Despite the fact that Defenseless has one of the best ensemble casts in a long while, Martin Campbell’s (Criminal Law) new film is hardly much more than a flimsy retread of overly-familiar genre conventions and suspenseful plotting. Attorney T.K. Katwuller (Hershey) is in the midst of an affair with a client (Walsh) when he is killed. Was he a successful corporate warlord, or a sleazy member of the Los Angeles porno underground? This is a murder/thriller, so you can bet he was more than just a libidinous businessman. Screenwriter James Hicks has written a story that ought to grab our attention and never let go, but somewhere in the transition from words to images the heart of the movie disappeared without a trace. I can see just how great this probably looked on paper, but in the final product, the only greatness visible is in the cast, and even they seem to occasionally be wandering around without too much to do. Which is a major shame, considering the cumulative skills of the four majors. Perhaps it’s just a sign of the times, but the mystery in Defenseless — although it does have the requisite shady characters, missing evidence, hard-boiled detective, et al. — is hardly as engaging as the relatively innocuous mystery of where you put your car keys last, or why the Braves are so darn lousy. I keep thinking that if only the producers had the good sense to allow mystery novelist Sue Grafton to pen the script, things might have turned out a little bit more interesting… then again, maybe not. Whichever, this may be your only chance this year to see Sam Shepard running around minus one of his front teeth. Not much of a draw, I know, but sadly, that’s the most amazing thing about this film.
This article appears in August 30 • 1991 (Cover).