January man is kind of a neat movie that is clearly a romantic comedy masquerading as a psychological thriller. It has a wonderful cast, an acclaimed screenwriter and even a Marvin Hamlisch score. The film was billed as almost an older version of 'The Bone Collector'. But it seems more like a serial killer version of 'Moonstruck'. I can see why many people were disappointed in the film. They saw the movie from a totally different angle. The serial killer (the January man) is almost ancillary to the actual plot of the movie. It is a Kevin Kline driven vehicle with a old and new love interest(Sarandon & Mastrantonio). It has the re-reinstatement of a hero cop who takes a fall from grace for his brother (Harvey Keitel)and is banished from the police department and is relegated to fighting fires rather than criminals. It has the cro-magnon police captain (Aiello) and the even older Mayor(Steiger). All these pieces of the puzzle come together to provide decent little film which I think is clearly misunderstood.
94 Reviews
Why so serious?!?
silmaril-66 March 2009
If you're looking for extreme suspense and top-notch thriller, go watch Seven. But if you're looking for a nice little movie with stellar cast, very good acting and silly story that'll amuse you for some 90 minutes, then try The January man. It is silly - an absurd mix of thriller, comedy, romance, drama, good cop - bad cop, the story is full of flaws, but the movie itself is really well done. Too many people around wonder where's logic in it and give it low rating because of that, but The dark knight (with sillier story and average acting) is somehow best film of a decade?!? This is a movie that doesn't take itself too seriously and neither should you.
Excellent film! Terrific fun!
SpanxMcB16 January 2006
Good movie, even if it is a bit campy now. A great cast turn great performances with subtle comedy. Worth it just to see Alan Rickman as the brooding artist living next door. A comedy in the same spirit of "Rushmore". Ahead of its time and fantastic when you are in the right mood.
Kevin Klein walks a great line in this type of movie between a serious characterization and moments of comic hilarity. Susan Sarandon and Kevin Klein have wonderful on screen chemistry, and the rest of the supporting cast all are given opportunities to show off their skills through a well crafted script. It's well worth seeing.
Kevin Klein walks a great line in this type of movie between a serious characterization and moments of comic hilarity. Susan Sarandon and Kevin Klein have wonderful on screen chemistry, and the rest of the supporting cast all are given opportunities to show off their skills through a well crafted script. It's well worth seeing.
A former detective, now a fireman, searches for a serial-killer.
fedor82 January 2007
One of the most insane mainstream movies I've seen. An absurd mix of thriller, comedy, romance, and other things; the manic behaviour, strange dialogues, and weird/inconsistent mood-changes make this a very silly movie but also an enjoyable one. As flawed as it might be, I dare anyone to say that it's dull. Star-studded, as film-critics love to say, but in a good sense. Kline is entertaining as the detective-turned-fireman-turned-detective, Steiger - sporting silly blond hair - overacts like a lunatic in the role of the city's emotional mayor, Aiello plays the classic ever-angry cliché police boss, Keitel stands around looking rather bored, Mastrantonio shows that she's got terrific breasts, the model for the painting shows she's got even better breasts, and it's always good to have Susan Sarandon in a movie - though quite ironically of all actresses she doesn't show her terrific chest! The serial-killer in the story must be the most absurd serial-killer either on film or in reality: the method that he uses to select his victims, and the time and the place, has to be seen to be believed. The film has most of the elements to make it a camp classic.
Too serious a subject for a comedy
tsmith4176 May 2008
Warning: Spoilers
Let's see ... there's a serial killer on the loose, the police commissioner's brother is a genius profiler but is working instead as a fireman because of some not-clearly-explained scandal from two years ago involving bribery, and the brothers don't get along because the profiler had an affair with the commissioner's wife and their mother liked the profiler better.
The mayor is catching heat from the press over the murders so he demands that the profiler brother be reinstated on the force to catch the killer ... but not until after the ELEVENTH victim is killed! Red tape and pensions be damned, poof! the firefighter is now a policeman again, and for some reason insists that his artist friend who, in an unlikely blending of talents, is also a computer geek becomes a policeman too and he brings his parrot to the precinct, but does the profiler jump right on the case? Does he tell his brother that he's been following the case all these months and has some interesting theories about it? Noooo, he spends precious time trying to get his brother's wife, for whom he has been carrying a torch all this time, back into bed by cooking her a dinner consisting of weird foods because if she eats the food that means she still loves him. But she doesn't like the dinner so the profiler takes the mayor's daughter to bed instead, after he meets her at an ice skating rink about 20 minutes after her best friend's (who was the latest victim of the serial killer) funeral. Why she is at an ice skating rink is a mystery, but I suppose different people handle grief in different ways.
Are all the other cops working overtime trying to find the killer? Nooo, the only other cops we see in the precinct are two young kids and they're in no hurry to do much of anything, and when the killer is finally found and they're asked to send backup to the scene they don't move much faster. And when we finally get a brief glimpse of the killer he's in blackface and wearing a fright wig, looking like a minstrel Harpo Marx; now there's a surefire way not to bring attention to yourself when you're skulking through an apartment building. Or maybe the killer was just trying to look like the mayor, who also had a funky hairdo.
The profiler takes about a day to figure out the serial killer's M.O., so if he had been called in after, say, the SECOND murder instead of a year later, a lot more lives might have been saved. The police commissioner might have been the dirty cop after all, I'm not quite sure, and in the end the profiler, who has been lusting after his brother's wife for all this time, suddenly decides he doesn't care about her at all.
