The Killer Inside Me (2010) R

I don't know why it took 34 years for the best-selling novel by Jim Thompson to be adapted for the screen again (this is technically a remake of a 1976 film by the same name). Perhaps it was the intimidating subject matter of the book. Controversial director Michael Winterbottom (A Mighty Heart, Code 46) was the perfect choice to give it a try. Casey Affleck (Gone Baby Gone, Ocean's Thirteen) was the ideal choice as the lead character. There was something about him in The Assassination of Jesse James that's just absolutely creepy. He takes his Robert Ford character and turns it up a notch in this interesting drama/thriller. This film takes place in a small Texas town in the 1950's, and it's beautifully shot in New Mexico.

Affleck plays Deputy Sheriff Lou Ford (no, not the former Minnesota Twins outfielder). He's a seemingly normal young man who has aspirations of being the Sheriff someday. He takes his orders from Sheriff Bob Maples, played by the delirious Tom Bower (River's Edge, Crazy Heart). Bob never suspects a thing from Lou at any point.

Lou takes an interest in a young boy named Johnnie Pappas (Liam Aiken). Whether or not Lou is using Johnnie is up for interpretation. I should mention at this point that this film is hard to follow at times. There is plenty of dialogue and scenes that have you scratching your head. What people don't know is that Lou has urges deep inside him that are about to be unleashed on the towns-folks. Lou is in a relationship with a young vixen named Amy (Kate Hudson). Everyone adores the two.

Lou gets an assignment to visit the house of Joyce Lakeland (Jessica Alba). Joyce has a reputation of being the town prostitute. Lou must evict her and send her packing. After a shouting match over the situation, Joyce beings hitting Lou out of frustration. Lou doesn't back down and begins hitting her. Unbelievably, they begin a sadomasochistic relationship as they both enjoy inflicting and receiving pain.

Another thing on Lou's mind is the death of his brother Mike. What we later find out is that Mike went to prison for sexual assault (which Lou committed). Lou believes his death wasn't accidental. He believes a man named Chester Conway (Ned Beatty) was behind it. Chester's son Elmer (Jay R. Ferguson) is sleeping with Joyce and is in love with her. Chester finds out about it and was the one who hired Lou to boot her out of town. But Lou informs Elmer of the situation. Unaware of the relationship Lou and Joyce have, Elmer also hires Lou to help them leave town together. Things are getting interesting and confusing for us. The killer inside Lou is aching to come out, and he soon will.

So, one night Lou gets instructions from all parties. But, he disobeys every ones orders and visits Joyce. They do their crazy sex games for a half an hour and out of nowhere, Lou beats the living hell out of Joyce. We knew Lou wasn't all there in the head, but this came from left field. Elmer shows up on the scene and Lou shoots him square in the forehead. He sets the scene up to look like a double homicide; an act of lust and desire. However, Joyce isn't dead like Lou had planned, but she's in a coma. Chester Conway wants to keep her alive, because he believes she killed his son. He wants her to suffer.

F.B.I. agent Howard Hendricks (Simon Baker) and local investigator Joe Rothman (Elias Koteas) begin breathing down Lou's neck over the situation. Although Lou has an alibi, they both believe he's their man. All signs point to an outside party doing the beating and shooting. Johnnie Pappas takes the rap and gets arrested because of a technicality. Just like Lou's brother before him, Johnnie takes the fall and ends up hanging himself in his jail cell (or did Lou hang him?).

The whole thing blows over (for the time being) and Lou begins spending more time with Amy. He proposes to her out of impulse; she accepts. Howard and Joe still haven't given up on nailing Lou on a murder charge. Elsewhere, Joyce is close to returning consciousness and she knows the truth. Lou's whole devious plan is put in jeopardy when a local hermit reveals he saw the whole act. Will Lou be able to pay him off or will this be the end of his killing spree?

The storyline is rather enticing. Although no one I know would do these terrible acts, you just can't know for sure. Is there a killer inside us all? Affleck is so effective as the sociopathic killer; he's rather haunting. Alba (Sin City, Fantastic Four), Koteas (Let Me In, Defendor), Hudson (Almost Famous, You, Me and Dupree), Baker (The Mentalist) and Beatty (Shooter, Rudy) are all on top of their game. One actor who stands out for his short but very effective role is Bill Pullman (Independence Day, Spaceballs). His over-the-top performance is a highlight. If you read this review and you think you can sit through the material, then I say give it a view. The ending is a bit disappointing and felt a little rushed, but the build-up is well worth it. The killer inside me likes this film.
B-