Meg Ryan Movie:

Editorial Review:
Based on Susanna Moore's popular novel, In the Cut centers on Frannie (Meg Ryan), an emotionally stifled English teacher who gets steamy with sultry Malloy (Mark Ruffalo, You Can Count On Me), a cop who's investigating a series of brutal murders--but Frannie soon suspects that Malloy may be the killer. As a psychological thriller, In the Cut is heavier on psychology than thrills; the story is a skeleton that director Jane Campion (The Piano, An Angel at My Table) cloaks in one of the most nightmarish visions of urban life since Taxi Driver or Seven, accompanied by lots of explicit sex. The movie's dark tone will put some viewers off, but Ruffalo's effortless magnetism serves him well; no woman in the audience will question how quickly Ryan falls into bed with him. Also featuring Jennifer Jason Leigh and an uncredited Kevin Bacon. --Bret Fetzer

In the Cut [Region 2] Reviews:
High-brow smut
2009-08-10 - Ultimately one has to wonder what in the hell is wrong with Jane Campion. I wish intuitive, well-educated intellectuals like herself would instead apply their talents to investment banking and philanthropy, as opposed to films and this sort of thought-provoking but degrading nihilism. Yes, we are all painfully aware it's a jungle out there and all about choices, okay? Please quit trying to punish your audiences. Not surprised to find Jennifer Jason Leigh in a gig like this (she is also exceedingly bright, of course), but for people like Meg Ryan and Mark Ruffalo this is artful slumming at best. And while there are certainly persons in real life that engage in these levels of unprotected adult activity, it should hardly be advertised so recklessly, and ascribed as the nonchalant behaviors of police detectives and teachers and medical students. I don't say that as a prude, but as someone less-educated that nevertheless heeded the obvious lessons of the AIDS crisis. To see a movie like this, you'd think it never occurred, that multiple levels of society in the developed nations of the world never changed.

Loved It!
2009-06-12 - I have not liked all of Meg Ryan's work but this movie was great! I think I liked it so much because Meg Ryan seemed so powerful in the movie. I also liked Mark Ruffalo in this movie but wished he was on screen more.

A stylish and sexy thriller
2009-03-19 - Two of the things that made "Collateral" such a success help this movie out considerably as well.They are the gritty and grainy cinematography of Dion BeBe and a great performance from Mark Ruffallo. He plays a sexy detective named Malloy who may be as dangerous as he is seductive. He's on the trail of a serial killer who likes chopping up the bodies of his female victims and littering their body parts all over town. When severed limbs show up in Frannie Avery (Meg Ryan)'s garden she meets Malloy. He wants to question her regarding any strange or suspicious noises she may have overheard on the night of the murder. Before Malloy leaves he asks Frannie if they've met before. She tells him no even though she's convinced she saw him in a smoky bar receiving oral sex from a mystery woman. That woman is the murder victim in question. Frannie remembers him by a distinctive tattoo on his right wrist. Malloy begins following Frannie and she becomes so excited by his advances that she forgets about the mutilated corpse that was dumped outside her window. Frannie's half sister Pauline (Jennifer Jason Leigh) does nothing to dissuade Frannie and pushes her to go out with Malloy. The two embark on a steamy affair but Frannie still has a lot of unanswered questions about her new lover. As more victims pop up and the people closest to Frannie start turning violent she doesn't know who to trust. I wasn't that impressed with the film. Meg Ryan was certainly fearless in her performance and the sex scenes were good but I didn't find this film to be as erotic as it's made out to be. I appreciate Jane Campion's attention to detail and stylistic choices even though they slow the movie down at times. However thanks to BeBe there are some gorgeous images in this film. One thing that I really enjoyed was the odd casting of Kevin Bacon as a man who is stalking Frannie. The two had a one night stand some time back and his obsession for her didn't end that night. He follows her every move and a case is made that he could be the killer. Through a very disappointing and dumb ending we learn of the killer's real identity and of what happens to Frannie and Malloy.

Jane Campion's film has something that makes it worth seeing...
2009-02-03 - In fact, much of Frannie's allure is that she isn't shy about her body, or even afraid to engage in sexual activity with Detective James Malloy (Mark Ruffalo) in her two room apartment on Washington Square...

In the Red Turtle bar, Frannie (Meg Ryan) inadvertently watched a man, with a tattoo on his wrist, receiving oral gratification from a girl with blue fingernails having diamonds in them...

Soon after, there was a homicide in Frannie's neighborhood... The body of the woman, or part of her body, to be exact, was found in the garden outside her window...The girl who was murdered was Angela Sands with the blue fingernails ...

As the psychopath strikes again and again, Frannie embarks on a powerfully physical sexual relationship with Malloy, despite her rising suspicions, later on, that the serial killer in question may very well be the 'good cop' with the 'three of spade' she saw once...

Meg Ryan plays a very interior character living out of her unconscious emotions and actions, seeming always scared of what she wants... Her only passion was poetry... Her former lover Kevin Bacon-- mentally unbalanced--thinks he should stick around because he slept with her twice... Bacon maintains a threatening presence throughout the whole picture... Jennifer Jason Leigh-- exquisitely sexy-- graces the screen as Frannie's half-sister Pauline... In his few scenes with Ryan, Sharrieff Pugh proves to be sweet and charming but also bad and scary...

Meg in a Murder Mystery
2008-12-25 - Superb film noir, Meg Ryan is involved in a murder mystery and she seems to be the next victim. This is the first film where I have seen Meg nude and she carries it off with aplomb. This is a whole new genre for her and I think she should do more. She shows that she is a better actress than she is given credit for. The plot is twisted enough to keep you guessing and you are led down several blind alleys before you get to the finale. Good film!