Murder by Numbers (2002)
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Richard and Justin are a pair of high-school kids who decide to commit the perfect murder. Reading up on everything they know the go for it all and run up against a police officer who won’t give up. The 2 kids must decide whether or not they can trust each other or just save themselves.
Overall: I have so many problems with this film, I almost don’t know where to start. The kids decide to read all the books, study everything and then find a random person to victimize. So they kill her, purposely leave boot tracks in order to play with the police and set up the school janitor. But the police then jump on the 2 kids and reverse the mind games. There’s the plot. The kids are so smart to know everything and play with the cops…and yet it is their interaction and conversation that lead the police to suspect them. They leave the shoes and protect all of their DNA, except the one who vomits – they forgot to clean that up. The 2 kids barely trust each other not to talk to the cops and then voluntarily spend hours with them for investigation. They give their alibis away early and then allow the police to rip them to shreds in front of them. And the female cop (Sandra Bullock) sleeps with her partner from about the first night, assaults one of the suspects, consistently abuses police procedures and even breaks the law…and yet never once gets any reprimands or is kicked off the investigation. In addition, the film never really explains what would prompt such diverse individuals from getting together in the first place, and don’t tell me it was math homework. Given how many plots since Columbine have been uncovered at our high schools, I think most kids would be utterly afraid to trust their best friends…let alone kids they barely know. I think if anything, the film utterly fails to do more to “probe” the homosexual undertones of the film. These 2 kids basically lusted after each other and the film never really hints at it. But they do pull a complete non-hint out of the hat with the whole ring clue. Who saw that coming? Is that even remotely a credible plot line? Had they introduced stuff earlier on, maybe I buy it. I think the biggest flaw even with my probs above, was that there was never a reason to continue the investigation once they found the janitor’s body. Zero. None. Nunca. Nadie. Any and every district attorney’s office and police department would shut everything done and fire any cop who proceeds further. Just not realistic. Comparison: Copycat meets Adventures of Tom Sawyer |
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