Murder by Numbers (2002)

Two gifted high school students execute a "perfect" murder - then become engaged in an intellectual contest with a seasoned homicide detective.

Director:

Barbet Schroeder

Writer:

Tony Gayton

Stars:

Sandra Bullock, Ben Chaplin, Ryan Gosling

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sandra Bullock	...	Cassie Mayweather / Jessica Marie Hudson
Ben Chaplin	...	Sam Kennedy
Ryan Gosling	...	Richard Haywood
Michael Pitt	...	Justin Pendleton
Agnes Bruckner	...	Lisa Mills
Chris Penn	...	Ray Feathers
R.D. Call	...	Captain Rod Cody
Tom Verica	...	Asst. D.A. Al Swanson
Janni Brenn	...	Ms. Elder
John Vickery	...	Restaurant Manager
Michael Canavan	...	Mr. Chechi
Krista Carpenter	...	Olivia Lake, the Victim
Neal Matarazzo	...	Male Officer in Flashback
Adilah Barnes	...	Lab Technician
Jim Jansen	...	Lawyer

Storyline

Richard Haywood, a Californian high school's coolest kid, secretly teams up with another rich kid in his class, brilliant nerd Justin 'Bonaparte' Pendleton, whose erudition, specially in forensic matters, allows them to plan elaborately perfect murders, just for the kick, for which they set up Richard's marijuana supplier, their school's janitor Ray Feathers, as a psychotic serial killer. The case is assigned to detectives Cassie 'the hyena' Mayweather, who carries a sequoia-size chip on the shoulder from her previous life, and her brilliant new partner, Sam Kennedy, who just transferred from the vice squad; they can work together very well, and even fit romantically, but fall out over different professional attitudes towards the investigation, which Captain Rod Cody and her understandably vindictive abused ex, Assistant D.A. Al Swanson, soon ban her from when she disobeys instructions and hand to him. When the plotting boys both dig class-mate Lisa Mills, their unnatural bond comes ...

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Plot Keywords:

murder | high school | janitor | forensics | investigation | 

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Taglines:

Let The Mind Games Begin

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language, a sex scene and brief drug use

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [fr] Official site [uk]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 April 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Foolproof

Filming Locations:

Altadena, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$262,841 (Australia) (1 November 2002)

Gross:

$685,907 (Australia) (15 November 2002)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., Castle Rock Entertainment, Schroeder Hoffman Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In one scene, the camera pans briefly across a cinema that is showing The Bitter Tea of General Yen. That film was directed by Frank Capra whose grandson, Frank Capra III is first assistant director of this film.

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Goofs

It is said that there are no fingerprints from Justin or Richard, but they are shown carrying Oliva's dead body wrapped in plastic to the car and neither of them have gloves on, thus there should have been fingerprints from Richard and Justin found on the plastic that the dead body was wrapped in.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Richard: Shall we say the words one last time?
Justin: One cannot live fully without embracing suicide in crime.
Richard: Say it.
Justin: A pact made with relentless fire that requires that, while some live, others die.
Richard: On three...
in unison: One, two, three
[gun shot]

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Connections

References Compulsion (1959)

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Soundtracks

"Anything But Down"
Written by Sheryl Crow
Performed by Sheryl Crow
Courtesy of A&M Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises

User Reviews

Very decent even if flawed

When the dead body of a woman is found in the woods near the river, feisty homicide detective Cassie Mayweather (Sandra Bullock) and her new partner, Sam Kennedy (Ben Chaplin) are assigned to the case. Determined to solve the crime, Mayweather follows her hunches and microscopic bits of evidence, focusing her investigation on two teens: Justin Pendleton (Michael Pitt), a brilliant, misunderstood nerd, and Richard Haywood (Ryan Gosling), a smooth talking, spoiled rich kid. From the beginning, the audience knows that this unlikely duo has formed a secret bond that pushes the boundaries of morality and the law in their attempt to commit the perfect murder and experience complete freedom. It's up to Mayweather, who buries herself in her work in an attempt to forget her own tormented past, and Kennedy, a transfer from Vice who is working his first homicide case, to ignore the stereotypical profiles and see past the obvious in order to solve the crime.

Murder by Numbers is an interesting and entertaining small little thriller that doesn't excel but never disappoints either. The film is gripping, engaging and has this somewhat mysterious atmosphere that creates quite a bit of tension. The story does have some small plot holes but nothing that will ruin the film. Gosling delivered a great performance as usual and I can see why he felt attracted to his project, the film ends up being more of a character study then a thriller often reflecting on the human nature. Michael Pitt was excellent as the ostracized teenager and Sandra Bullock (who also served as producer) did OK as the seasoned detective Cassie Mayweather. What really threw me off and dragged the film down was not so much Bullock's performance but the way her character was written and her past story. It was extremely cliché and contrived. Still, I was entertained by what I think is, a decent and well acted thriller.

6.5/10