Frame of Mind (2009)

Director:

Carl T. Evans

Writers (WGA):

Charles Kipps (written by) &
Carl T. Evans (written by)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

What happens when the truth is not enough?

Plot:

A New Jersey police detective comes across new evidence in the Kennedy assassination.

Cast

Carl T. Evans	...	David Secca
Arija Bareikis	...	Jennifer Secca
Chris Noth	...	Steve Lynde
Tony Lo Bianco	...	Mouthman
Barbara Barrie	...	Thelma
Vincent Curatola	...	Lt. John Mangione
Don Harvey	...	Agent Jenkins
Frank Gio	...	Johnny Loma
Noelle Beck	...	Linda
Sharon Angela	...	Mary
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Laura Bach	...	Melissa
Amber Cliett	...	College Student
Robert A. Colaneri	...	Mickey
Greg Connolly	...	FBI Agent #1
Holly Cordoma	...	Background Teacher
Peter Criss	...	Mike
Deva Dalporto	...	Cindy
Scott Duffy	...	Warehouse Manager
Eric Michael Espiritu	...	Bartender
Michelle Hopkins	...	College Student
Ginger Kipps	...	Pina
Jordan Lage	...	CIA agent Walker
Mark Lotito	...	FBI supervisor
Marc Menchaca	...	Interrogator
Wolfgang Meyer	...	Waiter Mobster (as Dave Meyers)
Patrick Noonan	...	Mysterious man
April Ortiz	...	Antique Store Clerk
Kristen Ruhlin	...	Wendy
Sue Sadik	...	Background Teacher
Lenny Safko	...	Interrogator 2
Robert Sciglimpaglia	...	Bar Patron
Anthony Scillia	...	Student / Party Goer
Tara Wilson	...	Angela

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

Netherlands:16

Filming Locations:

Carlstadt, New Jersey, USA

Company:

Psych Ward Entertainment

Trivia:

Chris Noth starred with Sarah Jessica Parker in "Sex and the City" (1998). Sarah dated John F. Kennedy Jr. in the late 80's.

Bland and clichéd

Frame of Mind is a by the numbers conspiracy thriller with not one twist you cannot see from miles ahead if you have seen one conspiracy thriller in your life. (If you haven't, do yourself a favour and don't make it your first one.) One episode of '24' has ten times more "surprising" reveals and the level of intelligence is comparable too. This film is insulting to the viewer on many levels.

Every character, every plot point is like coming from a box labelled "conspiracy thriller clichés" down to the James Bond-type moustachioed, "sophisticated" villain (it turns out he has grandkids - wow, he is human too!). Writing is so lazy, it's like the whole story was penned for a high school creative writing assignment. The first 45 minutes are basically spent on establishing stuff one already knows going in (for instance from reading the synopsis on the DVD box). Lots of unnecessary verbal exposition is going on and many scenes are there seemingly for the reason to hit home the fact that the hero and his wife love each other. Their cutesy scenes being lovey-dovey are stomach churning. You can hear better honed dialogues on an afternoon Hallmark movie.

The most frustratingly bad aspect of the story is the fact that if the conspirators weren't reacting to the threat of disclosure, most probably they would never be in any danger of getting caught, as everyone would just let it die. As soon as they start pulling strings to intimidate people, they confirm all the suspicions. They are incredibly stupid, which begs the question how they can keep deceiving the whole world.

Acting is abominable throughout - then again, the actors have nothing to work with. The ridiculous effort to cash in on Chris Noth's Sex and the City fame by putting his face on all artwork is a blatant deceit - he is a secondary character at best. The film is obviously a vanity project for Carl T. Evans, actor, co-writer and producer of this silly film, but he fails in every role.

Tech credits are good, lensing is especially great. Editing is fine too, as is sound. It's just a pity these are supporting an inferior product.