Mr. Brooks (2007)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Bruce A. Evans

Writers (WGA):

Bruce A. Evans (written by) &
Raynold Gideon (written by)

Release Date:

1 June 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

There's something about

Plot:

A psychological thriller about a man who is sometimes controlled by his murder-and-mayhem-loving alter ego.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Killer | Fingerprints | Alter Ego | Factory

Awards:

1 nomination

US TV Schedule:

Sat. July 18

9:00 PM

SHOW

Cast

Kevin Costner	...	Mr. Earl Brooks
Demi Moore	...	Det. Tracy Atwood
Dane Cook	...	Mr. Smith
William Hurt	...	Marshall
Marg Helgenberger	...	Emma Brooks
Ruben Santiago-Hudson	...	Hawkins
Danielle Panabaker	...	Jane Brooks
Aisha Hinds	...	Nancy Hart
Lindsay Crouse	...	Captain Lister
Jason Lewis	...	Jesse Vialo
Reiko Aylesworth	...	Sheila - Jesse's Lawyer
Matt Schulze	...	Thorton Meeks
Yasmine Delawari	...	Sunday
Traci Dinwiddie	...	Sarah Leaves
Michael Cole	...	Atwood’s Lawyer

MPAA:

Rated R for strong bloody violence, some graphic sexual content, nudity and language.

Runtime:

120 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

SDDS | Dolby Digital | DTS

Certification:

Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Manitoba) | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Ontario) | Argentina:16 | Sweden:15 | Netherlands:16 | Australia:MA | USA:R (certificate #43365) | Norway:15 | Finland:K-15 | UK:18 | Ireland:16 | Portugal:M/16 (re-rating on appeal) | France:-12 | Chile:14 | South Korea:18 | Portugal:M/18 (original rating) | Brazil:18 | Spain:18 | Mexico:C | Germany:18 | Singapore:M18 | Ireland:18 (DVD rating) | Japan:R-18 | New Zealand:R16

Filming Locations:

Portland, Oregon, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

Danielle Panabaker plays the daughter of Mr. Brooks (Kevin Costner) and Mrs. Brooks (Marg Helgenberger). Panabaker's younger sister, Kay Panabaker plays the recurring role of Lindsey Willows, the daughter of Catherine Willows (also played by Marg Helgenberger) on "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation" (2000) for CBS.

Goofs:

Continuity: As Earl is getting out of a taxi, he walks with a cane held with his right hand for a short distance. When he reaches his car, he hooks the cane over his left arm. In the next shot, he's holding the cane in his left hand by its shaft.

Quotes:

Mr. Earl Brooks: How did you find me, Mr. Smith?
Mr. Smith: You're "Man of the Year", Mr. Brooks.
[Smith starts clapping]
Mr. Smith: You're picture's in the paper. And if it hadn't had been, I don't know. I don't know what I would've done.
Mr. Earl Brooks: Lucky me. What is it that I can help you with?
Mr. Smith: I've been watching that couple for months. Yeah, they like to make love with the blinds open. Sometimes I would take pictures; visual aids for later. It's a great way to get off, I'll tell you that. It was fun, I thought, until I saw you kill them. And I have never, ever, felt a... a... rush that like, ever. I know you're the Thumbprint Killer. You've done this before. What I want... is for you, to take me with you next time you kill someone. And I'd like that to be soon.
[Marshall laughs out loud]
Marshall: [sarcastically] And you were worried that this was going to be unpleasant? The answer is simple. Just tell Mr. Smith that you decided never to kill again, and he'll go away.
Mr. Earl Brooks: You enjoy watching me suffer, don't you?
Marshall: In a word, yes.
[...]

Movie Connections:

References Manhunter (1986)

Soundtrack:

Vicious Traditions

Applause For Its Edginess

The main thing about Mr. Brooks that I love is that it is so convincing in its portrayal of the internal workings of a certain sort of mind, almost as if it were an inside story. Mr. Brooks is a character who is completely unsuspecting to anyone observing him, yet he is a completely different person beneath the skin. He is much more complex than a lot of mainstream audiences will realize upon first viewing. He has deep feelings for his family, which means he's capable of deep feelings. Yet he is completely aware of his manipulative and destructive capabilities and intermittently cannot help himself and must take advantage of them. I think the script is a truly brilliant rendering of a very realistic sort of personality that is so secretive that they can be found throughout the range of all human activity.

Kevin Costner having always been one of the most wooden actors in contemporary movies, I am very impressed that he hit the nail on the head with this very challenging and multi-layered character of Mr. Brooks, and in understanding him completely knew just how much of him to reserve for William Hurt's share, Hurt playing a figure nonexistent to anyone in the film other than Costner, representing the deepest, darkest thoughts of Mr. Brooks. The script and direction are very clear-cut and discern the dialogue between Costner and Hurt as the same character and not a split personality.

Demi Moore is affecting in her portrayal of a cop whose personal life calls upon the part of a personality that would urge with anger towards thoughts of murder and is able to suppress them. It's maybe my favorite of all the performances I've seen of hers. There is lots of subtext in what appears to be a token cop role.

The most interesting casting choice, aside from the impressive comebacks by two aging former box-office magnets, is of comedian Dane Cook as a blackmailing witness to one of Mr. Brooks's murders. His character is a creative blend of voyeuristic and eagerly putzy, and Cook pulls it off very becomingly.

As well as being a very gripping and unpredictable celebration of evil, I think a lot of extra credit is due to this film especially for holding its own at the box office during a summer of conglomerate box-office hogs like the second sequels to Pirates of the Caribbean, Shrek, Ocean's Eleven, and Spider-Man when it is actually very edgy and takes a lot of risks as a mainstream film.