and a female Secret Service agent to go after a murder suspect unilaterally, so to speak, does not impair our credulity but is, of its own accord, exceedingly unique.

The adjectival pronouncement -banal or trite - is clearly unmerited. Where else do we find such original material? This motion picture deserves a much wider dissemination because it belongs to a category that should be elevated to the very apex of its genre.