Law & Order: Criminal Intent (TV Series) Maledictus (2002) User Reviews

Grisly murder

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 17 June 2019]

Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe catch an extremely grisly case. Mailed to her publisher is the head of an author of Russian extraction who wrote of her years growing up in a Russian mob family. That's the only part of the body that's ever"located.

Her expose book led to a few folks going to jail and the Russians who aren't forgiving are natural suspects.

But Robert Goren ferrets out something else in this going way back to the woman's time in a prep school for rich troubled teens. She was going to do a book all right and expose a terrible secret that one rich family wants hidden permanently.

Can't say any more, but trust me it's worse than organized crime business.

"Thank You"

[wdstarr-1 · 9/10 · 18 November 2020]

Good mystery (I loved the revelation that the victim's father, a Russian organized-crime kingpin, was going to have her, his own daughter, killed, only to have someone else beat him to it while he was still setting up the hit) with excellent performances, and how can you not love an episode that ends with the killer mouthing the words "Thank you" to the detective who caught him?

Law & Order-Criminal Intent-Maledictus

[Scarecrow-88 · 7/10 · 14 November 2010]

Here is where Goren must orchestrate a negotiation in order to catch a criminal, responsible for the beheading of a débutante whose expose put her own father behind bars for good. The way the episode opens, you are at first led to believe that a Russian mobster's daughter was killed by gangsters as it was rumored she was about to write another book. It turns out that she was gonna instead write about the supposed suicide of a brother and sister's mother and how there could've been more to it than meets the eye. Kenny Strick(David Thornton)is a transvestite and was friends with the victim. Kenny is one of those types of psychologically traumatized men who needs the nurturing and emotional protection of a woman, very sensitive, and sister Martha(Veanne Cox)has substituted the mother he lost at a young age. Goren, returning to the case of the Strick's mother, believes her death could've been the result of foul play, uncovering certain aspects in crime scene photographs which fuel his suspicions. There's a funny scene where Eames questions Goren about knowing Russian(his know-it-all brilliance has a tendency to drive her nuts sometimes, although she certainly contributes her share to the team), scoffing and rolling her eyes.

Curse and slander

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 14 November 2019]

'Law and Order: Criminal Intent' started off incredibly impressively with a Season 1 that didn't have a bad episode, all ranging between pretty good and outstanding. The outstanding episodes, like "The Faithful", "Jones" and "Homo Homini Lupis", having a lot of tension and emotional power. "The Third Horseman" to me being the one slight disappointment, mainly because of having a controversial subject that it could have handled a little better and in a more balanced way.

"Maledictus" is among the season's best episodes to me. Not just because the case is strong, but mainly because of the emotional impact. It's one of the most disturbing and most (somewhat) affecting episodes of Season 1, and the most disturbing and emotional 'Law and Order: Criminal Intent' episode since "Homo Homini Lupis". If not quite as much as that episode, which is still a hard-hitting watch and really stands out in that sense amongst all the episodes of the show. Also consider it the best episode since that.

With the episodes, although liking them on the whole, between "Homo Homini Lupis" and this, part of me did find some of the storytelling not always particularly realistic (namely the perpetrators getting away with big secrets for so long with nobody, even close friends and family, suspecting). That was not an issue here in "Maledictus".

It may not be the most original of stories, but "Maledictus" still contains a very intricate case without falling into the trap of convolution. It is disturbing, with a method of murder that is truly grisly (one of the show's grisliest in my mind), so much so that one cannot blame the team for their initial thoughts on who committed the murder and why. It is quite tragic, especially with the killer's past, and personally couldn't bring myself to completely hate who was responsible while not condoning in any way what they did (with the murder being as brutal as it was). Actually in a way found myself hating the victim more, despise it when anybody tries remorselessly to slander others and it is still happening far too much. In especially newspaper celebrity gossip articles.

Production values are as slick as usual and the music is a good fit without being melodramatic or obvious. Still like the theme tune, though there is a preference for others in the 'Law and Order' franchise. The dialogue is equally intricate and nuanced, especially in the final scenes while Eames has some nice and sometimes amusing lines. Love the well contrasted chemistry between her and Goren. Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe are note perfect while David Thornton plays a well rounded character with intensity and even a little poignancy.

On the whole, great. 9/10

Someone's terrible secret

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 2 October 2016]

Vincent D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe never really get any proof during the course of this CI story of the motive of the crime that they are investigating, nor of the perpetrator's guilt. But in the end he's terribly relieved that the secret guilt is out.

A young journalist who is the daughter of a Russian mobster who just wrote a best seller about her life there is gruesomely murdered, her severed head sent to her newspaper.

It's all an elaborate hoax to hide someone's terrible secret of a long ago crime. In fact an absolutely unthinkable crime done by a juvenile who's now a most powerful person.

David Thornton who on SVU plays a recurring very smarmy defense attorney is the powerful person. It's what he did way back when that will unnerve you. This role is most different than what he does on SVU.

Watch this for him, in a way he's relieved that someone figured it out.