Waste of time

In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

I think Faye Dunaway is the best part of the movie. This is the second movie I see her in and she does a good job, but most of her character is about being afraid and have "visions".I do like the premise of the plot, it sounds sort of supernatural in an old fashioned way combined with crime thriller. However, the way it works on screen is not too interesting. We have Faye Dunaway being a controversial photographer, taking pictures of models we don't really get to know. The models are the targets for the murderer here, and we don't really care too much about the girls because we don't get to know them before they're disposed of like eggshells.Tommy Lee Jones is good, not great (he's young in this one, and we know he's become better), and he's one of the few people I've seen who looks somewhat good with a unibrow.I have really liked Raul Julia in his later role as Gomez in The Addams Family, but in this one he's stiff as a stick. I don't think he knows how he wants to act in this one, which is unfortunate.Of course this is a very typical crime romance, so we do get a romance plot, which does come out of nowhere, after the two lovers have met maybe four or five times, and nothing builds up to them suddenly being consumed by sudden lust and love. It's getting boring to watch these kind of plots.There is a "twist" here of course, when it comes to guessing who's the murderer. The "twist" is pretty much impossible to guess because the movie doesn't put out clues, it just keeps you guessing wildly until you only have one or two left to think about. And the nature of the "twist" is lazy, it throws in some little understood mental illness in there to make it more nuts but also more compassionate, but it has literally no build-up until you get a symbolic (and vaguely verbal) answer of what's going in inside the killer's head. I'll throw in, though, the shot "explaining" what's going on with the killer and has all along is a really cool one, when it stands alone.It's never explained what really happens to Laura Mars, with her visions and why. I don't think we necessarily need to get an explanation, but it's not really played with enough or talked about, it just happens that she sees from the killer's point of view. She explains it once to Tommy Lee Jones' character, but he doesn't really question it or talk about the subject at all (they just start goofing around with a camera that she used to illustrate her visions). It could at least be a little bit explained or played more with.This movie has many good things, but it doesn't explore enough. It has lots of pretty women that has basically no character and more used for eye-candy, the script itself is nothing really spectacular, some acting is off, some is pretty good, the suspense is there, but never really gets high enough.

The plot = Laura Mars (Faye Dunaway) plays a fashion photographer who takes pictures of models in violence situations, but soon she starts having dreams and visions of her friends getting killed, through the eyes of the killer, as she tries to figure out whats going on, she becomes romantically involved with a detective John Neville (Tommy Lee Jones) and they both try solve these crimes before it becomes too late.This thriller from the late 70's is a very slick and stylish affair, a good old fashioned stalk and slash fair, although not entirely a slasher movie per say, but still a pretty decent suspenseful thriller. Blood doesn't always have to be in bulk. You just need an engrossing plot, a good twist, pretty models and some sleaziness to go with it.The tone changes from scene to scene, but it is beautifully shot, with clever writing and great dialogue, along with the actors that makes this movie work on so many levels. The scenes with Laura having a vision of another murder are very repetitive. The same thing happens. She's doing whatever, freezes in place, eyes go wide, mouth drops, and we see a blurred killer's-eye-view of who is dying. It's all very funny, but startling, because we know what Mars must be going through to endure such an eerie thing. The whodunnit element really works well throughout, as I was completely surprised when the true killer was revealed, The body count is quite high as well which will keep all true slasher fans happy, it's full of giallo tendencies. The stalking scenes and close-ups of the ice pick are just enough to add a psycho's tough to this underrated piece.Okay it's not perfect there are a few minor bad points, like the storyline do slow down in parts, like after a murder and the ending is also lacking thrills, but other than those points it's still a thrilling ride.The performances is what truly makes this movie work, Faye Dunaway is excellent as the lead Laura Mars, along with Tommy Lee Jones in one of his early roles as the detective and love interest, they're chemistry with each other and watching they're relationship develop further as the movie progressed was a real highlight. Brad Douriff a familiar face who would go on to play the infamous (Chucky) as a early role as the down and out limo driver, whose creepy and unsettling at the same time really works. The late Raul Julia plays the sleazy husband really well but we don't see enough of him, and the flamboyant friend Donald Phelps (Rene Auberjonois) was brilliant in his role, he switches from funny to serious really well and the models Lulu (Darlanne Fluegel) and Michele (Lisa Taylor) were stunning and a lot of fun, and this movie makes you feel for these characters especially when it comes to they're demise.So all in all a fashionable thriller with excellent performances with a fun 70's disco soundtrack and great suspenseful scenes.

