Mortal Thoughts

Plot synopsis:
The film revolves mainly around a scene in which Cynthia Kellogg (Demi Moore) is interrogated by two investigators at the police station. The deposition given by Cynthia is supported by detailed flashbacks throughout the film. The interrogation arouses particular suspicion about whether Cynthia's own husband could have informed the police about the incident and anything which his wife could have confided in him.
In flashback we see Cynthia and Joyce are best friends who work together. Joyce's husband Jimmy is abusive, both physically and emotionally, and she expresses a desire to kill him several times. One night, Cynthia accompanies Joyce and Jimmy to the festival. When Jimmy becomes drunk and picks a fight with Joyce, he heads back to their van to go home. Cynthia follows him to make sure he gets to the van and to take the keys from him, to let him sleep it off in the van. Jimmy makes an advance to Cynthia, who spurns him and leaves him at the van. Later Jimmy is found dead in the van, with his throat cut.
After Cynthia's husband Artie is found shot to death, she comes forward to the police to tell her version of events. She also tells the police she thinks Joyce killed Artie to keep him from going to the police about what Cynthia told him, but at the time she didn't think Joyce was capable of killing him, so she didn't take her threats seriously. The police release her and bring Joyce in for interrogation at the same time.
In a final flashback, we see what happened with Jimmy and Cynthia at the festival, where he attempted to rape her when she helped him into the van. She grabs a box cutter and slices his throat to get away from him. She and Joyce initially head for the hospital but the fear that Cynthia will go to jail and Joyce's belief that Jimmy would kill both of them if he recovers convinces Joyce to turn around. They take the van back to the festival and leave him there to bleed out as if the attack involved someone else. Cynthia is then seen heading back to the police station to make a confession.

Tags: neo noir, murder, flashback

Review:
Not being a fan of either Demi Moore or Bruce Willis, I was not prepared to be blown away by both their performances in Mortal Thoughts.
The two actors give nuanced and very real performances as regular Jersey folks, and Glenne Headly steals the movie.
Joyce is constantly talking about killing Jimmy, and since the movie begins during the investigation into his death, the movie raises your suspicion from the start.The entire movie is told as a flashback during the police questioning of Cynthia, and Demi manages to bring to life a scared, distraught, exhausted and defensive woman whose life as a simple mother of two has been turned upside down.
Harvey Keitel, as the lead investigator into the case, gives an amazing performance, supplying the audience with the right level of doubt about Cynthia's story to keep the suspense flying until the end - and all while sitting in the same chair for most of the film!
Demi Moore stars as Cynthia Kellogg, a woman caught in the middle when her best friend (played by Glenne Headly) murders her jerk of a husband -- or so it seems.
Demi Moore,(Cynthia Kellogg),"G.I. Jane", played an exceptionally difficult role, where she gets involved with a very abusive lover played by Bruce Willis,(James Urbanski) who has mood changes like the weather, hot, cold and goes completely nuts.
By literally representing the character's words in images, the film exploited the trust that any movie-watcher has to put in what they see; the very concept of cinema only works if the audience can believe their own eyes, so it's a somewhat underhand trick to take advantage of this.
If all movies were like this, cinema would die, but as an isolated film, it definitely made the grade.Alan Rudolph's curiously named 'Mortal Thoughts' (surely "morbid thoughts" are actually what feature in this film) is a kind of precursor to 'The Usual Susepcts', but less acclaimed, and with good reason.
The film doesn't even try and fool the audience: Harvey Keitel's policeman tells the witness throughout that he doesn't believe what she is saying, and once you accept that the woman may be lying, then the possibilities are limitless (something Singer dealt with deftly by only uncovering the lie at the very end, before it truly sinks into the audience that if the story was a pack of lies, then the truth could be anything).
Yet in the true story, revealed at the end, there's actually a tale of human drama that might have driven a pretty strong film.
First of all I have no idea why this was named "Mortal Thoughts." More appropriate would be, "Fatal Lies" or "An Inadvertent Confession," or maybe "Desperate Friends." Be that as it may, this is a superior thriller mainly because the story is compelling and the acting is first rate.
