Beyond Suspicion (2001)
Runtime: 1 hr 49 mins
Theatrical Release: May 18, 2001 Limited
Synopsis: When hotshot insurance agent John Nolan walks into a deli/liquor store and sends back a bottle of wine because the label was scratched, he never realized such a small act could lead to tragedy. While ex-con Auggie Rose goes into the back for a new bottle, an armed robber walks in and eventually... When hotshot insurance agent John Nolan walks into a deli/liquor store and sends back a bottle of wine because the label was scratched, he never realized such a small act could lead to tragedy. While ex-con Auggie Rose goes into the back for a new bottle, an armed robber walks in and eventually shoots Auggie. John feels responsible, so he takes Auggie in his arms and accompanies him to the hospital. But when Auggie eventually dies, John becomes determined to find out as much as he can about who Auggie was and whether there is anyone who will claim the body. Slowly, Auggie's life starts taking over his own--to the point that when Auggie's prison pen pal comes to town, John actually says that he is Auggie Rose. Matthew Tabak's debut thriller is a spooky look at obsession and second chances. Jeff Goldblum excels as John Nolan, with good turns by Nancy Travis as his longtime live-in girlfriend, Ann Heche as Auggie's pen pal, Richard T. Jones as a cop who is suspicious of John, and Joe Santos as Auggie's wacky neighbor across the hall. [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Jeff Goldblum, Anne Heche, Nancy Travis, Timothy Olyphant, Joe Santos
Screenwriter: Matthew Tabak
Producer: Dan Stone, Matthew A. Rhodes
Composer: Mark Mancina
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Reviews
Tabak's directing debut is carefully plotted, well acted and surprisingly free of cheap thrills.
Strong supporting actors ... give performances that serve to make their co-stars or the material look worse.
Goldblum gives a satisfying performance as a man desperate to escape his mundane, privileged life.
Begins to feel like a coffeehouse conversation about a movie that's all about meanings and motif rather than substance and characters.
Only the latest feature to suck the air out of Destiny, moviedom's current bogeyman.
Auggie Rose has the makings of a TV movie though director Matthew Tabak engages noir idiom to quaint effect.
Mostly succeeds, thanks to Tabak's level pacing and Goldblum's rich performance.
The acting surprise in this odd and interesting film is Anne Heche, who suppresses her sexy, acerbic essence and completely slips into the skin of Auggie's pen pal.
A much better film than I ever expected it could be, largely thanks to Goldblum's prodigious acting chops.
Has the earmarks of a sleeper: an unusual and involving premise persuasively and fully realized.


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