The work, taken as the basis for the future film, was written by Frederick Nott. In 1954, Alfred Hitchcock staged a play based on the book. The screen version of the book took place in 1998.
Plot
The events of the film take place against the backdrop of a crisis in the Taylor family. Stephen is a powerful, cruel man who has achieved significant success in life.
His wife Emily has a completely opposite character. Therefore, it is natural that once having met poor artist David Shaw, the heroine immediately fell in love with him. The secret romance of Emily and David did not escape Steven, who was looking through the fingers at the pampering of his unfaithful wife. After some time, Stephen is bored with a similar situation, and he begins to look for information related to his wife’s lover. He manages to find out that David was already involved in marriage scams, so Stephen goes to visit him and there, instead of sorting out his relationship with his wife’s lover, offers him a contract. David needs to kill Emily for $ 500,000. Oddly enough, but love suddenly ends and David agrees to this work. It should be noted that in the film "Perfect Kill" the main roles were given to real Hollywood stars, which makes the film even more colorful and spectacular.
Cast
The cast was selected at a high professional level, which allowed to create an unsurpassed atmosphere of the film. Who got the roles in the movie "Perfect Murder"? The actors were distributed as follows:
- Stephen Taylor - Douglas Michael;
- Emily Taylor - Paltrow Gwyneth;
- David Shaw - Mortensen Viggo;
- Raquel Martinez - Chowdhury Sarita;
- Bobby Fein - Moran Michael;
- Sandra Brandford - Towers Constance;
- Jason Gates - Lyman Will;
- Anne Gates - McGuire Maeve.
Characteristics
One of the main factors of a good film is the correct cast. In the movie "Perfect Murder" the actors are selected flawlessly. Consider the main characters of the film. Stephen Taylor is introduced to the viewer by a pragmatic businessman, devoid of human feelings. His prudence can surprise everyone, because not everyone can think of killing his wife for the money that can save his business. Most interestingly, he has a secretive character, Emily does not realize that her husband has problems in business.
In the movie "Perfect Murder," the actors are completely immersed in their roles. Paltrow Gwyneth, who played Emily, completely opened up for the audience, in comparison with the film "7" her acting has reached the peak of its perfection.
Her role is difficult in that it is necessary to portray a smart girl who chose Stephen solely from the calculation, but at the same time a person with a delicate vulnerable soul of romance.
The image of Mrs. Emily's lover, the marital swindler David, who agrees to the crime, is also interestingly presented. But then doubts and remorse begin to torment him. This hero reminds everyone of Raskolnikov.
Minor actors are interesting, but against the background of the main characters just fade. What is so unusual about Perfect Kill? Actors under the strict guidance of the director were able to transform into their heroes so much that sometimes they themselves began to confuse themselves with them. In any case, Michael Douglas, admitted after a few years about this in one of his interviews. It is the acting game that makes us believe that everything that happens on the screen is not a figment of the author’s imagination, but a real real story happening in the neighborhood.
Awards and nominations
In 1999, the film was nominated in five categories. The film "Perfect Murder", the actors and roles of which the audience loved, was nominated for awards. However, of the five positions where the film was presented, only two received a prize. The award received Paltrow Gwyneth, as well as composer James Newton Howard, who was involved in the musical design of the film.