This is all happening in Hazzard County, and the characters are named Bo and Luke, right? Nope, it's New York City and this is supposedly serious business.
If, as some other reviewers have mentioned, this movie was more about the quirkiness of the profiler character, or about his relationships with the two women, my thought is that the writers would have been better off to have used a non-violent jewel thief as the focus of the police investigation because strangling women is just too serious a topic to take this lightly.
Kevin Kline, as the profiler, alternates between being serious about his job and playing it for laughs: he rescues a child from a burning building, gives her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, then asks nobody in particular if they can bring him a coffee, preferably an espresso. Harvey Keitel, as the police commissioner, spends the entire film looking embarrassed, and Rod Steiger, the mayor, tries too hard to work cusswords into his every conversation.
Susan Sarandon, the adulterous wife/spurned lover, goes from being a woman who still has soft feelings for Kline to being a bitchy gossip-monger who delights in telling the mayor that his daughter is sleeping with Kline. Alan Rickman's throwaway artist/computer geek character is apparently included only to supply an excuse for having a nude model, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is the 23-year-old mayor's daughter who still lives with her father and seems not to have a job because she's always at Kline's apartment.
As for the title, January Man, it doesn't make sense. The killer has had a victim in every month, so why not call him the June Man or the November Man? He uses a blue ribbon to strangle all his victims, so why hasn't he already been nicknamed the Blue Ribbon Killer? And why bother to name the film after the killer anyway, since that whole part of the storyline is more of an afterthought than a driving force? This might have been a fun film when it came out in 1989 but in light of all that has happened since then and how much we now know about serial killers it is embarrassing to watch today. If you're a Kevin Kline fan you might enjoy it for his performance, as silly as it is, but Harvey Keitel fans should rent "Smoke" instead.
The mayor is catching heat from the press over the murders so he demands that the profiler brother be reinstated on the force to catch the killer ... but not until after the ELEVENTH victim is killed! Red tape and pensions be damned, poof! the firefighter is now a policeman again, and for some reason insists that his artist friend who, in an unlikely blending of talents, is also a computer geek becomes a policeman too and he brings his parrot to the precinct, but does the profiler jump right on the case? Does he tell his brother that he's been following the case all these months and has some interesting theories about it? Noooo, he spends precious time trying to get his brother's wife, for whom he has been carrying a torch all this time, back into bed by cooking her a dinner consisting of weird foods because if she eats the food that means she still loves him. But she doesn't like the dinner so the profiler takes the mayor's daughter to bed instead, after he meets her at an ice skating rink about 20 minutes after her best friend's (who was the latest victim of the serial killer) funeral. Why she is at an ice skating rink is a mystery, but I suppose different people handle grief in different ways.
Are all the other cops working overtime trying to find the killer? Nooo, the only other cops we see in the precinct are two young kids and they're in no hurry to do much of anything, and when the killer is finally found and they're asked to send backup to the scene they don't move much faster. And when we finally get a brief glimpse of the killer he's in blackface and wearing a fright wig, looking like a minstrel Harpo Marx; now there's a surefire way not to bring attention to yourself when you're skulking through an apartment building. Or maybe the killer was just trying to look like the mayor, who also had a funky hairdo.
The profiler takes about a day to figure out the serial killer's M.O., so if he had been called in after, say, the SECOND murder instead of a year later, a lot more lives might have been saved. The police commissioner might have been the dirty cop after all, I'm not quite sure, and in the end the profiler, who has been lusting after his brother's wife for all this time, suddenly decides he doesn't care about her at all.
This is all happening in Hazzard County, and the characters are named Bo and Luke, right? Nope, it's New York City and this is supposedly serious business.
If, as some other reviewers have mentioned, this movie was more about the quirkiness of the profiler character, or about his relationships with the two women, my thought is that the writers would have been better off to have used a non-violent jewel thief as the focus of the police investigation because strangling women is just too serious a topic to take this lightly.
Kevin Kline, as the profiler, alternates between being serious about his job and playing it for laughs: he rescues a child from a burning building, gives her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, then asks nobody in particular if they can bring him a coffee, preferably an espresso. Harvey Keitel, as the police commissioner, spends the entire film looking embarrassed, and Rod Steiger, the mayor, tries too hard to work cusswords into his every conversation.
Susan Sarandon, the adulterous wife/spurned lover, goes from being a woman who still has soft feelings for Kline to being a bitchy gossip-monger who delights in telling the mayor that his daughter is sleeping with Kline. Alan Rickman's throwaway artist/computer geek character is apparently included only to supply an excuse for having a nude model, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio is the 23-year-old mayor's daughter who still lives with her father and seems not to have a job because she's always at Kline's apartment.
As for the title, January Man, it doesn't make sense. The killer has had a victim in every month, so why not call him the June Man or the November Man? He uses a blue ribbon to strangle all his victims, so why hasn't he already been nicknamed the Blue Ribbon Killer? And why bother to name the film after the killer anyway, since that whole part of the storyline is more of an afterthought than a driving force? This might have been a fun film when it came out in 1989 but in light of all that has happened since then and how much we now know about serial killers it is embarrassing to watch today. If you're a Kevin Kline fan you might enjoy it for his performance, as silly as it is, but Harvey Keitel fans should rent "Smoke" instead.
