A Simpler Time

Denzel Washington was on a hot streak in the late ‘90s and three of my favorite Denzel movies- The Siege, The Bone Collector, and The Hurricane- all came out around the same time. I caught The Bone Collector on cable recently and enjoyed it as much as the first time. For me, what sets The Bone Collector apart from other ‘90’s detective thrillers is the wonderful chemistry between Washington- who plays a quadriplegic detective- and Angelina Jolie- who plays a beat cop helping him solve a string of gruesome, Gothic inspired murders around New York City.

Their growing mutual attraction and admiration for each other is moving and rarely seen in such films (Jolie was on a hot streak at the time, too, winning an Oscar for her performance in Girl Interrupted). Yes, there is a basic plot formula to this kind of movie but The Bone Collector takes some unexpected turns and also takes me back to a simpler time- late ‘90s New York City- before the 2000 election and 9/11- when everything in the U.S. seemed to be on an upswing. The movie’s tight direction, musical score, and overall spirit puts it well above average for me and I look forward to monitoring Jolie’s continued acting career. Grade: A-