seymourblack-1 Despite its failure to impress the critics, "The Bone Collector" became a big box office success because of its intriguing plot, its likable characters and the public's continuing fascination with serial killers. Its plot, which was adapted from Jeffery Deaver's novel of the same name, features a cat and mouse game that involves a brilliant forensics expert and a sadistic serial killer who takes pleasure in taunting his pursuers by leaving clues at the scenes of his crimes As these clues provide leads to where and when the next murder will take place, the police find themselves in a constant race against time as they desperately try to discover the identity of the killer and bring his reign of terror to an end before any more people are needlessly killed.Lincoln Rhyme (Denzel Washington) is the forensics expert who, during his career with the NYPD, became highly respected for his ability to solve cases by using his exceptional skills. Having been bedridden for four years (since he was crippled by a beam that accidentally fell on him), his depression has grown so deep that he's started to arrange his own "final transition" with the aid of a friend who's agreed to assist with his suicide. Rhyme regularly suffers seizures and his greatest fear is that one of these will leave him in a vegetative state.Although he says that he only has the use of one finger, his shoulders and his brain, he also has some sophisticated computer equipment which he puts to good use in his work. Because of the high esteem in which he's held by the NYPD, he's been kept on the payroll and is regularly asked to help out on their more challenging cases. Just such a case arises when a patrol cop called Amelia Donaghy (Angelina Jolie) discovers a dead body buried under gravel beside some train tracks and collects various pieces of evidence that are lying nearby.When the evidence and Amelia are brought to Rhyme's Manhattan apartment, he's very impressed by the young street cop's work and insists that she should help him with his further investigations because she obviously has a natural instinct for forensics work. After overcoming her initial reluctance to pass up on the desk job that she's due to transfer to imminently, Rhyme and Amelia start to work together. Rhyme quickly deduces from the available evidence, the identity of the killer's next victim and the likely location of the murder. Amelia then assists by examining the site and acting as Rhyme's eyes and ears as he gives her instructions through her headset. Rhyme's deductions are proved to be correct and the evidence that Amelia collects at the crime scene, makes it evident that they're dealing with a serial killer and that he's following a set modus operandi. This continues until, chillingly, the evidence found at one of the crime scenes points to Rhyme being the next victim."The Bone Collector" is an entertaining psychological thriller that's particularly enjoyable because of its two main stars and the way in which they work together so well. Denzel Washington overcomes the problem of his character being permanently immobile by the sheer quality of his performance and Angelina Jolie, in her first starring role, makes the changes that Amelia goes through in her work and her relationship with Rhyme seem very natural and convincing. The supporting cast is also good with Luis Guzman providing most of the humour.

EBJ THE BONE COLLECTOR - 1999Directed by Phillip NoyceStarring ​Denzel Washington, Angelina Jolie and Michael RookerPlot Overview: ​Policewoman Amelia Donaghy (Angelina Jolie) is in hot pursuit of a serial murderer whose calling card is a small shard of bone extracted from each of his victims. Unable to decipher the cryptic clues the killer leaves behind at the scene of the crime, Amelia calls upon quadriplegic forensic criminology expert Lincoln Rhyme (Denzel Washington) to help. With Amelia acting as Rhyme's able-bodied go-between, the pair piece together disparate clues, hoping they will learn who the next victim is.For me, the very worst sin a serial killer movie can pull is thinking it is smarter than it is. A movie that thinks that its solutions are 'mind blowing' and 'genius' when they are in reality just average or below that are the worst type of serial killer film due to the horrible pretentious nature of it. And that is exactly what this mess is. Pretentious, boring, messy - three words that no film should have the burden of bearing but three words this film claims.Good movies that are 'intelligent' give enough wiggle room for the audience to figure out the solution for themselves. This film, on the other hand, combines myriads of obscure, stupidly insignificant pieces of information into one impossible to solve, obscene solution. I am 100% down with an intelligent lead, but when your lead is omniscient, I have a problem with it. The conclusion for this movie is both lazy and infuriating. I kinda guessed who it was shortly after the film began so the grand reveal meant nothing for me. As for the people I watched this with, it meant nothing for them because the reveal itself was worthless. No hints. No ideal motive. They even do the horribly cliché method of trying to convince the audience that X is the Y, when in fact it is Z. What I mean by that is that they try to convince you it is someone when it is CLEARLY not them. They used this technique with SCOOBY DOO! I would like to think that PROFESSIONAL FILM WRITERS can do a LITTLE bit better than that. Credit where credit is due, Denzel Washington was pretty darn good in this movie, considering he couldn't use 90% of his body. His co- star, in the form of Angelina Jolie was very weak and so annoying to watch on screen. The 'chemistry' between the two in the film is literally non-existent and the romance sub plot more shoehorned in than Wonder Woman in Batman V Superman.Michael Rooker wasn't that good in this movie, as much as I like him as an actor. Queen Latifa was fine in this movie. She gave a perfectly passable and average performance.Personally, I am not a huge fan of the cinematography in this movie. Some of the transitions irked me but there was nothing offensively bad about it so I can't criticise it THAT much.​ Pretentious films like this are just the worst. I can't recommend this hunk of junk. It is a bland, forgettable, generic serial killer flick that tried to act better than it really was. I'll rate it 3 Flying Rats out of 10.

Tweekums Protagonist Lincoln Rhyme is a former detective and a forensics expert who was left a quadriplegic after an accident. He is not enjoying life and tries to persuade a doctor friend to help him commit suicide… before that can happen he is approached by colleagues wanting help. The film's other protagonist, rookie cop Amelia Donaghy, is the first police officer at a murder scene and impresses Rhyme with the way she processes the scene… so much so that he wants her on the case. The dead man was last seen entering a taxi with his wife and she is still missing. Rhyme, with the help of forensics experts, processes the clues deliberately left by the killer workout where the killer is holding the woman and when he intends to kill her. Donaghy heads to the site with other cops but they are too late to save her. This isn't the end though; clues point to further victims as well as suggesting that the killer is forensically aware and has an interest crimes and locations from the turn of the twentieth century. Before the case can be solved Rhyme and Donaghy will have to decode a lot more clues, deal with incompetent senior officers and face personal danger.This film may contain plenty of clichés but it is still effective. Denzel Washington impresses as Rhyme; apart from the opening flashback scene he spends almost the entire film lying in bed. Angelina Jolie is also good as Donadhy; making us believe in her character even when things get a bit far-fetched. The deaths are a bit gruesome but either take place off screen or the scene ends before things get nasty. The ending is a bit cliché as the killer targets Rhyme and it turns out that everything we've seen is part of his attempt to beat Rhyme as he holds him responsible for things that went wrong in his life. This does at least lead to a fight where an able-bodied is badly injured by quadriplegic man! There are plenty of tense moments throughout the film and the identity of the killer isn't obvious. Overall a solid thriller that fans of the genre should enjoy.

pchristle I never saw an Angelina Jolie movie before. If this one is a representative example of her acting abilities, I will never watch another. She is not the worst actor I have ever seen, but she certainly lacks believability. Maybe it is just a role she is not suited to -- a street cop? The other problem with this film is the script, which does not play fair with the viewer. The killer turns out to be someone totally unexpected, which would be fine if any clues to his or her identity had been given somewhere in the movie. Denzel Washington is good, given the limited scope of a character confined to a bed. All in all, an average movie that is not quite a waste of two hours of my life.