Well Deserved Praise

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

Kyle Bergersen wrote and directed this very strange comedic film noir, a movie that didn't get a lot of attention in its theatrical release but that is gaining a following in the DVD format. It is smart, clever, weird, and very well made. Bergersen has the ability to take a rather silly story to reveal a lot of important questions about education, capital punishment, prison life, and the delicate balance between humanity and inhumanity! LOVE COMES TO THE EXECUTIONER works.Heck Prigusivac (Jonathan Tucker) is a fresh graduate form college, having majored in Latin and Romance Languages, who returns to his small hometown where his ditsy alcoholic mother Miriam (Christine Ebersole) struggles with her addiction and with the fact that her son Chick (Jeremy Renner) sits on Death Row in the neighboring prison. Heck lands a job teaching Latin to the inmates, but with the proviso that he also accept the job as Closer (or Executioner). Heck adjusts to the strange situation and manages to learn the trade of capital punishment by lethal injection. He confronts his estranged brother Chick on death row and the two have word battles about their relationship AND the fact that Chick's ex-girlfriend Dori Dumchovic (Ginnifer Goodwin) is the first female to sit on death row a few cells down form Chick. Heck and Dori flirt and Heck 'falls' for Dori, actually impregnating her in the confines of the prison. Heck manages to become a popular Latin teacher with the inmates, but has some psychological stress as the Closer - especially as the time for Heck to execute Dori approaches. Through a clever trick that backfires, Heck agrees to help Dori escape the prison so that the two can raise their 'child', but Chick's streetwise abilities alter the plan, and love doesn't exactly stay around for the executioner! Tucker, Renner, and Goodwin play the script straight and manage to draw us into their individual plights and dilemmas. The cinematography by Jimmy Lindsey keeps this 'interior' film exciting, even during the rather gross execution scenes. It is a strange way to present anti-capital punishment information, along side the death of the teaching of Latin and the Romance languages as markers for civility, that makes this film worth watching. It is a notch above the similar stories that dumb down the audience. Grady Harp

How this film never made it to the top of immediate cult status is beyond me. It is clever, witty, dark in a very heavy way (turn off for people who have kin in jails) and some of the best dialog which, in many cases require a better than high school education. If you studied Latin, there are some double meanings or "entendres" all through this film. Really good performances by all and if you have to, buy this one. Not for grannies who watch cook shows and knit. To give one a taste of the writing, check out the memorable lines here which are out of context. Also, look up the cast to see the credits and the dark roles a couple of the actors have appeared. This is not to say they can only do dark, hilariously witty films. One of the actors played the lead in "Dahmer" and goes from a very somber character to one that it a great comic flair.

Jonathan Tucker (Hostage, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre) play Heck, who gets a job as the Closer in a prison. That's a nice term for executioner. His brother Chick (Jonathan Tucker - Dahmer, 28 Weeks Later) is on death row, as is Chick's former girlfriend, Dori (Ginnifer Goodwin - Walk the line).This movie just gets weird as Heck falls in love with Dori and wants to do the job of his own brother. Heck and Dori manage to have sex in a position that I doubt is in the Kama Sutra - through the cell bars. Getting her pregnant is a way of delaying her execution. I told you this was weird.If you liked Clay Pigeons or Heathers, then this film is for you.

I saw Love Comes to the Executioner Friday, March 18 at SXSW Film Festival. It is the most original film I've seen, maybe ever. Memento was also very original. (just to give you my point of reference) I've literally never seen anything like this film. It's going to be billed as a dark comedy, but it's not that dark. It's just hysterical in a smart, sick sort of way. I wish I could find the screenplay online, because it has some of the best lines I've ever heard in a film. I have a feeling if it gets distribution, and I can't imagine it won't, it'll be a cult classic and be quoted along the lines of Office Space. While the plot is pretty simple, although not entirely predictable, it really is the dialog that makes this movie so unique. The main cast really pull off their quirky characters.