Nice and underrated thriller-comedy
bellino-angelo201416 February 2021
I saw this movie for the first time in December 2015 and I liked it so and so. I re-watched it a week ago and my opinion hasn't changed at all after all these years. And I do think it doesn't deserve its score of 5,6 as I am writing here.
On 1988's New Year's Eve Allison Hawkins returns at home completely drunk and after she feeds her fish we see her strangled with a blue rope by a mysterious man. Mayor Flynn (Rod Steiger) orders Police Commissioner Frank Starkey (Harvey Keitel) to call his brother Nick (Kevin Kline) as he might probably be the only man capable to catch the serial killer since he has unique ways of investigating. And soon Nick proves to be perfect for the job: he begins to date Bernadette Flynn (the Mayor's daughter) as she was the last person who saw Allison alive. After a few dates he discovers that the serial killer murders with a special technique (of killing a victim for every month of the year) and he won't stop at nothing for avoiding The January Man's future crimes.
I guess I kinda liked this movie because the comedy moments were very good and they were useful for the movie's timing. The cast is quite a surprising one for a movie with two genres mixed in one: I had never been a huge fan of Kevin Kline but here he gives a nice performance, Harvey Keitel gives one of his rare calm performances and Susan Sarandon other than being super gorgeous is also very good as Kline's feisty former wife. I was very surprised to see Rod Steiger here as I usually saw him in dramatic roles but he as usual didn't disappoint.
If you expect some serious and complicated thriller such as SEVEN then you have picked the wrong movie, but if you want some not too serious thriller for spending an hour and a half without reflecting too much on what happens, this is the perfect movie for you. And if you are in the right mindset, you'll kinda like it.
On 1988's New Year's Eve Allison Hawkins returns at home completely drunk and after she feeds her fish we see her strangled with a blue rope by a mysterious man. Mayor Flynn (Rod Steiger) orders Police Commissioner Frank Starkey (Harvey Keitel) to call his brother Nick (Kevin Kline) as he might probably be the only man capable to catch the serial killer since he has unique ways of investigating. And soon Nick proves to be perfect for the job: he begins to date Bernadette Flynn (the Mayor's daughter) as she was the last person who saw Allison alive. After a few dates he discovers that the serial killer murders with a special technique (of killing a victim for every month of the year) and he won't stop at nothing for avoiding The January Man's future crimes.
I guess I kinda liked this movie because the comedy moments were very good and they were useful for the movie's timing. The cast is quite a surprising one for a movie with two genres mixed in one: I had never been a huge fan of Kevin Kline but here he gives a nice performance, Harvey Keitel gives one of his rare calm performances and Susan Sarandon other than being super gorgeous is also very good as Kline's feisty former wife. I was very surprised to see Rod Steiger here as I usually saw him in dramatic roles but he as usual didn't disappoint.
If you expect some serious and complicated thriller such as SEVEN then you have picked the wrong movie, but if you want some not too serious thriller for spending an hour and a half without reflecting too much on what happens, this is the perfect movie for you. And if you are in the right mindset, you'll kinda like it.
Terrible, unfunny, unromantic film
fleagles4 May 2000
Terrible Good actors with bad material. How do you go wrong with Kevin Kline, Susan Sarandon, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (I haven't liked her in anything else, but she was actually good here), Harvey Keitel, Rod Steiger, and Danny Aiello ? Put them in a movie with a terrible screenplay and nothing to do. Kline plays a former cop, now fireman, and brother of the New York City police commissioner (Keitel do these two look like brothers at all NO!), who is called back on the force to stop a serial killer. Sarandon is Keitel's wife and was Kline's lover, and Mastrantonio is falling for our Kevin. The worst (over)acting job goes to Steiger, who seethes like a rabid dog throughout the whole movie. Anyway, to catch this creep, Kline uses methods so unbelievable (not in a good way) that you'll be shaking your head. To think: this garbage was written by the same guy who wrote Moonstruck.
Vote: 3
Vote: 3
Watch it for the over-the-top performances!!!
SpeedyFromTheBerks13 June 2006
Warning: Spoilers
I bought THE January MAN on DVD awhile back and it just sat in with all my other DVD's. I let a friend borrow it and, while in his possession, he was sentenced to a year in a House of Corrections (I won't get into it). I guess I was lucky that his girlfriend was nice enough to give me the DVD back. Anyway, when I did get it back I decided to watch it. I'm glad I did. The plot that involves THE January MAN himself is nothing spectacular. KEVIN KLINE plays Nick Starkey, an ex-cop who was outed from the force. His brother, Frank Starkey (HARVEY KEITEL), is the police commissioner. When a series of serial murders happens, Frank knows that if they want to catch the culprit, they need to bring in in best man for the job of catching this guy and the best man is Nick. Not everyone agrees, including Captain Vincent Alcoa (DANNY AIELLO-this is one of the over-the-top performances), though when Nick needs help, the Captain, though reluctant, always comes through. Another one of the fore-mentioned over-the-top performances comes from ROD STEIGER as the Mayor. And I was laughing my ass off at the part where Christine Starkey (SUSAN SARANDON), Nick's old love interest and now Frank's wife, slaps Nick upside the face and then continues to do so. This is a movie that doesn't take itself to seriously and neither should you.
wacky silly serial killer movie
SnoopyStyle4 April 2015
It's New Year's Eve in NYC. Manhattan socialite Alison Hawkins is killed by a serial killer in her apartment as his 11th victim. Her best friend Bernadette Flynn (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) just dropped her off and just happens to be the mayor's daughter. Police commissioner Frank Starkey (Harvey Keitel) is under heavy pressure and Mayor Flynn (Rod Steiger) forces him to get his brother Nick Starkey (Kevin Kline). Nick was expelled from the force in disgraced two years ago and is now a hero firefighter. Frank's wife Christine (Susan Sarandon) is Nick's ex-girlfriend. Capt. Vincent Alcoa (Danny Aiello) hates the idea. Ed (Alan Rickman) is Nick's wacky artistic neighbor.
