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Murder by Numbers (Widescreen Edition) | 
| Director: Barbet Schroeder
Actors: Sandra Bullock, Ben Chaplin, Ryan Gosling, Michael Pitt, Agnes Bruckner
Studio: Warner Home Video
Category: DVD
List Price: $12.98
Buy Used: $0.45
You Save: $12.53 (97%)
New (58) Used (145) from $0.45
Rating:  123 reviews
Sales Rank: 6601
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dvd, Widescreen, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: R (Restricted)
Region: 1
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 120 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 7.3 x 5.7 x 0.6
MPN: D23305D
ISBN: 0790771950
UPC: 085392330522
EAN: 9780790771953
ASIN: B00005JL29
Theatrical Release Date: April 19, 2002
Release Date: June 1, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Amazon.com
While reinventing Leopold and Loeb for a new and troubled millennium, Murder by Numbers probes the disturbing psychology of two teenaged murderers and the cleverness of their crime. Like Hitchcock's Rope and other films inspired by the Leopold and Loeb case of the 1920s, the film intensifies as it explores the repressed (and subtly homosexual) tensions between high-school outcasts Richard (Ryan Gosling) and Justin (Michael Pitt), who randomly kill a woman to enact an amoral philosophy--and to tease a savvy homicide detective (Sandra Bullock) with misleading clues. While clashing with the by-the-book procedure of her partner (Ben Chaplin), Bullock gives one of her best performances in a role that comes with its own set of psychological hurdles. It's comfortable territory for Reversal of Fortune director Barbet Schroeder, who draws fine work from his cast while proving that there's no such thing as a perfect crime. --Jeff Shannon
Product Description
THE CLUES IN A JANE DOE MURDER CASE POINT ONE WAY, YET CASSIE MAYWEATHER THINKS ANOTHER. THERE'S SOMETHING TOO PERFECT ABOUT THE WAY THE FORENSIC EVIDENCE LEADS TO AN OBVIOUS PERPETRATOR, SOMETHING THAT TIES TO CASSIE'S SECRET PAST.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 118 more reviews...
 By The Numbers Thriller June 20, 2009
Richard Ross
Sandra Bullock has been too typecast in romantic comedy roles to be truly believable here as homicide detective Cassie Mayweather. Cassie is a woman who uses booze and sex to cope with her pain. A domestic abuse survivor, she's obsessed with hunting down manipulative men who prey on vulnerable women. Two such men, Jason (Michael Pitt) and Richard (Ryan Gosling), are prime suspects in the murder of a woman whose body washes up on shore. Both men are high school students and unlikely friends. Jason is shy and sensitive whereas Richard is rich and cocky. Both are obsessed with pulling off the perfect murder and proving their intellectual superiority. They go so far as to include three hair samples on the corpse, one of which belongs to a baboon. Many of the plot twists are predictable but the film springs a last minute twist after the exciting final showdown. Bullock doesn't look or act that good in the film. It doesn't matter though since the best performances come from Pitt and Gosling. This film was loosely based on Leopold and Loeb, just like Hitchcock's 'Rope', another film about two men (with a possible sexual attraction to each other) who kill just for the thrill of it. Several scenes here between Jason and Richard reminded me of that film but unfortunately Jimmy Stewart isn't on hand to wrap things up and explain the murders to us. A competent thriller that fans of Gosling or Pitt should definitely check out.
 The perfect crime. The less-than-perfect crime investigator. June 15, 2009
Annie Van Auken (Planet Earth)
Based in part on the Leopold and Loeb case, in MURDER BY NUMBERS two brilliant but bored high schoolers (rich kids both) try to commit the perfect homicide. After the deed's done, they follow the "numbers" by setting up their school janitor/weed dealer to take the rap.
Detective Cassie 'the Hyena' Mayweather (Bullock) and her newly-transferred from "vice" partner Sam Kennedy (Chaplin) are assigned the case. The several false clues planted by Richard (Gosling) and Justin (Pitt) clearly point at suspect Ray Feathers (Penn), but for Cassie there's something not quite right here.
A past relationship with Asst. D.A. Al Swanson (Verica) has given Cassie an attitude problem. Despite some romantic dallying with Sam, she's at odds over the investigation with both him and their boss, Capt. Cody (Call).
