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3.0 out of 5 stars
DOCTOR IN THE HOUSE?, August 22, 2004
This review is from: Sawbones [VHS] (VHS Tape)
Reminiscent of books by Robin Cook, Michael Palmer and Tess Gerritsen, SAWBONES is a 1995 release that borrows freely from these writers.
A series of murders is rocking the city; the killer apparently has some limited medical knowledge and is slicing and dicing people at random. We meet the killer rather early and know that he's been rejected from the local medical school at least 5 times, and that his father was a psychopathic child abuser, bent on his son being the brilliant surgeon he is.
In a movie where we know who the killer is, it's important to make the chase and discovery intriguing. Director Catherine Cyran is a little too leisurely in her pacing, and she shows little imagination in the way she frames her film. The script is by the book and formulaic, so the movie rests on the performances.
Adam Baldwin (The Patriot, My Bodyguard) does well in his roll as Detective Miller, having a world-weary demeanor with the crimes and companions he is faced with; Nina Siemaszko as Jenny, fiance of one of the school's graduates, is plucky and cute, but her range is limited; Nicholas Sadler as Brad, her boyfriend, tries to compensate for his physical stature (he's quite little) with a bravado he doesnt' quite pull off. Barbara Carrera as the school's dean of admissions (Huh?) is lovely as always and continues to ooze sensuality in any role; Don Stroud as Baldwin's tough boss offers little new in this type of role; and Don Harvey as the demented Dr. Snapp? does a fairly good job in his maniacal performance.
All in all, SAWBONES is a respectable little thriller, and is not a bad way to pass ninety minutes.
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