Suspend Reality -- And It's A Good Story
"Slow Burn" is an elaborately plotted and unrealistic thriller for which the term "suspension of disbelief" was invented. Buying into its numerous plot twists depends on several unlikely assumptions, the most is that the people in the movie will behave in ways that go against their own self-interest, in order to make a better story.
The illegal scheme at the core of the film is so complicated and risky that no criminal with a brain would actually try it, and throughout "Slow Burn" characters who we've been told are at the top of their professions — an Ace District Attorney, an elusive Gangster, etc — make illogically poor mistakes, just so that the plot can keep moving forward.
Yet Note: that plot is, in its own way, very satisfying. Uniformly solid performances and fast paces, can make "Slow Burn" a very entertaining B-movie.
"Slow Burn" revolves around the shooting of a young black man by a mulatto Assistant District Attorney (Jolene Blalock) whose white boss, Ford Cole (Ray Liotta), is running for Mayor.
She claims the killing was in self-defense, but the D.A. quickly begins to realize that there's more to the story; as the case connects to a significant real estate development as well as to an all-powerful Gangster named Danny, who Ford is trying to nail but whose face is unknown.
The movie takes place over the course of one long night, during which Ford tries to figure out who — if anyone — is telling the truth, and how the murder impacts him politically.
Director Wayne Beech kicks things off quickly and keeps the pace racing throughout the film, introducing one complication after another right up to the last scene. The twists aren't all that difficult to see coming, but there are so many of them that even top-smart viewers may struggle to stay ahead of the story. You won't struggle to follow it though, thanks to Beech's skillful balancing act in terms of subplots and supporting characters.
There's a lot going on in "Slow Burn", but the film is never confusing and its clues are clear without being overly obvious.
A lot of the clarity comes from the superb cast, who sell even the craziest plot developments through their absolute commitment and enthusiasm. Liotta is reliable, as usual, in the lead role; Blalock is excellent in a difficult femme fatale part (difficult because at most points in the story the performance has to justify multiple interpretations to keep Ford, and the viewer, guessing.)
The supporting cast is filled out with great character actors like Bruce McGill and Chiwetel Ejiofor; all of them are lit with great film noir panache by "Memento" Cinematographer Wally Pfister.
The professionalism of the execution is almost enough to hide the fact that the movie has some major plausibility problems at its core, problems that can't be gone into in any real detail without giving away key plot points. What can be said, however, is that none of the script's premises are any more ridiculous than the logic gaps in "The Usual Suspects" and "The Departed", and "Slow Burn" has strengths that those films don't: there's a witty satirical subtext about race and class in American Cities, and the movie's lack of pretension makes it work better as pure entertainment.
Ultimately, if you accept the film at face-value and suspend plausability the movie is an awful lot of fun.Read full review
