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List Price: $19.98 | | Label: MGM (Video & DVD)
Salesrank: 167
Released: October 23, 2007 |
| Our Price: $5.69 |
| Used Price: $2.76 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Consider MR. BROOKS. A successful businessman. A generous philanthropist. A loving father and devoted husband. Seemingly, he's perfect. But Mr. Brooks has a secret... he is also the notorious Thumbprint Killer and no one has ever suspected it... until now.
Description of Mr. Brooks:
Kevin Costner as a warped serial killer, a pillar of the community whose dark side is embodied by an on-screen William Hurt? You have to admit, it sounds intriguing, right? Mr. Brooks is the vehicle for this unsavory story, and it turns out to be a lot less kicky than it sounds. Mr. Brooks is a Portland, Oregon tycoon and philanthropist whose "addiction" to murder is suddenly re-surfacing--with plenty of help from his sneering alter ego, who generally sits in the back of the car, goading Mr. Brooks on. (The other characters can't see William Hurt in all this, of course.) The unbelievably convoluted plot has Mr. Brooks confronted by a blackmailer (comedian Dane Cook) who has a surprising twist on things, and trailed by a cop (Demi Moore) who comes equipped with her own set of professional and marital woes. As if that weren't enough, when Brooks's daughter (Danielle Panabaker) comes home, it becomes clear that some traits run in the family.
The scenes with Costner and Hurt are the best stuff in the film, even if director Bruce Evans can't figure out how to play fair visualizing their presence to others. But the script, which among other whoppers make Demi Moore's character a millionaire, is just too unbelievable to stomach. If William Hurt's character provided a running commentary for this movie, there wouldn't be anything left after he got through mocking it. --Robert Horton
The Cast of Mr. Brooks
Kevin Costner | 
William Hurt | 
Demi Moore |
Dane Cook | 
Marg Helgenberger | 
Danielle Panabaker |
Beyond Mr. Brooks
Mr. Brooks on Blu-Ray | 
Mr. Brooks: Music From The Motion Picture | 
More from MGM |
Stills from Mr. Brooks Mr. Brooks Reviews:
I nice change in the genre. 
2008-08-27 - This IS Kostner's best performance. And, the serial killer thriller has a fresh approach with some stable tried and true twists. I'm not actually a fan of this genre and I rented it because nothing else was good at Red Box. I'm glad I did. Might even buy it when it hits the 5 dollar bin.
Serial murder as an intellectual pursuit 
2008-08-23 - This is an interesting an intelligent movie about a man's obsession--addiction--for the thrill of taking human life. Mr. Brooks, although prominent and successful, is otherwise an ordinary Joe. Maybe a little too ordinary. He is efficient, loves his family and is a mild-mannered, low keyed guy. Unfortunately, he has an alterego in the form of a man, more forward and assertive than Brooks, constantly giving him dangerous advice.
His advice is to give into his impulses, track down people and kill them in cold-blood. Brooks does it, too, swearing each will be his last. He doesn't enjoy it, he tells his alterego, but justifies it as an addiction. Unfortunately, he is identified at the scene of one of his kills by a young voyeur. This man, quite unexpectedly, blackmails Brooks into taking him along on a thrill-kill. Brooks toys with the blackmailer, taking him along to scope things out and track people. The younger man is frustrated. He wants it now!
Brooks, by now, fearing the humiliation of discovery is considering the possibility of suicide...maybe the young guy will help him out.
As I said, it's a good movie but it's not fast paced. Also, as an exposition of serial homicide it is not characteristic. Almost all of these guys are serial sexual psychopaths. They sexually abuse and torture their victims before they torture them. Brooks doesn't. I think this is cinematically explainable. A graphic film of the 'average' serial sexual psychopath would necessarily be worse than hard core pornography.
Ron Braithwaite author of novels--"Skull Rack" and "Hummingbird God"--on the Spanish Conquest of Mexico
Disturbing...intriguing...
2008-08-16 - By day Mr. Brooks is a philanthropic businessman, loving husband, and doting father. By night he is a serial killer who is "addicted" to killing. He is spurred on in his killing by a voice inside of him who is personified by William Hurt. In the past Kevin Costner has been over-rated in some of his movie roles, but this time he shows some real acting skill and succeeds in creating the "flat affect" that is so often part of a psychopathic personality. As has been pointed out, the plot is full of holes big enough to drive a tank through, but certainly the movie keeps your attention and has some very intriguing moments.
Interesting and entertaining, but with serious flaws.
2008-08-09 - I don't have a problem with suspending disbelief for a film and the inplausible situations in this film are no exception. Overall, Mr. Brooks is a pretty good movie, though I do have two major reservations.
The first is a subplot involving an escaped murderer named Meeks who, with his psychotic girlfriend, make it their mission to exact revenge on Detective Atwood (Demi Moore). The problem here is that this subplot never even intersects the main story in an integral way. It seemed an excuse to throw two over-the-top action sequences into a movie that otherwise would (and should) have none. This subplot is eventually forced to resolution with the main story in off-screen actions made by the titular character (for no clear reason aside from his admiration for Atwood) and it could have been entirely edited out of the film (for want of about 7 minutes of footage) and none would have been the wiser. If they had done this, I would have given the movie 4 stars.
The second problem I have with this movie is the way they handle the cemetery scene. I'm sure the writers thought it was clever to have Brooks play with "Smith" a while, but the sequence felt cheesy and the drama was forced. The handling of this scene, along with the inclusion of the final "dream-sequence" (dream-sequences are cop-outs with very few exceptions) detracted from my sense of satisfaction at having watched this movie. The omenous atmosphere around Brooks' daughter was already established and palpable, making the dream sequence entirely unnecessary.
Mr. Brooks is not worth buying, but definitely worth renting.
A Creepy, Thoughtful Thriller 
2008-07-25 - While some movies try to thrill you with a sub-standard plot, and others try to make you think and end up getting you confused, this movie finds the perfect balance between the two.
The premise is that the main character, a successful, highly-regarded doctor played by Kevin Costner, finds his mind suddenly haunted by the overwhelming urge to commit murder. After a run as the most notorious serial killer in his home town, "Costner" thought he had put those demons to bed...only to be reacquainted with them once again, this time with a thriving career and family.
Two psychological factors really made this movie memorable to me: First, is how absolutely compelling "Costner's" murdering impulses are. No matter what he tries (until the end, when his entire life is thrown into question), he can't seem to shake them. Secondly, because of that absolute obsession, Costner's character actually becomes sympathetic. Despite the fact that he is murdering people in cold blood, he still feel for him, knowing that in some way he wants to break free as much as we want him to.
Overall, this film stuck with me awhile after viewing it, as it grapples with the age-old philosophical debate of why humans kill other humans? The film suggests that the violent, horrifying personas we stereotype serial killers as could be completely false...and that is really where the creepiness lies. The urge could be in any one of us.
