Mr. Brooks

A cute movie with lots of funny lines and with a well-thought out and occasionally surprising story. Kevin Costner is back from the swamp of below-average movies and his Mr. Brooks is simply great. The only one in this movie to give a better performance is his "dark passenger" William Hurt, whispering at and egging on "man of the year" to do his dirty deeds. (18/07/2008)

Kevin Costner is in top form after and his serial killer role is magnificent, albeit the phenomenal William Hurt is better. It’s too bad that the script allowed the incredibly disruptive and unnecessarily drawn-out storyline of the police officer's private life to be a part of its perfectly tuned and running mechanism. Otherwise, formally, the film is surprisingly quite a content-conscious effort from the guy who wrote Cutthroat Island. Now he’s been forgiven because the chilling murders and the perfect hallway shootout will resonate in my head for a hell of a long time. (23/12/2007)

Kevin Costner in one of his best roles, not just in recent memory, but overall. A proper, decent family dad, the owner of a packaging company, a bit of a cold fish... and a murderer. A scumbag, anyone would think, but then Mr. Brooks would not be allowed to have the script he has. A cleverly written story that shows him primarily as a sick schizophrenic trying to fight his worse whispering self, played flawlessly by William Hurt. Unsuccessfully. So when Brooks carefully prepares and "goes for it", you almost feel sorry for him. And what about when a character who is even worse than him appears a few minutes into the film? And then one more? And what if Brooks starts dealing with somewhat unusual family problems? You can't really say he's the typical killer we wish the worst for from the start. The film reminded me most of Falling Down, and that speaks in its favor. I round up four and a half for the ending. (27/01/2012)

Kevin Costner is finally back, and although his return is not spectacular or thrilling, the role of a successful businessman with murderous appetites fits him like a glove. Mr Brooks is also proper craftsmanship, it has an interesting idea, an impressive atmosphere, a straightforward plot, and a pleasant direction that captures everything exactly as it needs to be. The aforementioned Costner is as reliable as ever and I was able to find my way to his character without any problems. William Hurt also really pulled it off and their scenes together have the right edge and pizzazz. But then there’s Demi Moore... Well, let's just say that as an actress, I never really liked her (except maybe in Ghost), and that hasn't changed at all here. Moreover, her marital affair didn't fit in well and only hindered the two protagonists in their well-paced play. A smart and appealing thriller that doesn't stand out among its competitors, but it would be a mistake to condemn it. (15/10/2012)

Good acting can't save everything. What Mr. Brooks lacks is a brisker script and a bit more interesting direction. The inspiration in Dexter is evident, but even though Kevin Costner and co are playing in a lower league, it's a pretty good watch. (22/07/2007)