Gun in one hand, video camera in the other

'15 Minutes' aims at reality TV, but misses

In this story: The cops The media The killers The verdict RELATED STORIES, SITES

By Paul Clinton
CNN.com Reviewer

(CNN) -- Pop artist icon Andy Warhol once said that, with the advent of television anyone could have his or her very own 15 minutes of fame. His quip has become frighteningly true.

That is especially the case when it comes to the murders of high-profile victims. Mark David Chapman killed John Lennon and became instantly famous. Andrew Cunanan murdered fashion designer Gianni Versace and his name was splashed in headlines around the world.

Now, "15 Minutes," a film starring Robert De Niro and Ed Burns, takes a look at that strange intersection where criminals, cops and TV news converge, while an insatiable viewing public gobbles every gory detail.

The cops

De Niro plays New York City homicide detective Eddie Flemming, the darling of the local TV news shows. He's always available for a quick quote and uses his access to the media to promote himself and the police department.

Ed Burns portrays Jordy Warsaw, a low-key arson investigator for the city's fire department. He shuns the news hounds as much as Flemming courts them.

When a double homicide is covered up by a fire, the two meet and must work together to find the killers. What we have here is just another variation of that tried-and-true movie formula in which the old, seasoned cop reluctantly works with the overeager rookie. But "15 Minutes" goes one step further, adding a new ingredient to the recipe: the media.

The media

Enter Kelsey Grammer as Robert Hawkins, a sleazy, litigious host of a tabloid TV show. His motto for booking his program: "If it bleeds, it leads." Grammer is in full cartoon mode as he overacts his way through the film. Kim Cattrall has a thankless (and happily brief) role as his boss, who is trying to curb his thirst for cheap thrills and high ratings. Of course, ratings win in the end. Well, duh.

Also representing the Fourth Estate is Melina Kanakaredes (the NBC series "Providence"), playing Nicolette Karas, a TV reporter engaged in a special relationship with Flemming. Together, Hawkins and Karas dog every step Warsaw and Flemming make as they hunt for the killers.

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The killers

At the center of the bloody action are two men trying to manipulate and murder their way into fame and fortune. Czechoslovakian actor Karel Roden plays a Czech killer named Emil Slovak. Oleg Taktarov, a native of Siberia, plays a Russian thug who dreams of becoming a filmmaker just like his hero, Frank Capra. It's through their naive, warped and twisted viewpoints about America's fascination with real-life violence that the film makes its point.

By watching programs such those Hawkins hosts, they come to the conclusion that no one in America is held responsible for his or her actions. The two take their cues from watching the televised case of a killer, who was found not guilty of murder due to insanity, sent to a mental hospital and was later released as cured, and who then made a fortune writing a book about the experience. If it worked once, they figure, it can work again. They decide to go on a murder spree with a video camera recording every moment.

The plan is to hand over the tapes to Hawkins, who will play them on his television show, thereby making them instantly famous. The two plan to get off with an insanity plea, then sit back as the book and movie deals roll in.

As Roden observes with an evil smile, "We are insane. Who else but crazy man would film his crimes?"

The verdict

Both Roden and Taktarov give chilling performances as the soulless killers. Again, De Niro turns in a well-crafted portrayal, but it's hardly new territory for this award-winning acting legend. Burns also gives a nice turn as a man who is caught up in a situation he can't control, making compromises he can't condone.

Still, writer/director John Herzfeld's intriguing concept works only for a while. Slowly, in one blood-splattering scene after another, "15 Minutes," becomes exactly what it is attempting to mock and satirize -- a senseless stream of violent images that eventually numb the viewer.

The film ultimately misses. Rather than offering any real insights into the phenomenal problems surrounding the media's glorification of violence and the public's thirst for graphic reality programming, "15 Minutes," ends up being just another violent flick exploiting exactly what it's pretending to condemn. The words "famous" and "infamous" are just as blurred at the film's end as they were at the beginning.

"15 Minutes" opens nationwide on Friday. Rated R.

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