This formula mystery-thriller is enlivened by the give-and-take chemistry between the tough, phlegmatic Brian Dennehy and the acid-tongued, fast-talking James Woods. Dennehy is an ex-cop turned crime novelist with a string of bestsellers to his credit. He is approached by Woods, who wants him to collaborate on a book about Woods's career as hit man for a prominent businessman, who has always maintained a scrubbed façade of uprightness. Though the plot becomes predictable, this Laurel-and-Hardy pairing yields unexpected treats, as a criminal teaches a former cop a thing or two about police work, not to mention literature.--Marshall Fine
Can you say: Collaboration? A killer hitman working his way to the top. A cop turned novelist barely making ends meet. What do they have in common? Murder. James woods is the extremly cool hitman who always works an angle and always has a backup plan. Together, they plan to go after the biggest criminal tycoon . . .by publishing a nonfiction book exposing his true criminal ties. Now, everyone wants them dead, quiet, or at least want that manuscript burnt. Woods definetly plays it cool and collective in this fine, well put together thriller. I particularly like the fact that the cop-turned-author has a hard time convincing himself that this guy is a killer or that the man he wishes to expose is a big criminal with more ties to corruption than anyone else in new york city. This is classic, anti-buddy movie, action at it's best. There are also shocking mysteries finally unearthed in this rare movie. Enjoy!
Keep the original poster! Look, this movie is original, compelling, and spectacular for all of the reasons other reviewers have listed. So please don't give me an "unhelpful" because I am pointing out that the hideously colorized, photoshopped DVD package shown above is an abomination. The original poster is a very cool B&W shot with Woods wearing sunglasses. It had the tagline "If words could kill..." the only color being the red on the "Best Seller" title font. I do not know why Hollywood does this to their best films.Best Seller - Typical Brian Dennehy plays a cop who moonlights as a best-selling crime novelist, and James Woods is a psychopath killer who wangles him into writing his biography, which will primarily be an expose of a leading mob boss/corporation. There's lots of suspense as they fly around the country with Woods pitching Dennehy proof and evidence. Woods is truly a psycho sadist, and Dennehy despises him, though part of him can't help like him, too. Lots of violence and killings with Woods picking off almost the whole corporation before getting killed himself trying to save Dennehy's daughter. A lot of what's going on here is just surface stuff, though there is some attempt to get at character development.
