Twisted Review
by Ryan Ellis (flickershows AT hotmail DOT com)March 4th, 2004
Twisted
by Ryan Ellis
March 2, 2004
'Twisted' comes along at the right time in pop culture history. It was only a few weeks ago that a sinful piece of semi-exposed flesh was sort of (kind of...not really) seared into the consciousness of football viewers worldwide. The ridiculous reaction to Janet Jackson's (intentional) flashing proved many things, one most of all---we are still terrified of female sexuality. Philip Kaufman may not have intended for his latest psychological thriller to feature subtext staight out of the dark ages, but it does. Forget everything else about this movie for a moment, Ashley Judd dares to have an active sex life and nearly suffers a mental breakdown. Written by relative newcomer, Sarah Thorp, this movie proves that it's not only men who are afraid of a female character's freedom to sleep around. It's 2004, right? Why aren't women angered by this sort of unfair treatment in Hollywood movies? Good roles for women are already scarce. Can't an actress with the courage to stand up to aggressive or misogynistic men be allowed to live as she pleases?
The in-your-face theme of most slasher films is this: if you get laid, you're goin' down. 'Twisted' is not a slasher flick---although it is a basher flick, since the killings are of the "beaten to death" variety---but it never comes close to rising above its lurid B-movie origins. That wouldn't have bothered me if it wasn't so contrived, obvious, and dull. It also wouldn't have bothered me if the message wasn't, "even if you're independent and sexy and good at your job, you WILL pay a heavy price for having casual sex". Isn't it time we put this puritanism behind us? If an actress as stable as Ashley Judd can't do what she wants, who can? I agree that Meg Ryan can't be allowed to run free like that. Not only was her work in the idiotic 'In The Cut' a serious case of miscasting, it was an example of how the "sex=sin" illusion is almost justified in American movies. But when a performer like Ashley Judd helps to perpetuate that myth, I get irritated.
Why do I start my review on a tangent that most viewers probably won't even notice? Headliners such as Judd, Samuel L. Jackson, and Andy Garcia are supposed to sell the movie with their star power. The core audience will likely be comprised of women who want to see the lovely Ashley kick ass in another woman-in-peril performance. As in past efforts, she handles herself well and you believe that she can back it up when she lays down the law. She does what she can in this one, working against that anti-woman thread, not to mention having to spew putrid dialogue and suffer through moronic plot twists. Having said that, Judd has played this type too many times before and she's not a good enough actress to make a crappy script work. Neither Jackson nor Garcia seem to have brought their "A" games. Maybe all 3 actors knew they were making a turkey and felt the smart money was to cash the cheques and return to genuine acting in their next projects.
Director Kaufman is making just his 9th film in the last 30 years. After his lust-drenched 'Quills' four years ago, you might think he would have found something personal to say after such a long lay-off. What he saw in 'Twisted' is a mystery to me. There are none of the thrills or oddball humour found in 'The Right Stuff', none of the eroticism of 'The Unbearable Lightness Of Being' or 'Henry & June', none of the raw creepiness of his 'Invasion Of The Body Snatchers' remake. I wouldn't have thought this man capable of boring me, but he most definitely allowed for some power napping through this dud. I dozed through the first half of the movie, never once believing any of the red herrings. You'll know who the killer is in the first 10 minutes (look for the nice guy) and you should not be gullible enough to think anyone offered up as an alternative will be The Bad Guy. The killer is evident, even though the heroine doesn't seem to catch on even DURING his confession.
Ah, the lamebrained plot. Judd plays Jessica Shepard, a San Francisco police inspector recently promoted after a brutal apprehension of a knife-wielding psycho. She has some demons, cutting loose by binge drinking and hitting the pick-up bars. After not one, not two, but three of her dates ends up dead, she's spooked. Did she kill these men immediately after copulation, a Kafkaesque nightmare? But why doesn't she remember it? Did she black out after downing gallons of wine? Just because her father killed her mother, does that mean she inherited the murderer gene? And why is she allowed to continue to work on the case when she's the only suspect? Shouldn't somebody make her get some help if she's drinking enough to unwittingly beat innocent men to death every couple of days? Has the role of a San Fran police inspector changed that much since the days of Dirty Harry? These questions are often addressed by the characters (insufficiently), probably after test audiences threw overpriced snack containers at the screen. I know we movie-goers are stupid, but we're not stooopid. After all is revealed, I recall that Andy Garcia has a scene with Judd towards the end of the picture that makes absolutely no sense. The oh-so-obvious plot twist might explain a few things, but projecting back would require a modicum of interest. And I wonder if a cold-blooded killer could turn it off so easily, going about 30 years between murders. Patient man.
What happened to the days when Samuel L. Jackson was always interesting on screen? Ever since he signed up for Emperor Lucas' blue-screen adventures in 1999, he's dropped off my non-existent list of actors who never disappoint. Everybody is entitled to a few unsatisfying performances, but Sam is just not a dynamic powerhouse anymore. Has he grown complacent now that he's on the down side of 50 and wealthy beyond description? I'm sure he was asked to tone it down in 'Twisted', but he's relegated to giving those dreaded "you gotta do your job" speeches to Judd for the first 2/3rds of the movie. Garcia is in the picture for one purpose, but I won't say what that is. As for Judd, well, she claims to be a feminist. She handles herself well in nearly every movie and combines sensuality with physical toughness as effectively as any actress working today. However, if she didn't notice just how insulting this movie is to feminists, she needs to start reading her scripts. Cripes, she can do this character in her sleep. Ironic choice of words, since her character keep blacking out right around the time the murders are occurring. Also ironic because her movie was kind enough to let me catch 40 winks. For THAT, I'm grateful.
To contact me with kudos or criticism, write to [email protected].
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