The tone is all over the place. I wonder if the movie realizes that it's trying to make funny jokes in the middle of a serial killer movie. The problem is that the jokes are so wildly uncontrolled that it wouldn't be funny anyways. Everybody seems to be in their own separate movies. Aiello and Steiger are screaming. Kline and Rickman are wacky. Kline and Sarandon are doing a weird melodrama. Keitel is simply trying to survive the mess. Mastrantonio is in a different movie aka the serious serial killer movie and she's no 23. The switches in tone gave me whiplash. The final chase is way too wacky. The killer is doing blackface with white shinny gloves. They turn it into a farce and any chance the movie had goes away.
The tone is all over the place. I wonder if the movie realizes that it's trying to make funny jokes in the middle of a serial killer movie. The problem is that the jokes are so wildly uncontrolled that it wouldn't be funny anyways. Everybody seems to be in their own separate movies. Aiello and Steiger are screaming. Kline and Rickman are wacky. Kline and Sarandon are doing a weird melodrama. Keitel is simply trying to survive the mess. Mastrantonio is in a different movie aka the serious serial killer movie and she's no 23. The switches in tone gave me whiplash. The final chase is way too wacky. The killer is doing blackface with white shinny gloves. They turn it into a farce and any chance the movie had goes away.
kevin kline and fun co-stars
ksf-218 February 2021
Kevin Kline is Nick Starkey, kicked off the force for un-policemen-like conduct. when multiple women get strangled, they call Starkey back into cop service, to solve the murder. we spend a whole LOT of time showing how mad the police department higher ups and the press are that Starkey is being brought back. Some fun co-stars -- Harvey Keitel, Danny Aiello, Rod Steiger, Alan Rickman Susan Sarandon. once they catch the killer, will they be able to hold on to him? directed by Pat O'Connor. this is one of two films he made with M-E Mastrantonio, so i'd wager they met while making this film. got married. Story by John Shanley, who also wrote Moonstruck. which also used opera playing in the background. Norman Jewison directed moonstruck.. and also produced this film, January Man! Greg Walker, not only plays a role in the film, but also is the stunt co-ordinator. and... Danny Aiello III was not just the son of actor Danny Aiello, but was also a stuntman in this film. sadly, died young at 53.
Utterly dreadful
cattonine10 April 2004
When someone loaned me this on DVD, I couldn't believe I'd never heard of it - Kline, Sarandon, Keitel, Mastrantonio, Steiger, Rickman, Aiello - what a cast! And then I watched it. This script couldn't decide what it wanted to be. It's a thriller with no suspense, a comedy with no laughs, a story with an utterly ridiculous plot. Did no one READ this script before they decided to waste some film? And the actors all look like they know this is going to be a huge waste of time - Rod Steiger, in particular, gives what has to have been the worst performance of his career. It's all one level - loud. Don't waste your time with this movie - this isn't one that's so bad it's good. It's just plain bad. Rent something like "Plan 9 From Outer Space" instead, and have a hilariously good time.
Unfairly underrated
K-Slicer15 August 2002
I really liked this film. Far be it from being one of the greatest films of all time, this is one that is in the category of "underrated" like Loser and The Bone Collector. I really liked the way the plot and the characters developed. To me, I thought the cast were all a little out there but isn't all of humanity like that in form or another. Kevin Kline did very well as an unfairly disgraced homocide cop who had a beatnik mentality. He turned what many might consider a very below standard screenplay and turned it into a watchable film. His performance is the best of the movie. The performances of Alan Rickman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Danny Aiello are also noteworthy. There are a few flaws in this film but it was a great work overall. It isn't as bad as the IMDB rating suggests. It is very adult and somewhat intellectual and it is almost believable. The ending surprised me and I don't think it was chinsy or overdone. I think it was supposed to try and imitate real life a little bit and it succeeded. It may not fit a particular genre but that doesn't mean it stinks. This is a film that doesn't conform to certain Hollywood standards and that is the main reason I liked it. This is one of Kevin Kline's best films and I suggest the detractors should take another look at it. The January Man is one of the most underrated films of all time and it will probably always be that way.
9 out of 10. It's amazing what 10 bucks and the bargain DVD rack at Wal-Mart can get you.
9 out of 10. It's amazing what 10 bucks and the bargain DVD rack at Wal-Mart can get you.
Trash, to be sure, but fun trash
ClkwrkOr97-326 June 2001
"The January Man" is one of the most ludicrously-conceived, miscast, and blatantly manhandled films ever. Why is it, then, that I always find myself watching it late-at-night (usually in the venue of USA or TNN networks)? Maybe I'm a glutton for punishment. During my recent viewing, however, I noticed something. Within each actor struggling on-screen to make yet another terrible line work, a emotion best characterized by the phrase, "Oh, what the hell..." I do not doubt that Kline, Steiger, Rickman, and Keitel--talented as they might be--knew they got cast in a good idea gone bad. When they finally admitted it to themselves, they decided to have fun with what was left. The result is a very bad movie starring good actors acting badly, reveling in their own badness: an accomplishment in postmodernism if anything ever was.
