No Good Deed (2014)

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Surprisingly incoherent and boring

The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

No Good Deed is an edge-of-the-seat suspense crime thriller! You will not be able to get up when you are watching this movie (although to be frank, there is nothing NEW in the story)!NOTE: Don't believe some stupid people who think the movie is Boring!The director, Sam Miller, has done a mature job of maintaining the aura of suspense in each and every scene. The Background Music and the slow Pace of the film, all contribute to transfixing the minds of the audience to the screen. In fact, I prefer this more than any noisy, rapidly-edited & fast-faced suspense movies.The Screenplay is Tight and Crispy!The Acting is very, very decent. But Idris Elba looks slightly friendly to be a heartless killer. Perhaps a beard, Hoodie and a wicked gaze would have done the trick.I won't say anything more for fear of giving away details of the movie (esp. a small twist towards the end). Just watch this Short, Simple and Suspense-ridden film in any movie channel of your choice.

Aimee Lagos is the writer and director of this film. A woman. I am so ready for more women directors and writers in this world, however, this was SO annoying and disappointing.The beginning was typical of many other criminal movies. Main bad guy is handcuffed in front, not his hands in back or with a chain to his feet, despite being VERY violent with multiple murders under his belt. He is an extremely violent prisoner, yet, because of his magical narcissism, everyone just fell under his well spoken spell. Then of course, he kills the guards in the van and escapes. Typical actions follow, until his car crashes and he comes to the house he was heading for. THIS IS WHEN IT GETS ANNOYING!!!!!He knocks on a woman's door. She has small children. She is supposedly an ex prosecutor for the DA, focus in homicide/domestic abuse. Seriously. She LETS HIM IN. INTO HER HOME. A stranger. If this isn't STUPID ENOUGH, she proceeds to talk about her life and job as if she is talking to a life long friend. A total stranger..."come on in, I have small children, but I am going to trust you, because you are charming and handsome."What????? I know NO WOMAN out of hundreds who would do this. NONE. She allows him free reign in her home. With a small daughter running around and then in bed....despite him being a TOTAL STRANGER. Who does this? And if there are women reading this who would have let him in, DON'T DO IT, IT IS STUPID. NO ONE unless they are STUPID. Yet, she is an attorney....specializing in HOMICIDE IN CASES OF DOMESTIC ABUSE. Where the con artist ex spouses are as she puts it, aren't smart. If she had been in the DA'S office as a prosecutor, how was she totally unfamiliar with this Colin guy? No, you can't keep up with all the bad guys in the county, but he had killed multiple people, usually to do with WOMEN. So, then, her slutty realtor friend comes over, who almost instantly comes on to the stranger. WHO DOES THAT?????? At their age too? These aren't 18 yr. old young party girls. The friend proceeds to tell this stranger she would rather sleep around than get married, that it isn't her style to settle down. What? Within the first few minutes of meeting him. Again, a STUPID thing to do.My problem is that these women are stupid and don't really fit into what I would think most women would be like. I don't open the door to strangers and in NO WAY would I let one in, ESPECIALLY if I had small children in the house. You freaking call 911 if you are worried for the person at the door....and DON'T OPEN IT. I am so disappointed that the writer/director chose to write this crap. Yes, crap. I love movies, and my first thought was that a man who didn't like women, had written this, sorry, not trying to be mean, but when I saw a woman had...was just disgusted. Maybe Aimee Lagos thinks that once a woman has a baby and moves to the suburbs she forgets herself and becomes stupid? Or that women, other than herself are walking around asking to be victims? I hope the next film she writes is not so trite and predictable. And, that she actually writes about strong women, who in no way would have done the stupid things these characters did, no matter how charming and handsome the bad guys are. I gave it a 2 only for the actors, they were fine. I couldn't go higher because of the writing.

