Imaginary Crimes

Based on the novel by Sheila Ballentine, IMAGINARY CRIMES is a study in missed opportunities. In the lead, Harvey Keitel--just off a roll that included BAD LIEUTENANT, THE PIANO, RESERVOIR DOGS, and PULP FICTION--seems ideally cast as the dissembling blowhard. But because the script fails to sufficiently develop or explain his character, the tragedy is less that of a quicksilver dreamer ill-suited to fatherhood than a superb actor unable to nail the role of a lifetime.

Through the eyes of narrator Sonya Weiler (Fairuza Balk), we learn her troubled family history. Her father, smooth-talking Ray Weiler (Harvey Keitel), dabbles in get-rich-quick inventions (like ...