Sadly,
the constant abuse of the media, activists, and politicians has so thoroughly
demoralized the LAPD, they will have to import a hard-charging shoot-from-the-hip
cop from Russia to stop a serial killer. Since all the victims have been
Russian-speaking women, they will have a legitimate excuse to recruit the help
of Vladimir Kazatov. Unfortunately, the killer will soon turn his attention towards
Kazatov’s pretty American partner in Black
Rose (trailer
here),
directed by Alexander Nevsky (because Ivan the Terrible wasn’t available),
which opens this Friday in Los Angeles.
Despite
the mounting death toll, the Russian community refuses to talk to the LAPD. Of
course, the expats are sure to trust Kazatov, because it’s not like the Russian
legal system has a reputation for corruption and oppression. Regardless, he and
LAPD profiler Emily Smith quickly establish all the murdered women worked as “hostesses”
in an exclusive Russian gentleman’s club.
That
ought to be a significant break in the case, but Kazatov still has to sneak
around, kicking down doors, sans warrant. Further complicating the investigation,
the killer somehow got a hold of Smith’s number and frequently calls to do deep
breathing exercises.
Black Rose is the sort of
film where the police think the most effective course of action they can take
is standing around, having expositional conversations. Aside from the initial
Moscow bank robbery sequence, featuring Euro cult favorite Matthias Hues, there
just isn’t a lot of action in this action movie. Instead, it relies on the Tracy-and-Hepburn
chemistry shared by Nevsky (a bodybuilder-turned-actor, born Alexander
Kuritsyn) and Kristanna Loken (from Terminator
3 and BloodRayne). The fact that
their endless bantering doesn’t completely collapse into a train wreck is a
near miracle.
About
the only thing going for Black Rose is
a supporting cast chocked full of reliable character actors, including the
great Robert Davi, chewing the scenery for all its worth as Captain Frank
Dalano. However, it is rather depressing to see the post-Highlander Adrian Paul mope through the film as Matt Robinson, the
ineffectual detective yanked off the case.
