I'm not sure why this film was so highly acclaimed upon release. It's another grim and unsatisfactory serial killer outing, with Stellan Skarsgard on gruff form as a tired, beat-down old cop investigating the crimes of a murderer who carves a mysterious symbol upon the bodies of his victims.
It amazes me that over a decade after the success of SE7EN, films are still content to copy the same look and feel. W DELTA Z is an uneven movie in which the usual police procedural stuff feels tired and forced. It doesn't help the film at all that the characterisation is nil and when finally unmasked, the serial killer role suffers from the worst miscasting ever. Plus, W DELTA Z copies heavily the kind of torture porn familiar in the SAW movies, so don't expect a lot of insight here, just pain.
With Skarsgard on autopilot, it's left to the supporting cast members to try to do something with the movie. Tom Hardy has a brief but eye catching turn as a street thug, but Melissa George takes centre screen in one of those rookie cop type roles. I've always liked her as an actress, especially given that she seems fond of the horror genre given how many horror movies she'd made over the years. Paul Kaye and Selma Blair are lower down the list. In any case, you can't help but feel that the actors are wasting their time with this one.
It amazes me that over a decade after the success of SE7EN, films are still content to copy the same look and feel. W DELTA Z is an uneven movie in which the usual police procedural stuff feels tired and forced. It doesn't help the film at all that the characterisation is nil and when finally unmasked, the serial killer role suffers from the worst miscasting ever. Plus, W DELTA Z copies heavily the kind of torture porn familiar in the SAW movies, so don't expect a lot of insight here, just pain.
With Skarsgard on autopilot, it's left to the supporting cast members to try to do something with the movie. Tom Hardy has a brief but eye catching turn as a street thug, but Melissa George takes centre screen in one of those rookie cop type roles. I've always liked her as an actress, especially given that she seems fond of the horror genre given how many horror movies she'd made over the years. Paul Kaye and Selma Blair are lower down the list. In any case, you can't help but feel that the actors are wasting their time with this one.