Law & Order: Criminal Intent (TV Series) Death Roe (2005) User Reviews

Minute traces

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 26 April 2016]

Critics of any kind including those who write reviews for IMDb are subject to all kinds of criticism themselves. It it's a bad review on something someone likes they will hear about it.

Two homicides are connected in a case that Vincent D'Onofrio and and Kathryn Erbe get for Major Case. The first victim is a woman in male drag found on the UN grounds by a diplomat. That guarantees Major Case will be there. She was not a performer of any kind, she was a food critic.

But the second victim is Alex Burns a rising young chef who is opening a new restaurant. He's disappeared, but there's enough traces of him to suspect there's a homicide for Goren and Eames. Minute traces to be sure.

Burns was married to Monica Keena, daughter of Chris Penn who is a well known chef with his own TV show. Let's say this whole family has issues.

Forensics plays a big part in solving this one as well as a con Goren runs on one of the cast.

The whole cast does a bang up job on this one.

Incest & Slicing A Person Through A Meat-Grinder Are Never Pleasant Things

[ccthemovieman-1 · 8/10 · 1 July 2008]

When everything was unraveled (which usually takes about three-fourths of the episode), this story turns out to be kind of sordid story. Heck, incest is always a sordid topic.

For most of this episode, however, it's a guessing game on exactly who killed whom and for what reasons.

The story involves restaurants, food -poisoning a food critic, killing the same critic later, adultery, killing the owner of the restaurant, grinding him up in the kitchen, and a sick father-and-daughter relationship. Yummy.....what a tasteful menu on this restaurant murder story!

Two of the most interesting characters, I thought, were the supporting husband-and-wife team of "Duke and Mrs. Caldwell" (Duke being the killer's best friend). Daniel Oreskes was Duke and Stephanie Roth Haberle, his wife. Also, Kathryn Erbe, as "Det. Eames," had some sarcastically funny lines, as usual and Vincent D'Onofrio as "Det. Goren" showed a great touch of comedy in a scene involving drinking.

A Disgusting Truth

[pepper_f · 9/10 · 2 May 2022]

This episode was very great. The plot interests and intrigues with its turn of events and the supporting characters are well-written and not overly obvious in my opinion. I did like the theme of power and how some people can use it to their advantage that was portrayed in this episode and Chris Penn does a good job at playing one of the most easy-to-hate villains in the show. It does take a bit to get the plot wrapped up in your head but near the end, it is re-capped and clarified pretty well by the detectives.

Overall, "Death Roe" was a great episode and one of the best of season 4 IMO. The plot is great, supporting cast are well-written, and the antagonist is well-characterized as the plot goes on.

Recipe for death

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 8 October 2020]

While the original 'Law and Order' is my personal favourite of the more than worthwhile 'Law and Order' franchise, though not every episode and every season for all the shows are great, the best of 'Special Victims Unit' (was initially harsh on my judgement of the mid-seasons onwards but some are better than remembered) and the best of 'Criminal Intent' are as brilliant as the original at its best. The previous three seasons of 'Criminal Intent' had outstanding episodes, as did Season 4.

"Death Roe" is one of those outstanding episodes. It is not for the faint hearted and is gorier than most 'Criminal Intent' episodes in the early seasons. As well as more sordid than most. The restaurant/food industry is not an unfamiliar setting for murder/detective mysteries and procedurals, but it is made the most of here in "Death Roe" and very neatly done. To me, it is one of the better episodes for any procedural/mystery show with this setting and a vast improvement over the previous episode.

Like other 'Criminal Intent' episodes, it does take a bit of time to get one's head round what is being said. Once things are made clearer, are explained and become more intricate it falls into place and it does so quite quickly in "Death Roe". Without being too obvious of course.

Really love the story overall. It is always hugely compelling and has its fair share of suspense and shocks. It contains one of the most brutal, quite inhumane actually, murder methods in the history of the show without falling into excessive shock value and there is one very touchy topic that features prominently that is very sordid and creepy but doesn't go overboard on them. There is a bit of humour, especially concerning the scene involving drinking thanks to Vincent D'Onofrio's genius comic timing.

It is another episode to do so well at realistically showing the competitiveness of the industry and also frighteningly showing that there are people out there with a lot of power that commit acts of great evil. The script is thought-provoking and well balanced, with some deliciously sarcastic one-liners from Eames. The acting is on point with D'Onofrio and Kathryn Erbe while Chris Penn really gives the creeps as one of the season's most odious supporting characters.

Production values are slick and professional, not ever resorting to cheap or untested gimmicks or anything. The music is haunting in the right places and isn't constant or too loud, and the direction gives the drama urgency and breathing space.

Concluding, outstanding. 9/10

WOP murderer

[Mrpalli77 · 9/10 · 14 September 2017]

I can't believe a man could be so evil. He's a successful businessman, who owns several restaurants where you have to reserve three months in advance and he's a TV celebrity chef. He seems also bounded to his origin, by speaking a little Italian from time to time and drinking homemade grappa (musky flavor). I guess he has been the villain since the beginning. In his troubled mind, he wants to pull the strings of everything and he puts himself above the law (by raping, poisoning, killing), like all the criminals do.

The leading actor, Chris Penn, who dies shortly afterwards, gives a good performance. Goren and Eames get used to telling lies to suspects every episode to get the truth.