She is as vivid and unforgettable as an Al Pacino or a Betty Davis.As an aside on the career of Demi Moore, I want to say that it's a shame for her that her off-screen personality is not well liked, which in large part accounts for the fact that she is one of the most underrated, although one of the most often seen and hardest-working stars of the last fifteen years or so.
Too bad.Glenne Headly (Joyce) is also outstanding while Bruce Willis is excellent as Joyce's drug-addled, boozing, wife-beating loser of a husband.
The dialogue is right on, realistically depicting the lives of New Jersey beauty shop people while the plot told in ersatz flashbacks unfolds nicely with a fine tension.The story is that of two friends, Joyce and Cynthia who find they have to cover up a killing (NOT a murder, but at worst a manslaughter, or better yet, a case of self-defense), but fall apart as the investigation closes in on them.
Presumably, the last flashback from Cynthia tells us how Bruce Willis's character met his end, but that doesn't solve the problem of how or why (somebody else) was shot full of holes.
True, Det. John Woods (Harvey Keitel) makes some compelling arguments along the way to suggest that Cynthia is not telling the truth, but we are mislead by the actions that our eyes see and the sounds that our ears hear.
In movies, since anything can be contrived, it is the usual rule to have the camera show the truth while letting the characters do the lying.What might have saved this (and what I was expecting all the way through) is Joyce's side of the story acted out on screen so that we could compare the stories and make our choice about who was telling the truth.Bottom line: better than one might expect with a realistic edge clearly a notch or two above the usual thriller fare.(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!).
I caught this on TV last night, and decided to give it a go because it started Demi Moore and Bruce Willis.
Cynthia (Moore) comes forward to talk to detective John (Harvey Keitel) about the murder of her best friend's husband.
Mortal Thoughts stars Demi Moore and her husband at that time, Bruce Willis.
The storyline is fantastic and the casting is superb (although I would say that as Bruce Willis is my favourite actor!) I was impressed by the acting, particularly Harvey Keitel, who plays police detective John Woods.
The hairdresser, wife and mother Cynthia Kellogg (Demi Moore) is in police department being interrogated by the experienced detective John Woods (Harvey Keitel) and his partner, Detective Linda Nealon (Billie Neal).
Through flashbacks, she reveals how her best friend and colleague Joyce Urbanski (Glenne Headly) married the scum and nasty James Urbanski (Bruce Willis); how hard Joyce's life with James was; and why Joyce became a criminal.
The smart detective finds some contradictions in her statement and presses Cynthia, trying to disclose the truth of two murders."Mortal Thoughts" is an intriguing and underrated low budget thriller.
Demi Moore very good in a better than expected film.
`Mortal Thoughts' is another of those films which I nearly did not see, not because of any forgetfulness on my part, nor from any other involuntary reason, but quite frankly I tend to avoid any film with people like Bruce Willis (you can put in the names of Lundgren/van Damme/Stallone/Bruce Lee and other assorted muscular brainless types at your leisure) playing the big macho he-man; I'd rather have a try at cards on the computer, even though the two of clubs always goes missing when I most need it.
If on the one hand Bruce Willis' participation is somewhat limited and what he did was really quite decent, on the other, a very young-looking Demi Moore (29 when she made the film) played a stirring rôle, which helped to put this thriller drama a head above most of similar ilk.Alan Rudolph's directing of a well-written script produced a more than acceptable result, aided by those timely flash-backs between the interrogation and previous events.
Cynthia (Demi Moore) is `helping police enquiries', which means interrogated, into the death of her best friend's husband (Bruce Willis), and as she recounts events, the film flashes back, at times even synchronising with the dialogues in the interrogation.
Good work here by Demi Moore and Glenne Headly as her best friend, and it was real good to see Harvey Keitel as the detective (see him in `Shadrach' (1998) (qv), Ridley Scott's classic `Thelma and Louise' (1991) and in `The Piano' (1993), to name a few of his best rôles.
I am happy to say that this movie was much better than I thought and as usual, Demi Moore is just awesome.
Bruce Willis is also in this film but he playes her best friends abusive, drunk husband.
The BINGO Performance Of The Movie Goes To Harvey Keitel As The Investigator Who Early On Realizes There Is A Truth That No One Knows About And Through Brilliant Manipulation Allows The Truth To Reveal Itself ...