So how does one rate such a situation (probably best not use the word "film" here)? Two options: 1) You ignore the context of what has been brought to and upon these actors and go for the jugular. In the IMDB realm of rating, that would result in a 2 or 3 (1/2 star or * for those liking a four-star system). 2) You sit back, leave your logic at home, grab a buddy or spouse who revels in bad movies, and have a lot of fun. A "so bad it's good night" would be in order: rating of 6 or 7.
I'll take the low road. Final rating: 6, with a wink.
Recommendations for viewing: Romance is out of the question; think neighbor or football buddy. Go with some junk food and the cheapest beer you can find. Watch as part of a triple feature, including "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and "Ishtar."
So how does one rate such a situation (probably best not use the word "film" here)? Two options: 1) You ignore the context of what has been brought to and upon these actors and go for the jugular. In the IMDB realm of rating, that would result in a 2 or 3 (1/2 star or * for those liking a four-star system). 2) You sit back, leave your logic at home, grab a buddy or spouse who revels in bad movies, and have a lot of fun. A "so bad it's good night" would be in order: rating of 6 or 7.
I'll take the low road. Final rating: 6, with a wink.
Recommendations for viewing: Romance is out of the question; think neighbor or football buddy. Go with some junk food and the cheapest beer you can find. Watch as part of a triple feature, including "Plan 9 From Outer Space" and "Ishtar."
The world is either great or wretched, isn't it? So many people are just... finished.
film-critic25 January 2005
Comedy? Thriller? Suspense? I guess that these are all words or genres that you could use to describe this film. I would use these words if I wanted to gloss over the true feeling of this film. I would use these words if I had to sell this wallow-some film to a distributor who didn't know any better. I would use these words lightly, because if I ever believed them the battle would be forever lost. This was not a comedy. It was not a thriller. It definitely was not a suspense. So, what was it? After viewing this film I came to the conclusion that The January Man reminded me of a puzzle put together by a two-year-old. While all the pieces were in the box to put together, sadly the infant size brain of the child chose to smash the pieces together instead of place them in corresponding orders. Thus, you have a jumbled mess with wedged pieces of what could have been an overall beautiful picture. With poor acting, a confusing plot that literally went nowhere and an ending that felt forced and premature, one can see that this puzzle is unfixable by even the best puzzler in the world. If I were those involved with the creation, I would definitely be ashamed.
To begin, what was wrong with the actors? Nobody seemed like they were giving 10% much less 50% of their effort for this film. Even the great ones like Keitel, Kline, and Sarandon felt like they were walking through the motions with equally confused eyes and hearts. Kline's New York accent faded in and out throughout the film giving us no glimpse of his actual character. His role was never fully defined, so the other half of the time that we watch him on screen we just don't care about him at all. This was one of the worst leading characters of all time. Thankfully, a completely miscast team that seemed more interested in the money than actually "acting" backs him up. Keitel was horrible in this film. I am a huge fan of his body of work, but in this one he walked, talked, and gave those emotionless eyes a rest. He provided nothing of value to this production. The same can be said about Sarandon, whose character seemed unfocused and undervalued, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, who never really got her feet wet in Hollywood until Maid Marion arrived at her doorstep. Alan Rickman was wasted, as well as the one-leveled voices of Danny Aiello and Rod Steiger whose only direction from Pat O'Conner was to yell. In other words, if you are interested in seeing this film for the acting, you will be greatly disappointed.
Second, perhaps the acting can be overlooked by a strong story line? WRONG! This was the most convoluted script that I have ever seen Hollywood produce. We spend the first forty minutes learning about an event that happened two years ago that is never fully explained anyway. It reminded of those times that the teacher would say in class that we should all listen up because this wasn't going to be on the test. Then why bother. This set the spiraling downfall for the rest of the film. This unavailable information also lead to some pretty choppy chemistry between the actors. I never say Kline and Keitel as brothers. I never saw the relationship with Sarandon possible. In fact, now that I think about it, I didn't see any of the actors meshing well together because they were working with a script that was focused on all the wrong parts. Eventually, The January Man gets so caught up on this secondary story that we find ourselves rushed into an ending and a solution that seems laughable instead of plausible. We even have a villain that is so confusing that I don't even think he knew what he was doing in the film. The final thirty minutes of this film were the worst parts of this movie, second to all the parts before that. Whoever wrote this script must have just forgotten the basic rules of storytelling because nothing meshed well at all.
Finally, I would have to comment that the marketing for this film could feel like a cheated ticket to some film goers. After reading some reviews for this film, I was expecting to find myself chuckling out loud at the antics of Kevin Kline and his spin on the world of investigation. I was wrong. There was no humor in this film at all. Even when O'Conner tried to bring some in, it seemed forced and unhealthy. I must repeat, this is not a comedy. It even isn't really that suspenseful, nor is the thrilling aspect actually that thrilling. I must admit that whomever sold this film to a company under the guise that it was a comedy should be awarded the "Best Salesman of the Decade" award. Somebody believed this film was funny and even pasted a preview to it with the word "comedy" written all over it. Someone sold the company a broken product hook, line, and sinker. I just ask you to beware.
Overall, this film was horrible. From the poor acting, the cryptic story that needed some form of decoder ring to understand, the passionless actors, to the harshly branded word "comedy", January Man proves that not all films should be made and that an advanced screen process should be used regularly. I genuinely encourage you to skip this film. No good will come of you watching this mess. I promise.
