IN THE SHADOW OF EVIL

US, 1995, 89 minutes, Colour.
Treat Williams, Margaret Collin, Timothy Busfield, Joe Morton, William H.Macy.
Directed by Daniel Sackheim.

In the Shadow of Evil is a police thriller. However, it has many differences. Treat Williams is a top detective pursuing a serial killer, while seeing somebody suspicious at a railyard, he falls and suffers from amnesia. The head of police, Joe Morton, wants him to continue the investigation because the killer kills every month. Timothy Busfield is a detective who dislikes Williams and is continually attacking him. Margaret Collin is the behavioural scientist who is called in to help Williams recover his memory. William H. Macy is a suspicious coroner.

When this is all put together, it emerges as a drama of somebody dramatically trying to recover his memory as well as fall in love with his therapist. Suspicion falls on the coroner. The police chief pressurises the detective and he clashes with his rival.

Where the twists come is in the fact that the detective is the serial killer. With flashbacks to his past, and general theorising about the effect of childhood on violent criminals, it gradually appears that the detective has an abuse childhood and is wreaking vengeance on women, by murdering them, raping them, altering their features so that they are smiling - and his wanting them to forgive him.

While the suspense builds up, the film dawdles at times with the investigation and with the romance. However, with a trick phone call and the discovery of the detective's voice on the tape, the film builds to a swift conclusion.

1. Interesting and entertaining police investigation thriller? Murder mystery?

2. The title, its implications, family backgrounds and pressure, the influence on violent criminals?

3. The wintry settings, the city, the precincts, the woods, the river? Authentic atmosphere? Musical score?

4. The premise of the plot: the effect of amnesia, six months of memory blotted out, the means for recovery and therapy, the effect on the person with amnesia, the discovery of an unwelcome identity, deceptions, confrontations? Contrasting behaviour between the seemingly two different persons?

5. Jack Brenner, his being the ace detective, the case of Willie Sommers and his being in jail, the evidence found, his denial of guilt? The final revelation that he was set up by Brenner? Brenner and the pursuit of the witness, his hitting his head, hospitalisation, the clashes with Walter Keller, the support of Royce? Going to Molly for therapy? Her techniques, his recovery of some memories, particular incidents, sounds, sights? The work together, the detective work, visiting the coroner? His urgency in solving the murder? His falling in love with Molly, their affair? The clashes with Keller? His being told to take a holiday, going fishing, with Molly at the woods and the house? His discovery of the evidence and the clothes in the drawer? The build-up of his plan, Molly confronting the coroner? Leading him on? His encounter with the witness in the police precinct? At what point did he realise that he was the killer? His killing of the witness, his killing of the coroner? Molly and her realisation of the truth? The confrontation, his wanting her to kill him?

6. Molly, her work with the monkeys, sign language, her work with Jack, the sessions, falling in love? The investigation, her contributions? The holiday? The suspicion pointing to the coroner, her participating in the plan? Her realisation of the truth and discovering the evidence? Trying to placate Jack, running from him, his wanting her to kill him, her refusal, her going to the prison to ask when he loved her and when he found out the truth?

7. The chief, the pressure on Jack? Walter Keller, his antagonism, the evidence, suspicions, alienating the audience? And yet his perspectives being those that were true? The tape, Jack's phone call with the killer, the setting up of the tape, identifying his voice?

8. The coroner, lonely little man, his attitude towards the corpses, photos, under suspicion, his being set up, Jack in the house, killing him?

9. The focus on police detecting and the following up of clues, interrogations? The irony of Jack being the killer? Finally in prison (the effect of the flashbacks in explaining his behaviour)?