A Russell Crowe Murder Mystery || Movie Review.

After ’The Pope's Exorcist (2023)’It's been quite a while since I have seen Russell Crowe in any movie. Crowe is one of my favorite actors and I try my best to be up to date with any of his new upcoming projects. I was so excited to see that he was the lead actor in the movie ’Sleeping Dogs (2024)’.

However, I was almost discouraged from watching this movie because I let my curiosity take control when I went to read some reviews online. It was bad, some said the movie was not worth the watch, that it was dragged and a sloppy production. Now that I have watched the movie, I am here to debunk their reviews and tell you that this movie is worth the watch. Don't be swayed by the negative reviews online, but give this movie a chance and you will not be disappointed.

’Sleeping Dogs (2024)’ is a crime mystery movie that was adapted from a 2017 novel The Book of Mirrors written by E.O. Chirovici. For me it is a murder mystery. The screenplay was written by Adam Cooper and Bill Collage. It was also directed by Adam Cooper (directorial debut). It starred Russell Crowe, Karen Gillan, Marton Csokas, Thomas M. Wright, Harry Greenwood and Tommy Flanagan.

---

The plot revolves around an ex-homicide retired detective, Roy Freeman. This man was involved in a terrible car accident which resulted in the loss of his memory. Then he was forced to retire from his work. Thereafter he developed Alzheimer's disease. To make things better, he undergoes an experimental treatment procedure.

So one day, he receives a strange call from Emily Dietz who works with the Clean Hands Project. An organization that works to set free inmates that have been wrongly maltreated by the justice system. Emily brings an old case that was closed 10 years ago by Roy to go through it again since new evidence was discovered.

The case which involved the murder of a college professor after new information has mysteriously surfaced about the convicted murder. So the case is now forced to reopen. How will Roy investigate the case with his memory issue? Will he uncover who the real killer is? And who is the real killer?

---

My Review And Rating.

Russell Crowe has not disappointed me before. All his movies are always as I expected. Interesting and amazing!

I enjoyed watching this movie. It was quite an amazing and twisted murder mystery. It kind of reminded me of the movie ’Knives (2019)’. Also, in this movie, I realized that Russell Crowe will be retiring very soon and I hope he retires in a good way. He is one of the actors I will miss dearly when he is gone.

The plot of this movie was written like a puzzle. All the pieces scattered around for Roy Freeman (Crowe) to put together in a gradual process as he recalls back all his past forgotten memories. A lot of people didn't understand this hence the negative reviews about this movie. They were actually expecting a fast-paced thriller with a lot of action. The suspense was good. Built slowly and gradually gets intense until the end when it breaks in the most unexpected way.

All the characters were written to be the pieces that completes the puzzle of the story. At first, you would think you know a character is involved in the story but in the end it becomes clear that each character is the missing part of the story and why the story exists in the first place.

Adam Cooper the director did an amazing job since this is his first work. Though I think with time and more improvements, he might start to direct good movies like Knives out.

I love the way he arranged every scene of this movie to be very realistic and natural. Nothing seems forced or falsified. An Alzheimer's patient doesn't get the past forgotten memories back in a snap of a finger regardless that the disease has been treated by an experimental procedure. It doesn't work that way because nature has to take its course. So this makes the movie to be like a slow burn murder mystery and it ends with a striking bang.

The cast were good, but I mostly enjoyed the performance of Russell Crowe and Karen Gillan who is popularly known for portraying Nebula in the Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero films Guardians of the Galaxy. Those two were the characters that held the movie together till the end.

The cinematography was amazing and fitting. The choice of music was perfect. The camera work was also excellent. Then I love that the visual gave off a dull kind of color which further enhanced the mood of the movie. This made it easier for me to know I wasn't watching an electrifying action film, but a slow burn murder mystery. If I continue to talk more about the good parts of this movie, I will spoil it.

Rating this movie, I will give it 7.8 out of 10 stars. It is a murder mystery movie. I don't see it as a thriller. I was hooked from the beginning up till the end. I would recommend it for murder mystery lovers and Russell Crowe’s fans.

Don't let the negative reviews sway you from watching this movie. It is worth the time and I promise you won't be disappointed. Also, this movie is not a fast-paced thriller.