Grade: * out of *****
To begin, what was wrong with the actors? Nobody seemed like they were giving 10% much less 50% of their effort for this film. Even the great ones like Keitel, Kline, and Sarandon felt like they were walking through the motions with equally confused eyes and hearts. Kline's New York accent faded in and out throughout the film giving us no glimpse of his actual character. His role was never fully defined, so the other half of the time that we watch him on screen we just don't care about him at all. This was one of the worst leading characters of all time. Thankfully, a completely miscast team that seemed more interested in the money than actually "acting" backs him up. Keitel was horrible in this film. I am a huge fan of his body of work, but in this one he walked, talked, and gave those emotionless eyes a rest. He provided nothing of value to this production. The same can be said about Sarandon, whose character seemed unfocused and undervalued, and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, who never really got her feet wet in Hollywood until Maid Marion arrived at her doorstep. Alan Rickman was wasted, as well as the one-leveled voices of Danny Aiello and Rod Steiger whose only direction from Pat O'Conner was to yell. In other words, if you are interested in seeing this film for the acting, you will be greatly disappointed.
Second, perhaps the acting can be overlooked by a strong story line? WRONG! This was the most convoluted script that I have ever seen Hollywood produce. We spend the first forty minutes learning about an event that happened two years ago that is never fully explained anyway. It reminded of those times that the teacher would say in class that we should all listen up because this wasn't going to be on the test. Then why bother. This set the spiraling downfall for the rest of the film. This unavailable information also lead to some pretty choppy chemistry between the actors. I never say Kline and Keitel as brothers. I never saw the relationship with Sarandon possible. In fact, now that I think about it, I didn't see any of the actors meshing well together because they were working with a script that was focused on all the wrong parts. Eventually, The January Man gets so caught up on this secondary story that we find ourselves rushed into an ending and a solution that seems laughable instead of plausible. We even have a villain that is so confusing that I don't even think he knew what he was doing in the film. The final thirty minutes of this film were the worst parts of this movie, second to all the parts before that. Whoever wrote this script must have just forgotten the basic rules of storytelling because nothing meshed well at all.
Finally, I would have to comment that the marketing for this film could feel like a cheated ticket to some film goers. After reading some reviews for this film, I was expecting to find myself chuckling out loud at the antics of Kevin Kline and his spin on the world of investigation. I was wrong. There was no humor in this film at all. Even when O'Conner tried to bring some in, it seemed forced and unhealthy. I must repeat, this is not a comedy. It even isn't really that suspenseful, nor is the thrilling aspect actually that thrilling. I must admit that whomever sold this film to a company under the guise that it was a comedy should be awarded the "Best Salesman of the Decade" award. Somebody believed this film was funny and even pasted a preview to it with the word "comedy" written all over it. Someone sold the company a broken product hook, line, and sinker. I just ask you to beware.
Overall, this film was horrible. From the poor acting, the cryptic story that needed some form of decoder ring to understand, the passionless actors, to the harshly branded word "comedy", January Man proves that not all films should be made and that an advanced screen process should be used regularly. I genuinely encourage you to skip this film. No good will come of you watching this mess. I promise.
Grade: * out of *****
A really odd movie
Wizard-815 June 2014
"The January Man" bombed both with critics and the box office when it was released to theaters. It doesn't take long watching it to figure out why. The script, for starters, is a real mess. It takes deadly serious elements and mixes them with broadly comedic elements. It might have been possible to balance them properly when it came to filming them, but the cast doesn't seem capable of doing so. Except maybe for Alan Rickman, the cast gives really awful performances (especially Rod Steiger), not helped by a number of instances of some really terrible dialogue. You can sense director Pat O'Connor's lack of assurance with this project, not just that he couldn't steer the cast properly, but with a screenplay that has a number of elements that feel half baked or unfinished. (Actually, there are signs that the original cut of the movie was more coherent, but got edited down to a shorter running time before being released.)
However, I have to admit that the movie remains weirdly watchable. It's so odd in its changing tone, next to incoherent at times with its story, and packed with really bad performances by a normally talented cast, that you can't help but keep watching in order to see what next miscalculation will be displayed on the screen. It certainly doesn't make the big mistake of being boring. If you have an interest in major studio movies that go wrong in just about every way you can think of, this does deliver.
However, I have to admit that the movie remains weirdly watchable. It's so odd in its changing tone, next to incoherent at times with its story, and packed with really bad performances by a normally talented cast, that you can't help but keep watching in order to see what next miscalculation will be displayed on the screen. It certainly doesn't make the big mistake of being boring. If you have an interest in major studio movies that go wrong in just about every way you can think of, this does deliver.
This movie doesn't know what genre it wants to be!
bronwood3 March 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Have just watched this movie for the first ( and probably the last) time with my husband. We were drawn to the fabulous cast, Kevin Kline, Susan Sarandon, Rod Steiger, Harvey Keitel, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Alan Rickman & Danny Aiello. For most of the movie we enjoyed the intrigue and quirky story. It is billed as action, crime, mystery and there was plenty of that. Now here is the spoiler: why, oh why did they decide to change it into a comedy at the end! I know in the movies logic is not a big thing, but I was asking my husband why she didn't just leave the key in the door, or at least hand them to him. The murderer wasn't going to notice if she had them or not. It just became a total farce from then on. The movie did not need that. We were both very disappointed in the slap-stick element in the last 10 minutes.
