Search - Mr. Brooks [Blu-ray] on DVD

Danielle Panabaker - Jane Brooks
Aisha Hinds - Nancy Hart
Lindsay Crouse - Captain Lister
Jason Lewis - Jesse Vialo
Reiko Aylesworth - Jesse's Lawyer
Matt Schulze - Thorton Meeks
Yasmine Delawari - Sunday

Mr. Earl Brooks (Kevin Costner) is the Man of the Year. He's a very wealthy and successful business owner of a company that creates boxes for goods around the world, as well as being a noble husband and father. Mr. Brooks is also The Thumbprint Killer, Oregon's famous, untouchable serial killer that hasn't struck in two years. Earl often talks to his imaginary alter ego, Marshall (William Hurt), and together they make the perfect murderer. 'Marshall' talks Earl into making his return, only this time, things get a little more deeper as Earl makes an unlikely error. Enter Mr. Smith (Dane Cook), a twenty-something mechanical engineer that sometimes takes perverted photographs of his neighbors in the building across the street. These neighbors happen to be the next victims of Mr. Brooks, hence, Smith having blackmail material due to the error I mentioned earlier. However, Smith doesn't want money, Mr. Smith wants the experience of a professional killer in action, he wants to help Mr. Brooks with his next victim. As this causes inconvenience for Earl, due to the fact that he truly wants to stop killing (but 'Marshall' doesn't), Earl also has problems at home, as he discovers that his daughter (Danielle Panabaker) may or may not have viciously murdered someone at her college...and the plot thickens. Also in the mix is Detective Tracy Atwood (Demi Moore), a brilliant cop who has been investigating the Thumbprint killings obsessively, to the point where she knows his technique thoroughly, although Tracy has problems of her own that interfere with her work: a awful greed-filled divorce and (in a subplot) an ex-convict she put away, stalking her for revenge.

"Mr. Brooks" is not your average, dark psycho thriller ala "Silence of the Lambs" or "Seven." "Mr. Brooks" is a smart character study of an unlikely serial killer, and how he deals with his sticky situations with his psychotic ways. Cleverly written and masterfully executed. It was really interesting how Earl shows Smith the smart way to kill someone, it's actually very creepy. The plot points are very interesting and the film isn't predictable as one would think, and I was glad it didn't go the route that most of these thrillers of today go. It simply has a satisfying end that is believable and smart. Costner turns in a terrific performance, his best since "A Perfect World," and William Hurt gives yet another exceptional performance. It was good to see Demi Moore again, and she gives a stern performance as the obsessed, yet confused cop. And Dane Cook, I must admit held his own as well. I had reservations about him before I saw this, thinking that maybe he'd screw the flick up and be some sort of unnecessary comic relief, but the film holds him well, and turns in a surprisingly convincing performance. I was glad to see that.

I think "Mr. Brooks" will please fans of this genre, simply for its intriguing story and nicely executed filmmaking, a definite giant leap for writer/director Bruce A. Evans, whose last (and first) directorial effort was the turdbomb, "Kuffs" 15 years ago. It's a smart film, and a nice departure from the junk-thrillers we've been seeing lately.

"Mr. Brooks" is a different, effective and well-done serial killer flick.