Excellent. Excellent. Excellent. Lisa Beach and Sarah Katzman, yep I waited til the credits, did an excellent job in casting this movie. I love Pruitt Taylor Vince, and he was a little too convincing as Malcolm Rivers, with his crazy, crazy eyes. In most movies, good casting occurs, when you don’t notice that you’re actually watching actors. This can become hard with big names like John Cusack and Alfred Molina (The Doc Oc himself). Thankfully, these actors were good at their roles.
Identity is the story of 10 strangers that have a random encounter at a motel, when they are shut in by a violent storm. The roads are flooded, and they have nowhere to go. We are given flashbacks as to how each individual arrived at the cabin, as well as how they met each other. Among the cabin residents are: a limo driver escorting an over-the-hill actress, a family of three (parents and a boy), a cop escorting a con, a newlywed couple and a hooker. The weather becomes the least of their worries, as the guests are slowly killed one by one, with a room key found on each body, counting down the remaining victims. The mayhem increases, as the bodies begin to disappear, leaving the remaining strangers baffled. They also discover that every single person to ever pass through the motel was born on May 10, including the remaining strangers. Ed (John Cusack) the limo driver, who was an ex cop but took medical leave after suffering from blackouts, and Rhodes, portrayed by Ray Liotta who plays another cop, as the prisoner escort, work together to try and figure out just what is going on.
Throughout the story, we jump back and forth between the motel, and an unusual court hearing. A prisoner, Malcolm Rivers, is about to be executed, but first, his trial has been reopened for an appeal at a midnight hearing. Rivers killed 6 people a few years ago, and was denied an insanity plea, despite evidence of a traumatic childhood, where he witnessed his “working” mother on the job. As the movie progresses, the audience is given loose threads connecting the two. At one point, we are led to believe that Rivers is the convict being transported. We later find out it’s another convict, played by Jake Busey, probably one of his best roles since Johnny Charles Bartlett in “The Frighteners.”
The rest of this review contains spoilers, and should only be read by people who have seen the movie, or don’t give a rats ass (Why are you here then). This movie is very good, and I don’t want to spoil the ending for any true movie fans out there.
The movie takes a Linda Blair turnaround, when John Cusack’s character, Ed, suffers from a severe headache, and awakes to find himself at the court hearing that the audience has been following. Molina, who plays a psychologist defending Rivers, tells Ed that he, along with every other member at that motel, are personalities created by Rivers. The motel is not real, but is only a situation placed in Rivers’ mind, where the personalities would meet, and eventually be destroyed. Ed was told that the killer who murdered those 6 people was at that motel, and that the killer could not survive, or else Rivers would remain a homicidal maniac for the rest of his life. While Ed is being debriefed, we cut back to the motel and see that the hooker, Paris, played by Amanda Peet has discovered that Rhodes was in fact a prisoner being transferred, and that he killed his escort. By this time, every other personality has been destroyed, except for Ed, Rhodes, and Paris. When Ed returns to the motel, he confronts Rhodes, and the two die in a shootout. Paris, the remaining personality, drives off into the night (apparently the roads are clear now).
Rivers, meanwhile, dictates the entire scene in his head. The judge, after hearing this, rules that Rivers be taken to a mental hospital under the care of Molina’s character. The movie ends with Rivers being escorted to the hospital by Molina and a guard, as they drive down an empty desert road. The picture dissolves into Paris, his lasting identity, driving through the Florida countryside, on an orange farm (that was Paris’ desire throughout the movie). (Is that the end or am I just messing with you? Only one way to find out......)
Hide All You Want, Identity Will Get Under Your Skin.
Identity is a grade A thriller. This movie was made for those of us, who like to guess the ending. There are so many twists and turns, that the viewer can’t help but sit on the edge of their seat. My plan was to make this a fancy review and take notes throughout the movie, but I enjoyed it so much that I only made one note. That note was, “Wheel of Fortune puzzle at beginning - Kibbles and Bits.” A totally useless fact that I will forever remember.
The casting was amazing, the script was well-written, and well shot. There’s a hint of Bates Motel, which adds nicely to the eerie atmosphere. The music, like every other violin screeching, thriller soundtrack was excellent. This movie is a good head shaker. The viewer’s perception of the plot is constantly juggled around. One of the characters even brings up how their predicament is a lot like “Ten Little Indians.” Some may argue that this is a remake, and that it has been done before. Well, you’re right. This premise has been done before, but now it has a great look and some fresh faces. After all, if it ain’t broke........