I had heard about this movie, but had never seen it until just a few days ago when I found it in a thrift store. I wish now I had left it where I had found it.This is a film that might have come off better if it had been filmed in Black and White. It is very suggestive of the "noir" genre atmospherically. Dunaway, who usually renders bravado performances, appears very vulnerable in this vehicle, and it does not come off well or as very convincing. There is no build up to her "psychic" vision, if that's what we can call it, where she is able to see the victims of murder as it happens, but cannot see the perpetrator of these crimes. As a photographer of some very violent scenes and a totally different animal altogether in that world, she has come under the gun from numerous angles, and some of the shots, unbeknownst to her, are exact matches to crime scene shots in the NYPD crime book. She comes under suspicion early, but is somewhat sheltered from the raw reality of it all by her effete agent, in the person of Rene Auberjunois, and a very young looking Tommy Lee Jones. This is 1978...I never knew T.L.J. was ever that young ! More killings ensue, and they are very close to home...her models, her associates. Raul Julia appears as part of the sub-plot to this gore fest as the ex-husband/failed writer, who winds up on the list of suspects in the killings...but who winds up being killed himself. Bad turns to worse as the sordid actions lead up to the trail of the REAL murderer. It's supposed to be a "surprise ending" or an "ending with a twist", and while it may raise some eyebrows, the shock of it seems to have been dulled with the passage of some years, and where this might have been a shocker in its day of sailing relatively ( then) uncharted psychological waters, it comes off as pretty milque-toast today. I read that Barbra Streisand was originally cast for the role...but turned it down. Good judgment on her part. She did sing the theme song to the film, but does not appear. Far from being a classic, this film is little more than a "pot-boiler" and has not stood well the test of time. No doubt it did wonders for the careers of Jones and Auberjunois, but Dunaway didn't need the credits on her resume ( she had just won an Academy Award) and neither did Streisand. But, we would hear more from John Carpenter after this, as this was his initial salvo into the realm of cinema. I did not like the film, would not care to watch it again, and I cannot recommend it because so much could have been better, and so much could have been done differently. It was a very dis-appointing watch from a number of aspects. Close Laura Mars' eyelids.

I watched this film mainly to see Faye Dunaway of the 1970-s, the period of her classic performances in 'Chinatown', 'Three Days of the Condor' and 'Network'. I found what I was looking for, and more. Some say this was not her best movie, I think it was one of the best. Here she takes the lead, and it is her in the first place who creates all the depth, feeling, and atmosphere to the whole thing. The rest of the crowd are not quite the same league but that's fine as they create a perfect framing for the central character. Great camera work (still camera too). Smart directing. Quality writing by James Cameron... Well, almost so... because even Faye's genius cannot save the film from the shamefully flat ending! I'm not sure who was responsible for the wholly unnatural and banal final twist, was it the writer, or the director, or probably the finance guy? In any case this sharp, stylish, thoughtful, emotionally deep, and visually beautiful mystery drama was to a great extent spoiled by some blunt bloke who apparently believed the 'people' would certainly like a regular 'trilla' with a 'hitchcock' ending to it. I wish I never saw the final 10 minutes and the tape would be just cut off instead... The bottom line is, Faye Dunaway at her best in an excellent stylish film that is admirable all the way through... yet suddenly turns into a 'me too' thriller in the last ten minutes. 9/10, and it would be 10/10 without that silly ending.