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Untraceable (2008) DVD Review
Untraceable (2008) DVD Credits:
Untraceable (2008) Directed by:
Gregory Hoblit
Untraceable (2008) Written by:
Allison Burnett
Untraceable (2008) Cast:
Diane Lane, Colin Hanks, Billy Burke, Joseph Cross, Mary Beth Hurt, Erin Carufel
Untraceable (2008) Released by:
Lakeshore Entertainment
Region:
1
Untraceable (2008) DVD Release Date:
12th May 2008
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Untraceable (2008) Synopsis:

The story of a technology-savvy serial killer who displays his graphic murders on his own website. The FBI Internet Crimes division must work quickly to track him down.

Untraceable (2008) DVD Review:

For a while there I thought the serial killer film was finished. Aside from the untraditional and largely underappreciated Zodiac from last year which features a killer who was never caught, it has been somewhat light on serial killer films which had a had a huge surge with Silence of the Lambs and was rejuvenated even further with David Fincher’s other serial killer film, Seven. Each of those films brought the usual imitations trying to prey on audience interests, like the torture-horror films that are popular now. The interesting thing about Untraceable is that it condemns this trend of torture gore, and more specifically the audience that wants to watch it, although it also manages to incorporate this style used in horror movies into the plot.

Special Agent Jennifer Marsh (Diane Lane) has seen all sorts of terrible things working a special division that polices the internet and crimes committed in cyberspace, but when a website is launched that tracks viewers as a way of determining how fast a person will die it begins a case Marsh will never forget. Marsh and her partner Griffin Dowd (Colin Hanks) are paired up with a field agent (Billy Burke) to find the man responsible for the website, but the more word of mouth spreads about the site the faster the victims are killed by the contraption the killer places them in. These contraptions are somewhat like the death-traps you might expect to find in a Saw film, only there is no escape and the internet viewers are the killers, although it is interesting to note that both films have serial killers who prefer the death be laid in someone else’s hands.

Unfortunately the concept is not quite enough to hold the film. The mystery of the killer is revealed after a reasonable amount of time has passed, but this leaves no suspense but the situations our hero is places in, and there certainly are moments that are effective, but there are too many holes in the thin plot to keep the suspense. Either that or the suspense is not strong enough to distract from the holes. Bottom line is that this is no Seven, Silence of the Lambs or even Copycat, but I suppose it is just another remnant of bad decisions. The DVD includes four behind-the-scenes featurettes and an audio commentary track with director Gregory Hoblit, producer Hawk Koch and production designer Paul Eads.

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Untraceable (2008) DVD review written by: Ryan Izay

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