Since then he's made a good number of movies of his own that, from what I've seen, tend to be rather uncommercial, slow, serious, painstakingly realistic, sometimes maybe a little dull, but often very interesting films.
It's a really first rate crime story comprising a long conversation between a detective, played by Harvey Keitel and the central character Cynthia, played by Demi Moore in one of her best performances.
The story she has to tell is relayed to us in flashback and deals with her best friend Joyce (Glenne Headly, another excellent performance) and her truly horrible, brutal bully of a husband James (Bruce Willis, also excellent - hateful and frightening but very believable); how Joyce always liked to fantasize about killing James off; how one day he does indeed end up dead; how they agree to lose the body and say nothing to anyone, how their relationship then bends and breaks under the strain; and what happens next.The film however does have one major flaw.
Without giving anything away, I will say that after working so hard on revealing the facts in the detective's questioning, the truth is unveiled by us seeing the thoughts of one of the major characters.
The Carnival Scene in Mortal Thoughts was actually filmed in a small-time amusement park in Scotch Plains, New Jersey called Bowcraft.
Yes Bruce Willis was believable as a total reprobate of a human being, and Demi Moore and Glenne Headley were almost believable as two Thoroughly Beaten Beauty Shop Chicks without the sense to get out of their caustic relationships.
I was pleasantly surprised by this film for its guts to take a story and almost present it all through Demi Moore talking to two police detectives(Harvey Keitel and Bille Neal) in a room - everything we see is via her character's thoughts and perceptions and ideas of truth and untruth and is entirely in flashback form.
The story centers around Moore and her friend Headly recently married to a brute of a guy played by Bruce Willis - and goes from there to murder, mystery, and the eventual uncovering of what is the truth behind everything.
Director Alan Rudolph does a good job creating a story convincingly told throughout by flashback and from the first person whilst coming back to present time repeatedly.
This is not as easy as it sounds and has been messed up in other films, but it does work here because of Rudolph's sure directorial talents and the acting of Moore, Willis, Headly and Keitel.
Demi Moore gives perhaps one her best performances(looking lovely I might add as well) as a New York woman torn between several things.
All of the actors give serviceable performances and the whole movie looks and sounds like a spin off from The Sopranos or something the way all of the actors walk, talk, and act.
"Mortal Thoughts" manages to sustain your interest throughout: it is a well-structured murder mystery with good performances by the entire cast, particularly from Bruce Willis (in one of his most unconventional roles) and Harvey Keitel who, despite his limited screen time, steals the show.
"Mortal thoughts" is the kind of picture from which I never saw a good critic from, but God what a movie it is!
The story is about Cynthia (Demi Moore) and Joyce (Glenne Headly).
Both are married and where as Cynthia has a workaholic as a husband, Joyce has to fill her hours with a swine, superb played by Bruce Willis who is swearing, fighting, sniffing and talking about sex during the whole movie.
Demi Moore tells her story with flashbacks and bit by bit we know more about the history...and believe us, the plot is totally different from what is supposed to be in the beginning.
A young woman (Demi Moore) starts to confess to the police, that she was a witness to a murder, which was committed by her best friend (Glenn Headly).
Cynthia Kellogg (Demi Moore) voluntarily comes in to give evidence about the case of James Urbanski (Bruce Willis) to police detectives John Woods (Harvey Keitel) and Linda Nealon.
I had this movie on a tape that my mom's friend gave to me..i wasnt really interested in seeing it until i heard that Demi Moore was in it then i gave it a chance....And what an awesome flick!
The characters were so real, and Demi turned in an excellent performance as usual...Bruce Willis is okay in it..kind of unbelievable at times but other than that, i seen a very good movie!
Glenne Headly indeed, steals the show with a good performance.Demi Moore?
Glenne Headly and Demi Moore portray friends who become accomplices in the death of Headly's abusive husband (played convincingly by, of all people, Bruce Willis).
When I first rented this film (I don't remember it being in movie theaters) I was excited to see what Alan Rudolph, who I associate with looser style character studies, would do with the taut, slick format of a thriller.
