four stars

Reviewed by Daniel E. Jennis

“Untraceable” may be the first crime drama to feature millions of killers. In the age of internet voyeurism, when American society has developed a sickly fascination with the misery of others, this competent thriller considers the theoretical implications of a murder in which everyone can participate.

Diane Lane stars as a tough FBI Agent who is hot on the trail of a serial killer who operates via the World Wide Web. The sicko kidnaps people and then streams videos of their captivity over the internet. The more people that visit his website (killwithme.com), the faster the victim dies. Lane’s character must race against time to reveal the identity of a killer who hides behind the anonymity of modern technology.

A lot of critics have been quick to decry the film as hypocritical. They claim that the film’s glorification of “torture porn” undercuts its condemnation of America’s propensity for exploiting and contributing to public displays of violence. This criticism is flawed because of the very explicit tonal messages that the film employs in order to avoid such hypocrisy. None of the rhetoric used by any of the characters perpetuates violent attitudes, and any depiction of torture is followed by quick verbal and attitudinal denunciation.

Moreover, Lane’s fierce and multi-faceted performance brings back fond memories of Jodie Foster’s fantastic turn in “Silence of the Lambs.” As the determined but compassionate FBI agent, Lane is consistently intense and powerful, but also lowers her rough façade in order to portray uncharacteristic moments of weakness and fear. Overall, the film’s superior lead performance helps to firmly anchor the story in reality.

Operating from a creative and politically-charged premise, “Untraceable” manages to be exciting and intelligent at the same time. The cat-and-mouse chase scenes between Lane and the killer, though conventionally written, still manage to captivate the viewer by injecting suspenseful and unpredictable sequences into the formulaic narrative.

Moreover, the film’s mediations on personal responsibility and vicarious violence are well explicated and clearly integrated into the plot arch. Unlike many standard thrillers, the film questions the culpability of the viewer who feeds violence through his/her curiosity and apathy. In this way, “Untraceable” reaches out to an audience that has traveled to the multiplex in order to consume images of pain and suffering. It is the movie’s self-reflexive critique that makes it a memorable and laudable crime thriller.