Sketch Artist (1992)

A sketch artist for the police helps a witness recall who she saw leaving the scene of a murder, and discovers that the person is his wife. Not willing to believe she was responsible, he ... See full summary »

Director:

Phedon Papamichael

Writer:

Michael Angeli

Stars:

Jeff Fahey, Sean Young, Frank McRae

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jeff Fahey	...	Det. Jack Whitfield
Sean Young	...	Rayanne Whitfield
Frank McRae	...	Milon
Drew Barrymore	...	Daisy
Tchéky Karyo	...	Paul Korbel
James Tolkan	...	Tonelli
Stacy Haiduk	...	Claire
Charlotte Lewis	...	Leese
Mark Boone Junior	...	Sturges
Ric Young	...	Jimmy
Belle Avery	...	Krista
Robert Dubac	...	Tommy
Colin Gilbert	...	Cop
Karen Chase	...	Bonnie
Phedon Papamichael	...	Old Greek Man (as Phedon Papamichael Sr.)

Storyline

A sketch artist for the police helps a witness recall who she saw leaving the scene of a murder, and discovers that the person is his wife. Not willing to believe she was responsible, he resketches the pictures so they don't look like her, and he begins his own investigation of the murder.

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Plot Keywords:

bare breasts | black bra | sex scene | kiss | bra | 

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Taglines:

A killer ... A witness ... And an artist who provides the police their only clue

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Genres:

Crime | Drama | Mystery | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for sexuality and language

Did You Know?

Trivia

Released theatrically in Canada, Sweden and South Korea.

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Connections

Followed by Sketch Artist II: Hands That See (1995)

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Soundtracks

HARD TO DO THE RIGHT THING
Performed by San-Dee Barbar
Written by Don Peterkofsky & Tony Maserati
Produced by Don Peterkofsky
Published by Retro Modern Music (BMI)

User Reviews

Well, it has an interesting cast

This straight-to-video movie was obviously made after the "neo-noir" revival that began in late 80'd/early 90's with films like "The Grifters" and "After Dark My Sweet", but before the advent of the "erotic thriller" ushered in by the success of "Basic Instinct". It has less eroticism than your typical "erotic thriller" (although it does start out with an acrobatic sex scene involving British beauty Charlotte Lewis), and like a lot of the low-budget "neo-noirs" of the era it has way too much sun-drenched LA ambiance to be very noirish. It is redeemed somewhat, however, by the interesting cast.

Jeff Fahey plays a sketch artist who, while sketching a murder suspect with a witness (Drew Barrymore), realizes the killer might be his own wife (Sean Young). He changes the sketch and inadvertently draws another woman he encountered near the murder scene (Stacy Haiduk), implicating her in the murder. Then he finds himself implicated as well when the witness turns up dead. After that though, the movie falls on the old cliché of the suspect investigating the crime to clear his own name. And the ending is pretty predictable.

Fahey is a talented actor who makes his underdeveloped, blow-dried character a lot more likable than he ought to be. Sean Young is an interesting actress who was done in more by her own real-life erratic behavior than any lack of talent. She's pretty good, but doesn't have a lot of screen time. Drew Barrymore is, of course, a big star now, but this movie came at a really awkward point in her career between her child acting years and her "lethal loilta" career-revival period when she appeared in "Poison Ivy" and as teen prostitute/would-be assassin Amy Fisher in "The Amy Fisher Story". Both she and Stacy Haiduk (from "Luther the Greek") play surprisingly functional (and non-erotic) roles, but still it is unusual to see an actor of that caliber in a supporting role in a film like this. Charlotte Lewis wasn't much of an actress, but nobody ever seemed to complain too much, and she too has a relatively small role as a prostitute. Rounding out the cast is memorable character actor as a police lieutenant. This is certainly not good, but the interesting cast prevents it from being a total waste of time. . .

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 June 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Sketch Artist

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Motion Picture Corporation of America (MPCA), Showtime Networks

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1