Loved it since I was little
jritty31 January 2021
Most reviews have stated the obvious, the flaws (it meanders at times), the highlights (Rickman) so I won do that.. It's a fun, flawed romp that has a few scary scene and some real funny stuff. I love the way he solves the crime and the ending is what I want to talk about. I hate to talk down and play the 'didn't get it' card but I will. Out all these reviews I only read ONE person mention the correct interpretation of the ending. It's not over the cop slapstick - it's supposed to be real. The way it's all on the fly and a low rent home made setup is great but the stair case scene is literally how that shit would go down. This ain't Se7en lol...our guy is gonna fight his way to catch this killer. I love it and I think it's Kline's best moment on film tbh. I think this is one of those times where the LONGER movie (if it exists) might have been better and the tone and pace were affected by removing stuff. I'd watch a longer version if that was the case but I think it could have been cut down a little better too. I do agree with one other reviewer who said when your in the right mood it's better.
Great actors are the ONLY thing keeping this silly romantic detective afloat. They dont act well though and the story is plain silly. Wish I hadnt seen it...
imseeg19 September 2019
A serial killer is being chased by a detective (Kevin Kline). Along the way he has 2 romantic affairs and a quarrel with his brother. That's about it. And that's not a lot, story-wise speaking.
Great actors are the ONLY thing keeping this silly romantic detective afloat. But only just... However great these actors normally are, they dont act well in this movie, but since they are all great actors anyway their famous names suckered me into watching it. Wish I hadnt...sigh...
Basically all the actors are miscast in this movie. I really cant believe in any of the characters. The story is fluffy and the dialogues are mediocre. There is NO true suspense, which is kind of annoying, since it is a detective. There are few good jokes. The romantic scenes are many and they all are quite ridiculous, because they are not believable.
What's there left to like? Well it has got the promise of becoming great, because all these actors are terrific in OTHER movies. Unfortunately they aint terrific in this one. Skip it. Or watch it with the same feeling of promise and hope that it still might turn out to be okay, only to find out that it wont...sigh...
Great actors are the ONLY thing keeping this silly romantic detective afloat. But only just... However great these actors normally are, they dont act well in this movie, but since they are all great actors anyway their famous names suckered me into watching it. Wish I hadnt...sigh...
Basically all the actors are miscast in this movie. I really cant believe in any of the characters. The story is fluffy and the dialogues are mediocre. There is NO true suspense, which is kind of annoying, since it is a detective. There are few good jokes. The romantic scenes are many and they all are quite ridiculous, because they are not believable.
What's there left to like? Well it has got the promise of becoming great, because all these actors are terrific in OTHER movies. Unfortunately they aint terrific in this one. Skip it. Or watch it with the same feeling of promise and hope that it still might turn out to be okay, only to find out that it wont...sigh...
Happy 60th, Susan!
lee_eisenberg5 October 2006
Since today is (well yesterday was) Susan Sarandon's 60th birthday, I saw fit to review one of her lesser known movies (actually, it's Kevin Kline's movie). "January Man" is not a movie that I really know how to describe. Kevin Kline plays Nick Starkey, an ex-cop who gets drug back into the force to help find a serial killer. It's certainly a common plot. This one toes the line between thriller and love story; I guess that neither is supposed to dominate.
I would say that the movie's main strength lies in the various kinds of characters portrayed. Aside from Kline's ex-cop and Sarandon as his wife, there's the new love interest (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), Nick's brother (Harvey Keitel), the tough captain (Danny Aiello), and the old-order mayor (Rod Steiger); Alan Rickman also stars.
So, did I think that this was a good movie? I don't know what it really was. An interesting group of people with an anticlimactic ending, more than anything. I suppose that the movie's worth seeing, if only once.
I would say that the movie's main strength lies in the various kinds of characters portrayed. Aside from Kline's ex-cop and Sarandon as his wife, there's the new love interest (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), Nick's brother (Harvey Keitel), the tough captain (Danny Aiello), and the old-order mayor (Rod Steiger); Alan Rickman also stars.
So, did I think that this was a good movie? I don't know what it really was. An interesting group of people with an anticlimactic ending, more than anything. I suppose that the movie's worth seeing, if only once.
Rod Steiger serves up a big side of ham
firma_ment2 January 2021
This was a really dumb movie, with a ridiculous plot, and poor acting. The worst offender, however, is Rod Steiger, who serves up one of the biggest sides of ham I've ever seen. Talk about chewing the scenery. Wow, his performance is so hopped-up, goggle-eyed, and hilariously bad, it ranks up there with Stephen Boyd's performance in The Oscar, and Jack Palance's performance in The Desperados, as one of the most hysterical, side-splitting, over-the-top performances ever put on celluloid. Steiger always struck me as an over-actor, but he really lets rip with this performance. There is one scene in the mayor's office with Harvey Keitel, where he mugs so insanely I burst out laughing. I swear it looks like Harvey Keitel is about to burst out laughing too. It's unbelievably bad.
The cast deserves better.
Bing-1811 November 1999
A serial killer terrorizes a city and only one cop can solve the puzzle, which unbelievably involves prime numbers, star signs and musical tunes! This is either a huge coincidence or a route to a killers identity that only a screenwriter could think up.
Kevin Kline as the brilliant but disgraced cop is on auto-pilot, in a role he could do in his sleep. Alan Rickman is merely window dressing on the edges and is completely wasted as is Susan Sarandon. Harvey Keitel and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio put in passable performances but really the whole cast simply deserves a better movie.
