Psycho killer

Equally violent and sadistic, with some fairly explicit sexual situations floating around as well, director Michael Winterbottom's (A Mighty Heart, 24 Hour Party People) The Killer Inside Me has the propensity to shock and — most likely — offend some viewers. The Killer Inside Me is a daring film to say the least.

Based on Jim Thompson's 1952 novel of the same name, The Killer Inside Me centers around Lou Ford (Casey Affleck, Gone Baby Gone). A small-town police officer, he seems like a Texas everyman on the outside but in reality, has a dark and sadistic streak, which is ready to boil over at any minute.

What begins as a routine call to the house of local prostitute Joyce Lakeland (Jessica Alba, Valentine's Day) quickly becomes a release of sorts. Joyce is so offended by Lou that she begins beating him until Ford retaliates.

But Lou does not retaliate by merely striking or arresting Joyce; instead, he begins whipping her with his belt — an action that serves as a catalyst for not only a relationship between Lou and Joyce but also a sadomasochistic discharge of Lou's inner demons. Much like Lou's other imperfections, the relationship must remain a secret, mainly because of his public relationship with a girl from town, Amy Stanton (Kate Hudson, Nine).

Lou's double life works out fairly well until he and Joyce create a blackmailing scheme to get enough money for the pair to leave the small town. But Lou has other plans; when the intended target comes to deliver the money to Joyce, Lou savagely beats her to death and shoots the money carrier, setting up the situation to look like a double homicide.

It is after these events that everything in Lou's life becomes a web of lies and deception that leaves behind numerous casualties and shattered lives. And it is in this tangled web that the film ultimately falters. The original book is most likely a terrific and terrifying noir, but the film simply seems like it is trying to do too much in too little a time frame.

The blame for the unevenness could, and most likely will, be placed on director Winterbottom, although I'm cautious to do so. The film's content calls for graphic violence and two separate taboo sexual acts, and yet these are not the focus of the film. Many times when non-mainstream sexuality (explicit or taboo) is portrayed on screen, it is the focal point of the storytelling, with the actual plot taking a back seat to the shocking images on screen. In fact, Winterbottom's film 9 Songs is a perfect example, as in that film the non-simulated sex is front and center, while the relationship is not.

But The Killer Inside Me juggles a sensitive subject carefully, and instead presents Lou's sadism as only another puzzle piece of his unraveling sanity. And while the realistic violence could have gone down the same route, it too is simply another of Lou's faults and is handled nicely.

The acting is — surprisingly — not to blame here, either. Affleck plays Lou with a quiet yet sinister derangement, coming across as dangerous and innocent all at the same time.
Lou is a similar character to his Oscar-nominated turn in The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, and while this character isn't as deep as the one in Assassination, his low-key insanity is still portrayed with a chilling realism. The viewer never has a reason to like or even become all that attached to Lou, but it's still extremely hard not to be interested in where the story is going.

Both Alba and Hudson are also surprisingly adequate in their respective roles, temporarily making the viewer forget The Fantastic Four and Fool's Gold, respectively. Neither will be clamoring for an Oscar come February, but no one should be heavily criticizing their performances here either.

The strongest performances probably come by way of the supporting roles. Tom Bower (Crazy Heart) as Lou Ford's superior and supporter of his innocence in the crimes and Simon Baker (The Mentalist) as the man trying to bring Lou down in the investigation surrounding the homicides and the resulting calamity. Both are strong in their characters, especially Bower, who has to be wise and supportive but also a tad bit naîve as the evidence piles up against Lou.

The problem here is simply the pacing. There are so many new developments in the story as the film progresses, yet the jumps in time are sometimes awkward and a little off-putting. It is understood that as a neo-noir, the film won't be upbeat by any means, and if executed properly, a slow pace could have perfected this movie. But the timing simply is not right when it comes down to it, and while the book most likely took its time developing the story into the psychological thriller it seems to be, the film has to rush some developments, and it hurts the picture as whole.

Yet, one still must applaud the film's creators for trying something different. It is a film that takes chances on many levels, from the sadism to the on-screen violence aimed at women, to a secondary plot line involving child molestation; Winterbottom doesn't exactly hold much back.

But all in all, The Killer Inside Me is a film that was averagely directed, solidly acted but lacked in the adaptation of a script. It's far from normal Hollywood fare, and in that sense, the film is a breath of fresh air, but once the picture is about an hour deep and it begins to become a bit convoluted, one has to realize it's simply an average movie with an above-average premise.
RATING: 3 stars out of 5
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