Jon Voight has been a major league actor for most of his
life. Having taken a stand to make it known his conservative viewpoints, it's
rare that we have the chance to see him in films these days which is sad when
you think back to the tremendous performances he's given in the past.
Fortunately there are still a few people who will hire him such as the makers
of the film BEYOND.
Voight stars as John Koski, a police detective whose
specialty lies in finding abducted children in Anchorage, Alaska. I know, I
wondered just how many of those there would be as well but I was willing to go
along with the idea. Koski is a haunted man whose dedication is grounded in
guilt at having not been able to find the first missing child in his career
long ago. Flashbacks throughout the film show him remembering this case and his
failure to find the perpetrator.
As the film opens we see Koski capturing the most recent
abductor, or I should say killing him. Koski isn't one to let the law handle
cases like this and his penchant for terminating these child abductors with
extreme prejudice may make him popular with the victims parents but not with
all law enforcement officials. Koski's commander Dermot Mulroney reprimands him
but at the same time retains him on the force. All that changes rapidly.
One night a young girl is kidnapped, the daughter of a woman
named Sarah (Teri Polo) and sister of the police chief. Suddenly Mulroney's
character has a change of heart, bringing Koski in on the case and telling him
to do everything possible to bring the little girl home.
As Koski begins sifting through the clues he discovers that
Sarah and her husband are having a rough spot and are possibly on the verge of
a divorce. Looking into the husband's financial situation does little more than
make him a viable suspect.
Another twist is added when Sarah's babysitter Megan (Skyler
Shaye) brings in a friend of the family, a psychic who hosts his own show on
the local cable access TV station. The question rises as he begins using his
abilities are they real or is he planning on milking Sarah and her husband for
whatever money he can make? Koski is certain that it's all a scam but at the
same time has dreams of his own that make him wonder if these abilities are
real or not.
The detective and the psychic sift through clues, sometimes
together and sometimes apart, both with the goal of saving the little girl
before any harm comes to her. I'm certain some will figure out who the
kidnapper is along the way but for myself, it caught me off guard until near
the end of the film.
The movie looks fantastic with some breathtaking scenery and
a bird's eye view of Alaska now and then. The production values are top of the
line and the musical score is more deserving of a major league motion picture
as opposed to this small film. And yet at the same time while I enjoyed the
movie and thought it was well made it felt like a small film. Something, I'm
not quite sure what, just doesn't get it over the hump of being a great movie.
Voight and the rest of the cast do an amazing job. I was
stunned when I discovered Voight was 73. You'd never guess by watching him in
this film. His character may be near retirement but he still has a few tricks
up his sleeve that aid him in capturing the worst of bad guys, child predators.
For a nice movie to watch at home this one will fit the
bill. It offers entertainment, a nice mystery and offers enough clues that you
may discover the identity of the kidnapper before Voight and company do. It may
not be a movie you'll want to watch over and over again, but for a night's
rental it will do just fine.
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