Of course, to be fair, the guy has an Oscar, but it's not for acting. It's for directing "Dances With Wolves" (a fine movie that was almost detoured by the fact he tried to act in it). Arguably, his best performance was in "The Big Chill," when he played a dead body and had no lines.
The persistent rumor has been that "Mr. Brooks," which casts him as a serial killer and opens this weekend, would be the big acting turnaround. In it, Costner gets bad and lowers his voice from the usual twang.
The result, better, but still wavering; close, but no cigar.
Costner plays a community leader who, on the same night he accepts the award as Man of the Year, murders a couple he finds making love.
There are a few too many subplots for this to stay centered.
That's a shame, because it's good when it is a psychological examination of Mr. Brooks and his alter ego, Marshall, played by William Hurt. Marshall encourages Brooks to kill.
Hurt mugs and cackles uncontrollably. He's over the top, but entertaining. But if he cackled any more he might actually lay an egg.
Brooks, perhaps prophetically, wanders about muttering the Serenity Prayer: God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change...
The Jekyll-and-Hyde inner dialogue is a dream for a screenwriter. It allows the killer to debate himself.
Director Bruce A.
Evans, though, didn't have the guts to keep the psychological treatise. He throws in action sequences that make little sense - other than to add movement and noise.
Demi Moore plays a tough cop who has been on the trail of the serial killer for years.
We know she's tough because she chews gum. She's also the heiress to more than $60 million. The only explanation as to why such a rich woman would work as a police detective is her statement that her father wanted a boy.
We keep expecting some kind of surprise connection to surface between the chaser and the chased, but we get only a full plate of red herrings. Most superfluous is a subplot involving a convicted killer who comes back to get revenge upon the detective. There's also a subplot involving her fight with her playboy ex-husband.
Meanwhile, Costner begins to suspect that the addiction to kill is genetic and wonders about his pretty daughter, played by Danielle Panabaker.
This is not the worst thriller ever made. In fact, it's not half as convoluted as the latest "Pirates of the Caribbean" episode, but "Pirates" has a lot of special-effects eye candy.
"Mr. Brooks," although authentically quirky, is strained in too many directions. The almost-surprise ending is particularly infuriating.
Those who stick with this spectator sport of a thriller are going to feel betrayed.
On the plus side, we will say, without a doubt, that Costner is better here than he was as Robin Hood.
• Reach Mal Vincent at (757) 446-2347 or mal.
vincent@pilotonline.com.
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