The music, the pacing, the INTENT of the film-making are markedly different from this director's other works.MORTAL THOUGHTS is not a wholly satisfying film, but I am humbled to say that I was amazed by Demi Moore's performance.
This is understandable with Bruce Willis (as he was her husband at the time) but she plays equally well with respected "serious" actors Glenne Headley and Harvey Keitel.
Who would have thought?Maybe the surprise of seeing Moore be so convincing makes the performance seem stronger than it actually is, but I truly was deeply impressed with her work here.
Two best friends who work together in a beauty salon are involved in the death of one's abusive husband; police investigate and question the girls, but get conflicting stories.
Anytime talk gets around to the career of Demi Moore, inevitably someone else will ask, "What was the name of that movie where Bruce Willis got killed and she played the beautician?" This picture got seen, but not by many, and that's a shame because it's effectively stylish, creepy and perceptive.
Moore and Glenne Headly (in her best performance yet) are amazing, and Willis is excellent too in support.
I'm not a big fan of Demi Moore but I have to admit that her performance in this film is very good.
Bruce Willis does what he does best; that is to say, he's annoying to the point where I was hoping someone would kill him and put us all out of our misery, even though I thoroughly enjoyed his character when he wasn't being mean to his wife.
Glenne Headly was amazing and Harvey Keitel, one of my favorites, was once again the consummate cop.But the best part of this movie, for me, was the realism.
Fairly routine mystery/drama about a young woman who comes forward voluntarily to tell of how she helped cover up the murder of a friend's husband.Alan Rudolph's film works thanks to a reasonable plot (the very alert may pick this), simple yet sensible construction and solid performances from Demi Moore, Glenne Headley, Bruce Willis and that growing Hollywood talent, Harvey Keitel.The narrative may never enthrall you, yet "Mortal Thoughts" remains interesting enough to keep you watching.
'Mortal Thoughts' believe it or not had the potential to be a decent thriller, if only the filmmakers knew what they hell direction they wanted things to go in beforehand (or if they did know, then they should've clued the rest of us in on it).Demi Moore is Cynthia, a distraught woman who comes in to testify about the death of her friend Joyce's (Glenn Headley) husband, a sick sadistic moron named James (Bruce Willis).
Cynthia sure was wishing she didn't tag along, especially when Joyce shows her James bleeding to death in the back of the van, and hopeless Joyce admitting that she "accidentally" stabbed her husband.In one agonizingly long sequence of flashback events leading all the way up to Cynthia's decision to testify, she tells the interrogating detectives (including one Harvey Keitel) how she helped cover up the murder to protect her best friend, Joyce.
The story does start to get good once Cynthia and Joyce get involved in this mess and then try one stupid thing after another to keep it quiet.
Also, the combo of Moore and Willis on film together wasn't very exciting.This was a movie I thought I'd like a lot but wound up actually disliking.
It really boils down to a murder mystery.Moore is being questioned by the police and she tells the story in a series of flashbacks.
It may be Demi Moore's best performance in an adult movie; Glenne Headly has the most curious epicanthic folds; fascinating to see Bruce Willis as a thoroughly rotten villain; Harvey Keitel (who also tried to reason with Thelma and Louise) pronounces the name of "Joyce" as "Jerse.".
The film starts off with Cynthia Kellogg, Dami Moore, agreeing to be interrogated and video taped in the police station in what were the circumstances behind the brutal murder of her friend Jimmy Urbanski, Bruce Willis.
Jimmy was found floating in the Hudson River with his throat slashed after he disappeared from sight at the annual Feast of Saint Rocco Festival.Interrogated by detectives John Woods,Harvey Keitel, and Linda Nealon, Billie Neal, with Woods doing most of the talking Cynthia tells the story of her friends the Urbanskis Jimmy and his wife Joyce, Glenne Headly, and what a violent marriage the two had.
What the or else turned out to be was Cynthia's husband Arthur, John Parkow, who was about to take off with the kids and leave her on her own ends up being murdered, with his head blown off, by a deranged Joyce who accused him of trying to turn her over to the police.**MAJOR SPOILER** Very good but not all that surprising twist ending that's all in flashback brings out the terrible truth behind Jimmy's death.