Borderline (2002) from Johnny Web (Uncle Scoopy; Greg Wroblewski) |
Borderline is a straight-to-cable thriller. Gina Gershon is a workaholic psychotherapist whose daughters are taken away from her by a court order, based on a suit by her vindictive and despised ex-husband. Her ex and his girlfriend are murdered the same day that they came for the kids. Meanwhile, one of Gershon's patients has been released from prison, and the murders follow the exact pattern of his previous criminal acts. |
The mystery lies in the fact that there are three possible solutions to the murders. Did Gershon commit the murders in the fashion of her patient, thus framing him? Did the patient commit the murders because of his obsession with Gershon? Or did Gershon manipulate the patient into committing the murders to serve her purpose? |
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This is really a grade-B thriller, and the screenwriter simply ignored with a very important element. The killer was seen by the children. Later, the crazy guy was terrorizing Gershon's house, taunting her by swinging the kids on the outside swing set. Now think about it: 1) if Gershon killed her ex, why didn't her own children recognize her when she herded them safely into the bedroom? 2) if the psycho killed Gershon's ex, why did the kids play with him later? Why didn't they say, "oh, you're the guy who killed our daddy"? 3) we know that the killer wasn't wearing a mask, because we saw faces of the kids at the moment when he or she walked in the sliding door. They were not terrified. Surely, a masked man or woman carrying a knife would have frightened them. In other words, none of the three possible solutions conforms to the facts of the case. The other complication of the plot is that Gershon is dating the police investigator who is assigned to the case. What are the odds? |
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There are some positives as well: 1. The production is mounted handsomely for a low budget film, and the actors are quite competent. 2. I never fast-forwarded, and I didn't figure out whether Gershon was involved in the murders until the moment it was revealed. 3. If you are a fan of Gina Gershon, she looked marvelous and did a competent job in her role. |
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