As a native of Chicago, I can't say enough about how beautifully the city was photographed in this movie. As for the film itself, the story kept moving at an engaging pace as detective V.I. Warshawski "follows the money" and solves the murder of a former pro hockey player. Turner is aggressive, sexy, sultry, and vulnerable in this role. Maybe more street-smart, Chicago toughness in her delivery. The writing, overall, was adequate. Warshawski's general observations about the stupidity and gullibility of men tasted to me like watered-down feminism on a piece of stale, Chicago deep-dish pizza after a while. I wasn't often convinced that the female detective was a physical threat to the male villains. The ending with a double-opponent elimination was OK but I would like to have seen her action skills equal those of Bruce Willis for true equality to prevail. After all, the key to this action genre is the ability of the detective to overcome overwhelming physical and mental opposition. A pleasant, movie-of-the-week kind of yarn, though better. And that beautiful city!
Review of V.I. Warshawski
