In the Electric Mist (2009)

Lack of good storyline.

A Surprisingly Unforgettable Movie!

A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Based on a bestselling novel by James Lee Burk, this psychological thriller features secrets to tell and crimes to unravel. Veteran detective Dave Robicheaux(Tommy Lee Jones)is investigating a series of brutal murders, mostly prostitutes. The New Iberia native winds through the Louisiana bayou and uncovers almost forgotten secrets and stirs up old grudges as he navigates a dark and sultry world of New Orleans mobster Baby Feet Balboni(John Goodman). This investigation gets complicated and ruthless as it becomes personal to the detective's family. You just never know what the world really means until you get down to New Orleans.A very versatile all-star cast featuring: Peter Sarsgaard, Ned Beatty, Mary Steenburgen, Mary Macdonald, James Gammonn Levon Helm and Justina Machado.

Lt. Dave Robicheaux (Tommy Lee Jones) is investigating a dead body found by movie stars Elrod Sykes (Peter Sarsgaard) and his girlfriend Kelly Drummond (Kelly Macdonald). They're filming a Civil War film. Robicheaux is reminded of a black man he saw murdered as a teen.There are a lot of great actors trying to play southern. Director Bertrand Tavernier just doesn't have the skills to bring an intensity to the movie. He also doesn't have the touch to bring out the local flavors. That might be all the big Hollywood actors, and the unimaginative locations. The closest he gets is casting Buddy Guy and having him play some music. The story is a slow prodding march. The clues aren't illuminating to solve the murder mystery. The only good thing here is watching Tommy Lee Jones in action. At the end of the movie, I wasn't even sure who they're after.

This is not just your typical a-a movie. Beyond the delectable Cajun flavor and the larger-than- life characters, the story is intriguing and probably too complex for the younger shoot-em-up crowd. The mixture of violence with misbehavior by the protagonist/hero makes you think about the moral question of ends justifying the means. The casting is good, the acting fine and on target, the scenery is accurate and the cinematography good enough but not sensational. I saw this in English before a French audience who clearly loved it, probably not even knowing the director is Bertrand Tavernier, a skilled French craftsman who knows how to pace the action and modulate the tension.

Jones picks up where Alec Baldwin left off, playing James Lee Burke's Louisiana-based detective Dave Robicheaux. This time around, Robicheaux is hot on the trial of a killer of hookers as well as the killer of a black man decades ago. He soon comes to believes the deaths are linked, and is guided along the way by a long-dead Confederate officer (Helm). He also is aided by a female FBI agent. The entire cast, which also includes John Goodman as one of the bad guys and Mary Steenbergen as Robicheaux's wife, is excellent. However, this is not your typical slam-bang whodunit but more of a character study. Shot on location, post-Hurricane Katrina, it absolutely oozes atmosphere and a sense of authenticity. It is for the most part very low-key. I understand there were post-production problems, and it shows in the choppy editing. Stil, worth a look.