Bodily Harm

The bodies are piling up for police detective Rita Cates (Fiorentino). First is a Cheetah Club stripper, soon followed by a lady psychiatrist. The D.A.'s office thinks the culprit is obvious: Sam McKeon (Daniel Baldwin), an ex-cop, now wealthy casino executive and the ex-boyfriend of the two dead women--and, coincidentally, also of Rita, whose husband committed suicide over the affair. But only a witness to the first murder, B-girl Krystal (Shannon Kenny) can place McKeon on the scene. Despite possible danger and definite conflict of interest, Rita re-ignites her torrid affair with McKeon, and eventually finds a pair of bloody gloves in his house. Though this seems to clinch his guilt, the case is upset when a similar MO (the killer scrawls "Ojos de Dios" at each murder site) is recalled from one of McKeon's earlier cases, in which one Otis Barclay killed his wife. He was later slain in prison, but his young daughter Jacy grew up to be vengeful Krystal. She now menaces Rita, who kills her. Police are satisfied that Jacy/Krystal did the murders to frame McKeon to avenge her father. Following the advice of her psychiatrist Rita finally dumps McKeon. The final scene has McKeon opening his car glove compartment for his sunglasses, revealing a knife like that used in the murders.

Lightning didn't strike twice for Linda Fiorentino, whose explosive performance in THE LAST SEDUCTION can be paired with BODILY HARM to demonstrate what a difference skilled filmmaking makes with medium-budgeted neo-film noir. While BODILY HARM's plot is serviceable, the screenplay is hard put to flesh out the cliches, looping off into red herrings (especially sleazy women and strip bars), the not-fooling-anyone plot twist, and cynical "surprise" ending. B-film director James Lemmo (RELENTLESS 3, TRIPWIRE) is unable to inject much interest in the proceedings. A most glaring problem is an absolute lack of chemistry between Fiorentino and Daniel Baldwin, here lacking the magnetism of his thespian brothers Alec, Stephen and William. Fiorentino's predatory good looks have been put to better use elsewhere; now unflatteringly photographed, she's the scrawniest, unhealthiest-looking femme fatale/sexpot to hit the screen in ages. She also mistakes an actorly nervous edginess for a tortured, full characterization. Veteran Millie Perkins (DIARY OF ANNE FRANK) has a pair of brief, extraneous scenes as Rita's shrink. Produced by the veteran exploitation producer Bruce Cohn Curtis (JOYRIDE, HELL NIGHT, FEAR CITY), BODILY HARM, shot entirely in Las Vegas, including at the Riviera Hotel and Casino, and premiered at the Houston Film Festival before landing in video stores and pay-cable TV. (Violence, nudity, sexual situations, adult situations, profanity.) leave a comment