Owen Wilson plays “Vann” the ever charming wanderer with a smile the size of Texas. Armed with only his charm and polite air, he proves to be an extremely gifted serial killer. Wilson’s “Vann” is so endearing that, as we follow him along his journeys, we almost start to root for him. You might even find yourself uttering under your breath, “Well, maybe they deserved it”. Complimenting Wilson is an extremely talented supporting cast with the likes of Janeane Garofalo, Brian Coxx and Mercedes Ruehl and some memorable cameos from Sheryl Crow, Dennis Haysberg and Dwight Yokum.
The film opens with our “hero” , Vann doing what he does best — being charming and helping out someone in need. This woman (Sheryl Crow), who seems to be going nowhere in life except to the bottom of a bottle, takes him up on his offer and basically places her life in his hands. Before you can say “knight in shining armour” she is peacefully “sleeping” and Vann is off to continue his nomadic ways. What follows is 90 minutes of a bizarre look inside the head of a maniac that can’t seem to keep from making and murdering his new friends.
Writer Hampton Fancher, who is most well known for his critically acclaimed script for the sci-fi masterpiece “Blade Runner”, makes his directorial debut here. He has definitley proven in the past to be a fine story teller, but it is here, with “The Minus Man”, where he finally proves himself to be an extremely skillful filmmaker. With his choices of interesting camera angles and witty dialogue Fancher should have a promising future in Hollywood or where ever else his talents take him. “The Minus Man” is definitley a gem that must be viewed by any film lover.
