One Way Out (2002)

Harry Woltz is a homicide cop with a gambling problem; a problem that leaves him owing a great deal of money to the Russell brothers. To clear the debt they ask him to train John Farrow to murder his wife, Evans, without leaving the usual clues or making the usual mistakes. However when Harry's ex-partner is put on the case, she begins to get closer than Harry had thought before the case takes some unexpected twists.Despite the fact that it never saw the inside of a cinema in the US never mind here, I still gave this film a go. The plot is pretty weak but is noir-ish and could have worked better and been darker than it was. Sadly it is quite obvious and so full of holes that you could put your head through to see what was on the other side! This isn't helped by the fact that the film tries to create a dark, noir mood by having a rubbish harmonica soundtrack all the way through - supposedly played by Harry. In the end it all comes down to just where you expect it to and, while the ending would have worked well in a better film, it has no emotion here.It is not just plot that the film shows it's low values. The direction is workmanlike, the sets are average, the shots let the boom come into view far too often and so on and so forth. The whole thing feels like a TVM at best and I can see why it never reached the cinema! The cast follow this trend with a series of performances that at best are average. Belushi would like to think he can play a dark cop in a noir but he can't - he is miscast and struggles. He is the reason the ending lacks punch and he also takes away from the noir effect of the film. Bateman is OK in support despite not looking as good as he projects with all that stubble. The rest of the support cast are just wallpaper whether in big roles or small.Overall this film is not awful, it is just poor and uninteresting. The plot and the delivery suggest it wanted to be some sort of noir but it is faking it and doesn't convince. The mood is plastered on in a fake and unimpressive manner, the plot is full of holes and the actors are only average, with a big piece of miscasting and bad acting when it comes to the lead role of Harry.

Clumsily-plotted thriller that has framed innocent James Belushi stumbling along trying to piece together the clues that prove he is not linked with the murder of a woman. Tired script relies on cliches and Belushi--a talented comedian and just plain funny guy--is way out of his league as a serious guy who has to show real emotions. I like Belushi--I don't like this movie.Mediocre to an extreme.2/5 stars.John Ulmer

This movie was a good movie to rent, but Jim Belushi was the wrong choice for this film cause he is type cast as a funny man. Jason Bateman played an excellent part. He should get better roles and should be doing bigger movie projects.

After viewing this I was really surprised how much I enjoyed it. If you loved A Perfect Murder you will love this. It was just full of suspense and intrigue, although a little predictible at the end. James Belushi played his role well as the corrupt cop and Jason Bateman also gives a good performance. I just loved the way they set out to kill the wife and how it all panned out in the end.