Surveillance

Movies Reviews Surveillance
Surveillance

Release Date: June 26 (limited)
Director: Jennifer Chambers Lynch
Writers: Kent Harper and Jennifer Chambers Lynch
Cinematographer: Peter Wunstorf
Starring: Julia Ormond, Bill Pullman, Pell James?
Studio/Run Time: Magnolia, 97 mins.

A pulpy, conventional thriller

By the time Surveillance comes to its unhinged, ludicrous finale, it’s hard to tell exactly what’s just happened. Directed by Jennifer Chambers Lynch (who, it’s obligatory to note, is the daughter of David), the film’s setup is pure whodunit convention: Witnesses to several nasty murders recount what happened through flashbacks at a police station. More difficult to pin down are Lynch’s curious instincts as a filmmaker. Her first feature, Boxing Helena (1993), was so disastrous she hasn’t made another movie until now, but she returns with a new off-kilter playfulness. Comfortable behind the camera, Lynch riffs on noir influences with an inquisitive visual style that often drifts from the plot at hand. She has a long way to go as a storyteller, but armed with an unlikely ensemble cast, she’s at least made a movie that’s unafraid of a little pulpy excess.

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