Movie Review Perfect Stranger (2007)

 

Perfect Stranger | 2007 | 1h 49m
Genre: Erotic Thriller/Psychological Thriller/Crime/Mystery/Thriller | Country: US
Director: James Foley | Writers: Todd Komarnicki, Jon Bokenkamp
Cast: Halle Berry, Bruce Willis, Giovanni Ribisi
IMDB: 5.7
My Rate: 7/10

Rowena tries to find evidence of the murder of her childhood friend, Grace, allegedly committed by Harrison, Grace's online date. The investigation is not easy considering Harrison's status as a big boss in an advertising company.

Warnings:

Contains sensual scenes, alcohol, and violence.

 

Synopsis:

Rowena (Halle Berry) works as a journalist under the pseudonym David Shane. Rowena, along with her colleague, Miles (Giovanni Ribisi), successfully exposes a scandal involving a senator. However, their story is not published because the editor supports the senator.

Rowena eventually decides to quit her job. On her way home, she meets her childhood friend, Grace (Nicki Aycox). Grace asks Rowena for help in exposing her online date, Harrison (Bruce Willis), who is the boss at a famous advertising company. However, Rowena ignores this until news of Grace's death reaches her.

Rowena suspects Harrison is the one who committed the murder. Miles tries to help Rowena with the investigation, and the evidence points to Harrison. Rowena tries to infiltrate Harrison's company by going undercover.

Rowena successfully enters the company and obtains some important information about Harrison. However, suspicion arises when an employee is caught being a spy for a rival company. Rowena is suspected as one of them.

Rowena tries to dispel these suspicions by flirting with Harrison. She also tries to seduce Harrison through the online chat application used by Grace. However, the planned scenario turns out to be not as easy as imagined.

Does Rowena succeed in uncovering the murder?

 

Review:

Perfect Stranger has a pretty interesting story idea. The plot is presented systematically and is easy to understand. There are several twists that are not easy to predict and are outside of expectations. The different parts of the film are well-connected and neatly woven together.

The story opens with a captivating scene where Rowena confronts the senator about his case. This scene depicts how professional Rowena is in investigating a case. Although this is not seen anymore in her investigation of Harrison.

The development of the characters, the story's background, and the conflict are good. However, the resolution seems less gripping and rushed. The camera movement, cinematography, and other technical aspects are done quite well.

Although executed well, there are still some parts that could be optimized. There are some scenes that seem illogical, making them a bit jarring to watch.

The first illogical thing is when Rowena uses the office computer to communicate online with Harrison. This doesn't seem logical considering Rowena is at the office to investigate and shouldn't draw attention. However, she is already suspected by her supervisor from the beginning. Using the office computer is not a smart move, as it can be seen by everyone.

Next, during the resolution scene (#spoiler), when Miles confronts Rowena. With Miles's short dialogue, the scene seems to shift between places and conditions over a long period. There is even a situation where Rowena seems to be sleeping on Miles's lap, which makes the scene look strange. Maybe the director wanted to add drama to the scene, but it doesn't seem necessary.

#spoiler again. It's not explained exactly how Rowena kills Grace and brings her body to the place where Grace is found. Because it's not shown that Rowena has a vehicle to carry out her crime. This is actually a simple thing, but it's important.

The acting of the cast is good. However, the actor playing young Rowena is not optimal. Considering how adult Rowena seems to have a deep trauma from her childhood. However, young Rowena doesn't show this in her attitude or expressions when the event that traumatized her occurs.

Overall, this film is still quite watchable and interesting. Especially for mystery film lovers.

 

Memorable Scene:

The computer Rowena is using suddenly stops working, and Harrison suddenly approaches her desk. Rowena tries to shut down the computer by disconnecting the power. She tries to maintain her expression so that Harrison doesn't suspect anything.

In this scene, we can feel the adrenaline rush Rowena experiences during the event. Maybe the audience will also feel a little excited for Rowena.

 

Memorable Dialogue:

"An invisible universe filled with strangers, interconnected online and disconnected in life."

 

Ending:

Cliffhanger

 

Recommendation:

Worth to Watch

 

(Aluna)