The big problem is that the film tries to pack in too many ideas, the murder, government corruption, family relationships, and a bit of comedy and consequently skims the lot and doesn't do one of them really well.
A passable movie but there are many better detective, action movies around to choose instead.
Kevin Kline as the brilliant but disgraced cop is on auto-pilot, in a role he could do in his sleep. Alan Rickman is merely window dressing on the edges and is completely wasted as is Susan Sarandon. Harvey Keitel and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio put in passable performances but really the whole cast simply deserves a better movie.
The big problem is that the film tries to pack in too many ideas, the murder, government corruption, family relationships, and a bit of comedy and consequently skims the lot and doesn't do one of them really well.
A passable movie but there are many better detective, action movies around to choose instead.
One of those overlooked and underrated gems
mjhalta21 July 2006
The one scene with Rod Steiger berating Danny Aiello is worth the price of renting this movie. In fact it has several memorable scenes that set it apart from the usual paint by number serial murderer mysteries. The hero is a quirky character played to perfection by Kevin Klein. The movie has an interesting, intertwined romantic plot with a twist to it that is satisfying if not unexpected. I have watched this movie many times and will undoubtedly pull it out again to watch all over. You can do that with certain movies, others gather dust. A movie is a collection of scenes, some of them memorable, some not. This movie has its share of memorable ones and maybe thats why I keep coming back.
"You're a real shamus."
lost-in-limbo19 April 2013
"The January Man" is a fairly offbeat, if thoughtful crime thriller set in Manhattan, where its main focus is on the characters leaving the serial killer elements to be secondary. So much so, you forget there's a vicious serial killer about until the underwhelming revelation. After figuring out the pattern behind the crimes all we get is; "He's a nobody". Still being the case, it's the quirky lead performance of Kevin Kline's beatnik character that drives this one home and along with director Pat O'Connor's able handling.
Personal dramas and friction lead the way, which are actually a lot more interesting than the slowly pitched out investigative angle of John Patrick Shanley's jarringly unsure screenplay where Kline's disgraced ex-cop character is hesitantly asked (by his police commissioner brother played with stern mentality by Harvey Kietel) to rejoin the police fore to help track down a serial killer that for every month has been killing a women for 11 months.
The concept had some promise even if the nature of it can be routine, but whenever it tackles Kline's character looking into the pattern of this serial killer, trying his best to work him out and beat the clock before the next murder. It suddenly takes a sidestep into uncharted area, involving his brother and his wife (who was his ex-girlfriend which Susan Sarandon gives a icy turn), the reason why he was originally sacked from the police force is shady and why would they get rid of someone who they think is smart and believe can get the job done. The script only seems to open up more questions then what it started off with and some occurrences are somewhat convenient to the story's progression, but it remains engrossingly witty with a certain edge about it. Then there's the romance with witness / mayor's daughter by the delightful Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio.
However there are some memorable moments, especially consisting of Rod Steiger's scolding performance as the Mayor and Danny Aiello's hot- headed police Captain. Also showing their faces are Faye Grant, Kenneth Walsh, Bill Cobbs and an amusingly dry Alan Rickman as Kline's neighbour / artist friend. The assortment of this cast really builds up a perfect chemistry to watch.
"Hate this job".
Personal dramas and friction lead the way, which are actually a lot more interesting than the slowly pitched out investigative angle of John Patrick Shanley's jarringly unsure screenplay where Kline's disgraced ex-cop character is hesitantly asked (by his police commissioner brother played with stern mentality by Harvey Kietel) to rejoin the police fore to help track down a serial killer that for every month has been killing a women for 11 months.
The concept had some promise even if the nature of it can be routine, but whenever it tackles Kline's character looking into the pattern of this serial killer, trying his best to work him out and beat the clock before the next murder. It suddenly takes a sidestep into uncharted area, involving his brother and his wife (who was his ex-girlfriend which Susan Sarandon gives a icy turn), the reason why he was originally sacked from the police force is shady and why would they get rid of someone who they think is smart and believe can get the job done. The script only seems to open up more questions then what it started off with and some occurrences are somewhat convenient to the story's progression, but it remains engrossingly witty with a certain edge about it. Then there's the romance with witness / mayor's daughter by the delightful Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio.
However there are some memorable moments, especially consisting of Rod Steiger's scolding performance as the Mayor and Danny Aiello's hot- headed police Captain. Also showing their faces are Faye Grant, Kenneth Walsh, Bill Cobbs and an amusingly dry Alan Rickman as Kline's neighbour / artist friend. The assortment of this cast really builds up a perfect chemistry to watch.
"Hate this job".
Interesting characters, totally useless plot.
tireless_crank17 June 2010
The only superlative about this movie is Rod Steiger's role. This is by far, the worst role he ever played, totally overdone every time he is on the screen with a hairdo modeled on Harpo Marx and the expository style of Hitler. Danny Aielo gets short shrift from the screen writer and Harvey Keitel gets used and thrown away. Kevin Kline has a bizarre accent, strange affect and a great ability to suppress the laughs he must be feeling at the dialog he was asked to say. Alan Rickman was cute and extraneous, Susan Sarandon was there and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio has large and attractive boobs for a small woman - she didn't have much of anything else to do in this film.
Plot - stupid, ridiculous, complex and extraneous.
Plot - stupid, ridiculous, complex and extraneous.
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