Two gifted high school students execute a perfect murder - then become engaged in an intellectual contest with a seasoned homicide detective.Two gifted high school students execute a perfect murder - then become engaged in an intellectual contest with a seasoned homicide detective.Two gifted high school students execute a perfect murder - then become engaged in an intellectual contest with a seasoned homicide detective.
- Awards
- 2 nominations
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe characters Richard Haywood and Justin Pendleton are loosely based on real-life murderers Richard Loeb and Nathan Leopold.
- GoofsIt is said that there are no fingerprints from Justin or Richard, but they are shown carrying Olivia's dead body wrapped in plastic to the car and neither of them have gloves on, thus there should have been fingerprints from Richard and Justin found on the plastic that the dead body was wrapped in.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Six Feet Under: I'll Take You (2002)
Featured review
Good creepy performances but not much thrills
Richard Haywood (Ryan Gosling) is a wealthy and popular high school kid who befriends nerdy introvert Justin Pendleton (Michael Pitt). They plan out murders adding false forensics to baffle the police. They kill a woman to set up Richard's drug dealer janitor Ray Feathers (Chris Penn). Police detective Cassie Mayweather (Sandra Bullock) and her new partner Sam Kennedy (Ben Chaplin) investigate. They have a romantic relationship but it's not working out. She's the only one who suspects Richard and Justin, but nobody believes her. They then stage the janitor's suicide, and everybody wants to close the case. Justin is infatuated with fellow student Lisa Mills (Agnes Bruckner), but Richard sleeps with her. This and the fact that Cassie is closing in cause a rift in the partnership.
Director Barbet Schroeder isn't able to instill the proper amount of tension. There are just a few too many side stories. He needs to concentrate on the three leads. The romantic entangle with Ben Chaplin's character is a distraction. It just makes her look weak. I think she could be damaged, but not necessarily weak. Ryan Gosling puts in a good creepy performance. Michael Pitt is likewise creepy but in a different way. Ben Chaplin's character is the most normal and the most expendable. The movie generally could use more excitement or scary thrills.
Director Barbet Schroeder isn't able to instill the proper amount of tension. There are just a few too many side stories. He needs to concentrate on the three leads. The romantic entangle with Ben Chaplin's character is a distraction. It just makes her look weak. I think she could be damaged, but not necessarily weak. Ryan Gosling puts in a good creepy performance. Michael Pitt is likewise creepy but in a different way. Ben Chaplin's character is the most normal and the most expendable. The movie generally could use more excitement or scary thrills.
helpful•93
- SnoopyStyle
- Mar 8, 2014
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Foolproof
- Filming locations
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $50,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $31,945,749
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $9,307,394
- Apr 21, 2002
- Gross worldwide
- $56,714,147
- Runtime1 hour 55 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1
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