NO ALIBI

US, 1999, 85 minutes, Colour.
Dean Cain, Eric Roberts, Lola Zoig, Peter Stebbing.
Directed by Bruce Pittman.

No Alibi is a brief thriller, a focus on an up-and-coming basketball star whose brother is a petty criminal. He steals some video recorders, only to find that he has taken several million dollars. The criminals pursue him, employing a femme fatale to seduce him. However, they make a mistake because the good brother owns the car. Eventually there is a murder, betrayal and shootout. Fairly conventional material but played well by Dean Cain (the TV series Superman and Lois) as the good brother, Eric Roberts doing his usual thing as the criminal and Peter Stebbings as the younger brother.

1. Interesting and entertaining thriller? Plausible? Crime, vengeance, detection, revenge?

2. The city settings, warehouses, bars, apartments, police precincts? Authentic? Musical score?

3. The title - to whom did it refer?

4. The focus on Philly, basketball, the car, the robbery? The pursuit? Petty crime? His relationship with Bob? The meal together with Camille? Camille and her seductiveness, his not wanting it, the confrontation with Vic, his death?

5. Bob, basketball, Hall of Fame, business success, love for his brother? Meeting Camille, the party, the date, the outings, falling in love? His knowing nothing about the relationship with Philly? His grief at his brother's death? Camille's pregnancy, the wedding, the happiness? His continued investigations, indication of a woman involved, his police friends, the information, the voucher for the video recorders, the leads and the information about Camille? The birth of the baby, his grief, making the baby secure, the set-up, confronting Vic, shooting him? Camille going off?

6. Camille, attractive, with Bob in the elevator, the party, the phone calls, the outings, her falling in love? Her realising that he was not the thief? Disguise, seductive with Philly? His death? Her holding the gun? Vic's dominating her, their relationship? His hounding her? Her love for Bob, her pregnancy? Vic and the phone calls? The birth of the baby, her knowing that Bob knew the truth? Going with him, the confrontation with Vic and his death? Left alone?

7. Vic, ruthlessness, shooting the guard, the money, his hold over Camille, his memories of his relationship with her, dominating her, using her, making her hold the gun? Pursuing her, the phone calls, the ultimate confrontation and his death?

8. The police friendships with Bob, the leads, the investigations, the murders?

9. Routine police and crime thriller?