Renny Harlin's Mindhunters is essentially the CSI version of And Then There Were None.
Yes, it's cheesy. It's the kind of movie where the killer crafts ludicrously complex booby traps in a few minutes; where the victims, supposedly competent F.B.I. agents, have the survival instinct of drunken lemmings; where the script never misses a chance to misdirect (which is fine) and cheat (which isn't).
For example, see the prologue. We meet Sarah (Kathryn Morris) and J.D. (Christian Slater) as they search for "someone" in an isolated mansion. We are led to believe this "someone" is a real killer; it turns out to be a test designed by their superior Harris (Val Kilmer), as the two rookies knew all too well. But their behaviour in the scene makes no sense in this context: they talk and act as if confronting a real murderer. This kind of dishonesty runs through the script.
Whatever. Harris brings Sarah, J.D. and other trainees on a deserted island for their final test. Team members start dying, there's a serial killer on the loose; cue poisoned cigarettes, explosive traps, enigmatic clues taunting the survivors.
Performances are unremarkable with the exception of Cold Case's Kathryn Morris, who is passable as Sarah. Val Kilmer has little more than a cameo.
In short: pretty bad, not unwatchable - in the right mood, it can even entertain.
5,5/10
Yes, it's cheesy. It's the kind of movie where the killer crafts ludicrously complex booby traps in a few minutes; where the victims, supposedly competent F.B.I. agents, have the survival instinct of drunken lemmings; where the script never misses a chance to misdirect (which is fine) and cheat (which isn't).
For example, see the prologue. We meet Sarah (Kathryn Morris) and J.D. (Christian Slater) as they search for "someone" in an isolated mansion. We are led to believe this "someone" is a real killer; it turns out to be a test designed by their superior Harris (Val Kilmer), as the two rookies knew all too well. But their behaviour in the scene makes no sense in this context: they talk and act as if confronting a real murderer. This kind of dishonesty runs through the script.
Whatever. Harris brings Sarah, J.D. and other trainees on a deserted island for their final test. Team members start dying, there's a serial killer on the loose; cue poisoned cigarettes, explosive traps, enigmatic clues taunting the survivors.
Performances are unremarkable with the exception of Cold Case's Kathryn Morris, who is passable as Sarah. Val Kilmer has little more than a cameo.
In short: pretty bad, not unwatchable - in the right mood, it can even entertain.
5,5/10