Christina Reviews *Identity* Starring John Cusack, Ray Liotta and Amanda Peet

          Identity opens with a scene where we learn that a convicted killer is about to be put to death for the killing of 6 people in the 1980’s.  Then the movie cuts to a motel.

         One by one, the occupants of Rooms 1-10 die horribly gruesome deaths.  My understanding is that the deaths begin with Room 10 and work backwards.  The remaining occupants begin to panic.   They don’t know what’s going on.  And as it turns out, they all have some interesting things in common.

        The movie cuts back and forth between convicted, death row inmate Malcolm Rivers and the people in the motel.  I’m not going to say too much more because I don’t want to spoil anything.

         Suffice it to say that there’s a twist at the end, as is often the case with movies these days.  The twist was certainly clever, though perceptive Psychology majors may crack the code early on.  I believe I did, but then again, I may have had some hints at the ending beforehand.  I can't remember how much knowledge I had going in the first time around.

        I can’t help but wonder, though, if it’s a clever twist that doesn’t hold up under close scrutiny.  I had a bit of a hard time following along with the rationale behind the twist at the end.  It seemed a bit convoluted.  I never figured out how the real killer managed to survive, or why the final victim wasn’t killed off long before the end.   And I’m not sure why so many of the motel people had to die in order for the story to work.  None of this will make sense until you watch the entire movie.  This is a hard movie to review because you can’t critique it thoroughly without giving away the end.

        I think the main problem with this movie is that it is a bit of a shaggy dog.   By the time you discover what is going on, you no longer have any reason to be invested in the main characters.  Not that it matters in movies of this kind where you’re just waiting for the next body to hit the ground anyway.  But still.

        Once again, I guess you’ll have to watch the movie for yourself and decide whether or not you like it.  Just keep in mind that you’ll either love it or feel incredibly cheated.