MovieChat Forums > Someone to Die For (2006) Discussion > Anyone over here seen it, what are your ...

Anyone over here seen it, what are your impressions?

posted 7 years ago by TheMan18 (13188)
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Hi folks, how are you?

I was wondering, have any of you seen this little seen obscure direct to video police thriller "Someone to Die For" (1995) (not to be confused with same year's release of "To Die For" (1995) by Gus van Sant starring Nicole Kidman), directed by Clay Borris (of "Quite Cool" (1986) and several lesser fames including his take on the horror franchise in 1992 with "Prom Night 4") and starring Corbin Bernsen (of "The Dentist" (1996), more recently "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" (2005) and other fames) and others and what did you make of it?

Personally, I have seen it, yes and I even own it on video.

Whilst I dare say that overall I found it to be a rather average movie (I'll give it around 5 out of 10), the parts towards the end have actually had a huge emotional impact and at one point, I actually CRIED, no kidding (it literally left me in tears physically), particularly in a heavily emotionally harrowing scene between the woman (who is some ways is almost like Twin Peaks' "Laura Palmer with her tragic past) and the main cop she later confronts and takes hostage (you'll have to watch what transpired as well as the horrific revelation) and the other twist I also found touching. See the film and see if those moments, which I wouldn't spoil, have the same impact on you, if you still use video these days like I also do (the film was never released on DVD anywhere).

I also in addition to all of this, got a strange impression after seeing it that this movie tried to say something bad overall about American police in the 90s and how they are either totally incompetent at best or at worst just as bad as the criminals they are meant to be chasing and putting away and certain scenes in this film seem to be a metaphor for that.

In a way, the film is basically like a weird direct to video cross between "Fatal Attraction" (1987) and Abel Ferrara's "Bad Lieutenant" (1992) complete with elements of various down on their luck policemen stories featured in films and 90s psychological Hollywood thrillers in general and if you don't expect too much, its OK to watch and do keep an eye for those or rather at least ONE emotionally confronting twist that won't leave you alone easily and may even make you cry too (the film also dares to ask if we can treat one group of people differently than another in certain deeds also/and or especially if they have a tragic past - same to a lesser extent with the SECOND twist towards the end), even if you may have come across it all before in other films too.

I also dare say I have SOME questions about it, and wonder if people who DO manage to see it can try and answer them, even though at least ONE of them (it being, I won't spoil too much, if that other character was ALSO involved in the killings of those cops or if the confrontation was a totally SEPARATE incident and a coincidence) seems to have been left ambiguously for audiences to decide, even if this is no David Lynch movie despite my brief "Twin Peaks" vague reference (or to "Fire Walk With Me" (1992) for that matter). Oh well.

[–] TheMan18 (13188) 7 years ago

Oh and I forgot to mention that Ally Walker almost seems to channel her same role of a determined reporter over here that she played in the Jean Claude Van Damme sci-fi actioner "Universal Soldier" (1992).

I also found strange similarities in the relationship between the two characters that reminded me of the later 1999 film "Eye of the Beholder" with Ewan MacGreggor and Ashley Judd.

Plus that emotional scene I mentioned in a way seems to be similar to the scene towards the end in Sergio Martino's 90s Italian erotic giallo thriller "Craving Desire" (1993) except strangely enough, Someone to Die For's similar scene manages to go emotionally even somewhat further than that, but the similarities are there and I've seen that film too.

[–] TheMan18 (13188) 7 years ago

So yeah, one day I may write a review of it and even, more or less, give a critical analysis of it, but I have to say, as much as I didn't think of it as being anything too special or even a particularly "good" movie, I would say it still has its moments and is worth seeing, if you can track it down at least, at least once, and I definitely do give it at least some credit for managing to emotionally affect me towards the end, but maybe its because I just happened to, cinematically at least, think a lot about such similar themes and issues, even if deep down inside, there may, and there were, better and even MUCH better films with similar themes and topics. Although besides that, the movie isn't particularly "bad" either, but mostly just a middle of the road and routine direct to video psychological police thriller.

It does have some good bits and performances (although a few others are more or less average at best, but not too disastrous), a few reasonably memorable scenes and moments and I definitely don't regret seeing "Someone to Die For" overall, even though it has been mostly done before and better, technically it could do with some improvements here and there, it does have a few fairly noticeable moments that require suspension of disbelief and in certain ways, the script and plot could do with more work here and there.

And maybe I just didn't PERSONALLY understand it, but I had to wonder about at least ONE aspect of its twists, mostly if the other character was ALSO responsible in some or other ways for those cop killings, or maybe it was kind of left ambiguously for audience to decide (or maybe the writers just didn't follow it through) or if their moment of attack and anxiety was a separate incident, one way or another, although it did get me thinking.

I guess me crying about "that one scene" in it just happened to, well, UNEXPECTEDLY hit and affect me emotionally, and I ended up feeling sorry for the woman even after she turns against that character in

[–] TheMan18 (13188) 7 years ago

that scene and even attempts to kill him, because of her tragic past, nonetheless.

And even in that revelation, when we found out who REALLY killed those police officers, you couldn't help but feel sorry for the individual as well.

One thing I DO kind of wish for, is for someone to SEE this movie and inform on their critical thoughts, don't matter if they like it or dislike it, I strangely neither in particular, so I guess I would call it nothing special and ultimately more or less a failure, but an INTERESTING one, its a middle of the road pretty standard direct to video movie that I KIND OF admired.

And I dare say, it actually IS better than at least SOME failed films I've seen in similar categories. Although I HAVE seen better ones TOO. From similar categories. Not to mention much better films in GENERAL. And I ultimately don't mind owning it on VHS and watching it on rare occasions either.

[–] TheMan18 (13188) 4 years ago

By the way folks, I am going to watch this film, once again, on video (yes, I still own and use VHS, and I have a DVD/VHS combi), WISH ME LUCK folks, ooh. Cheers. :)

And hi to all my mates, and non-mates for that matter, at moviechat and OTHER sites, oh yeah. :)