No Good Deed is one of those serviceable thrillers that does just about enough to make it watchable; there is just about enough simmering tension to make it work, the performances are convincing enough to make the characters believable (particularly from Elba and Henson) and it throws in a twist at the end that explains away the frustrating vague narrative that drives the story for much of its running time. It's a film that's just about adequate in every area (without really excelling in any area), but there is one area where it's really weak which is....THE WRITING..... This is what really lets the film down as little of what happens seems to make sense or be grounded in reality. The department of corrections are transporting one of the most dangerous men in America using just one van and 2 prison guards??? You'd think given the fact that there was a high likelihood of Evans escaping that there would be extra security detail involved in transporting him to and from his hearing - extra guards in a following vehicle for example. Evans parole hearing is broadcast on the news and sensationalised in the media yet the same thing doesn't seemed to have happened when he escapes??? Given how dangerous Evans is you would expect his escape to be broadcast on every channel, on the radio, the internet etc to warn the public that a dangerous criminal is at large. You'd also assume that his face would have been plastered all over the TV and social media given the severity of his crimes meaning that at least one of the people that he encountered would recognise him, but no-one seems to know who he is.The writing is where this film is at its weakest, but it's also problematic in its middle section when Colin is in Terri's home with her friend where we just seem to be treated to a long-winded Q & A session (some of it is insightful, but most of it is boring and it takes up far too much of the running time). Miller's direction also seemed obvious and gimmicky at times and whilst I appreciate the attempts to create suspense and tension I got the feeling for the most part that the ambitions outweighed the result The best thing about this film is Idris Elba; he's actually a good villain who is able to turn the charm on and off like a tap. His sociopathic icy disdain for his victims makes him quite a chilling character to watch. I also appreciated that the writers did at least try to make him a two dimensional villain as well. Henson is also good here and manages to evoke genuine fear for her character when Evans is on his reign of terror. The only thing that spoils these moments is the way that Evans keeps coming after her no matter what she does to him - she hits him over the head with a Fire Extinguisher and yet Evans isn't even dazed after this blow to the head let alone rendered unconscious.No Good Deed certainly isn't the worst thriller that you're likely to encounter. It is moderately effective and intense at times, but it's the sloppy writing and rather unambitious middle section of the film that drags it down somewhat which overall renders it a rather mediocre thriller.

Idris Elba. Arguably one of the coolest actors around right now. He can pretty much carry any part given to him. Yes, I'm a fan. And, as I expected of him, he's damn good here too. Unfortunately, one great actor does not make up for a film which is short on originality.Elba plays 'Colin.' A psychopath. Okay, so that's a generalisation. The early part of the film touches on his exact condition. However, he kills people, so 'psychopath' will work for me. And, he plays it pretty well, flitting between his natural charm and dangerous ability to bludgeon someone to death if he so feels inclined.But, luckily for Joe Public, he's been caught and imprisoned. Of course the film would be a lot less dull if he didn't escape pretty quickly and resume his terrorising. So, he does this and seeks refuge in a woman's home, pretending that his car has broken down. Of course she succumbs to his charm and lets him in, but, again, things never stay that way for long. What follows is a typical 'cat and mouse' kind of game with her doing her best to survive in her own home. I should just point out that she can't just escape at the earliest opportunity, as she has children.I have no problem with the plot. Yes, it could probably be a little more original, but I could still live with that. Or I could if it wasn't for the fact that it uses the same cliché over and over again (normally found in 'slasher' films). Three times (yes, I counted) in the space of about ten minutes does she totally get the drop on Elba and whack him with a fire extinguisher/lamp-thing/knife, only to run off instead of finishing him off. I know this kind of movie-gripe has been going on for years and, yes, I know if she killed him at the earliest opportunity it would be a pretty short film, but still... that lack of realism/originality just got to me after a while. Elba isn't supposed to be a monster or superhuman, yet he gets up from every blow and just chases after her – again, without killing her either due to ending the film early.Ultimately, you can't fault the performances, both Elba and his victim do all they can with what's been given to them. It's just a shame the 'vehicle' they're in is a little bit on the stale side. I guess if you're not into slasher films you may not notice it quite so much, but, for me, it just bugged me to the point where I found it hard to carry on watching.For die-hard Elba fans or casual viewers of the 'stalker/thriller' genre only.