A MATTER OF JUSTICE

Martin Sheen and Patty Duke

A MATTER OF JUSTICE (aka Final Justice/two-part telefilm/1993). Director: Michael Switzer. 

Mary Brown (Patty Duke) is appalled when her son, Chris (Jason London), decides to enlist in the Marines at seventeen, but wait until she meets his skanky 24-year-old bride, Dusty (Alexandra Powers), whom he shows up with when he comes home on leave. Mary's husband, Jack (Martin Sheen), thinks Chris should be allowed to make his own decisions, and that they should give Dusty a chance. Dusty proves an unfaithful wife and neglectful mother to their little girl, but Jack -- who regrets his own life and marriage -- tells Chris that he should try to make things work with Dusty if he loves her. When Chris, who has filed for divorce, is butchered, another marine is arrested for the murder, but Mary is convinced that Dusty was behind the slaying, and will stop at nothing to see that she is brought to justice. 

Alexandra Powers and Jason London

A Matter of Justice is an absorbing, well-acted telefilm based on a true case. Patty Duke is hardly perfect casting, and at times she seems to be auditioning for a role on a night-time soap as a matriarchal diva, but she is generally passionate and effective, although a more under-stated Sheen is even better. Jason London makes an appealing Chris, and Alexandra Powers is a sexy femme fatale. Of the supporting cast both Jeff Kober and Cole Hauser make their mark as bad boys who bed and beat Dusty; Charles S. Dutton is notable as a private detective Mary hires; and 5-year-old Kyla Pratt makes an adorable Chrissie, the Brown's granddaughter -- there are other good performances as well. An interesting aspect of the film is the sub-text of Mary and Jack rediscovering their love for and commitment to one another as they deal with a tragedy and its aftermath. 

Verdict: Generally intelligent and well-written true crime drama.***.

THE CAVE

THE CAVE (2005). Director: Bruce Hunt. Written by Michael Steinberg; Tegan West.

In the Carpathian Mountains, a group of men come across an old church on top of an ancient cavern, and are apparently killed by an avalanche. Years later, a new expedition decides to explore this enormous cave, and discover that strange parasites have [very improbably] mutated those long-ago men into weird, carnivorous winged creatures. The leader (Cole Hauser) of this new group has been bitten, and is slowly mutating himself. There is a cave-in and the members of the party have to find an alternate route out of the cavern while trying to avoid not only those big flying monsters but huge eels that swim in the underground river. Sounds exciting, but it's rather dull, despite the busyness and all the hard work that went into the production. There are some decent effects and good sets as well as an occasional striking underwater shot, but the monsters aren't seen very often and don't interact nearly enough with the cast. Even in the climax we never really get a long, clear view at these mutated creatures, who in passing resemble the flying Mayhars of At the Earth's Core and in close-up look like the creatures from Alien. Underwater they seem like swimming pterodactyls. There is a lot of walking and talking and swimming to little purpose. The main problem is that the director just covers the action in a highly uninspired fashion; quick shots come and go leaving the viewer not quite certain of what happened. The acting is competent but the script could have used some work. The booming soundtrack does a lot toward drumming up [often unwarranted] excitement but isn't otherwise memorable. This is one movie that should have premiered on the Sci Fi Channel or Direct to Video.

Verdict: Even monster movie devotees will be disappointed.