★★★★★

I must confess up front that I seem to always like John Cusack in a movie. I was kind of shocked to stroll by the under $5 discount bin and see The Factory on top of the pile. Odd that I had never heard of The Factory. Naturally it went into the cart. Yes an actual shopping cart as I was in an actual store.

Mr. Cusack is one of those gifted actors. Even in a bad movie he can shine. I’m not just saying that because he is a fellow Illinoisan, I really mean it. Thankfully you don’t have to worry about that because The Factory is fantastic!

Unless it went straight to DVD, I am befuddled as to how I did not hear about this movie. It is sooooo good. Mr. Cusack plays an obsessed cop on the trail of a serial killer. Then his teenage daughter disappears and he drops the professional cop part of his personality.

The Plot

It is difficult to review The Factory without giving too much away. I did not have a clue it was going to end the way it ended. That was an upper cut which caught me standing flat footed.

The serial killer targets hookers. He doesn’t have a pattern to his timing or type of girl, other than hooker. The teenage daughter of the cop was dressed like a hooker and out late (to get cigarettes if I remember correctly) and our serial killer nabs her.

Part of me finds it difficult to call this character a “serial killer.” In my mind that is a label applied to someone whose primary intent is to kill, usually after some torture and/or sexual violation. Not the M.O. of this individual. He only kills the women who don’t give him a baby. Yes, this dude is out there. The full story line is even farther out there, yet it all seems real. The actors and director do an incredible job of pulling the audience into the world that is this film.

Should have gotten a nomination

Jennifer Carpenter does a phenom job with her role. Kind of background, kind of foreground, always there without walking on anything. Yes, that description will sound weird. After you watch the movie you will understand. She really should have gotten at least one award nomination for her work in this movie. It’s a difficult task to stay out of the way when you spend so much time front and center, but she did it admirably. I don’t think casting could have found a more compatible pair of actors, on screen anyway. No idea how they are together in real life.

Definitely worth adding to your rental list or rescuing from the $5 or less bin.

For more movie rental ideas please see list one and list two.