Related item:
Sandra Bullock produced and appeared in the comic crime caper GUN SHY (1999). This overlooked gem stars Liam Neeson as a shell-shocked undercover narcotics agent who just wants "the ocean view." Oliver Platt co-stars as a disaffected mob goon who'd rather grow tomatoes in Sicily.
Parenthetical number preceding title is a 1 to 10 viewer poll rating found at a film resource website.
(5.9) Murder By Numbers (2002) - Sandra Bullock/Ben Chaplin/Ryan Gosling/Michael Pitt/Agnes Bruckner/Chris Penn/R.D. Call/Tom Verica
Disappointed August 8, 2008
L. Wolff (Iowa)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I was disappointed because this was supposed to be a new movie and I expected it to be packaged that way. It was not. It did come sooner than expected, however.
 great suspense drama movie June 17, 2008
r-dawg (portland,me)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
this is a well thought out movie with good acting and a good story. it has its twists and turns and entertains nicely. this is probably my favorite sandra bullock movie and ryan gosling did a great job in this movie. highly recommended
It's a little `paint by numbers', but Gosling's performance makes it worth your time... April 24, 2008
Andrew Ellington (Mulholland Drive)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I am a huge fan of Sandra Bullock, but truth be told I enjoy my Bullock in those stellar romantic comedies she made her own. That isn't to say that I can't rally behind `Sandra Bullock-Serious Actress' but I have my preferences and they are mine to have. That said, I enjoyed `Murder by Numbers' for what it was, but it never became something overly memorable for me. Sandra does a decent enough job of getting inside her character, but her niche definitely lays within the romantic comedy and so there are times when this performance seems a tad forced. This isn't to say that Sandra can't pull off dramatic; just watch her performance in `Crash' and you'll see that she has the chops to pull off a well written character, but `Murder by Numbers' doesn't offer her anything more than a walking cliche to embody.
The film focuses on a disturbing murder of a young woman and the detective who tracks down the two boys who committed the crime. Sandra plays that said detective; Cassie Mayweather. Cassie has her own issues (when I mentioned cliches I was talking about her back-story; very been there done that) and these issues make this case all the more pertinent to her. The two boys who committed this crime; Richard and Justin; have a fun time stringing the detectives along with planted clues to lead them down the wrong path, all the while laughing in the face of destiny.
Sadly, these two young killers are also nothing more than a collective sum of movie villain cliches. Richard is the sarcastic and witty popular kid who bosses Justin around with confidence and a false sense of loyalty while Justin is the stark opposite; shy and introverted and obviously harboring some sort of attraction towards Richard, most likely due to Richard's apparent dominance.
A major highlight to the film, and something that helps elevate it to `worth checking out' territory, is Ryan Gosling's dynamic performance. Gosling has grown into one of our finest young actors as of late, and his performance here is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to his abilities. What he does with Richard is phenomenal, taking an overly cliched and familiar character and infusing so much originality and style that he becomes a character belonging only to Gosling. Sure, this same type of character has been attempted plenty of times before, but rarely this well.
As far as the remaining performances are concerned, they pale in comparison. Bullock does turn in some nice moments but this is far from her comfort zone and it shows. I commend her for branching out a bit but this is not her usual greatness. Ben Chaplin is really here to fill space and add to Mayweather's personal life. He is decent but forgettable. Michael Pitt, an actor who I can take or leave (I thought he was decent in `The Dreamers' but nothing special), is really pitiful here. He falls into his characters cliches full throttle and doesn't seem able to rise above them. He seems to play to his odd appearance too much, relying on his `little boy face' too much in order to relay his characters feelings. It doesn't work so well for him. When he attempts `brooding' it looks more like a young child who is pouting.
In the end I can say that `Murder by Numbers' is a decent thriller. What helps is the fact that the plot is interesting and the script is in parts very smart. It's a nice play on the `cat and mouse' type crime genre and, as I mentioned, Gosling really does make the most of what he's given. It's not perfect and it may never warrant repeat viewings but if you haven't seen it then you won't be wasting any time if you do. It is satisfying in what it's here for. It's just a shame the characters are a little too `paint by numbers'.
I couldn't resist.
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