Malice-1993

Malice-1993

There is a niche genre in Italian cinema called Giallo, of all movie genres this has got to be my favorite  Giallo best defined is a thriller or if you like a who-dunnit, but Giallo usually goes into slightly different areas, not quite thriller, not quite horror, a twisting and turning story that takes you on a journey unlike many others. There are few examples of successful Giallo in American cinema, despite attempts to replicate this most desired genre. This being said Harold Becker’s 1993 movie Malice, is a prime example of an incredibly good attempt.




Andy Safian (Bill Pullman) is a hardworking and committed university lecturer, outside of work he is a devoted husband to Tracy (Nicole Kidman). The couple struggle to keep a large house over their heads and to aid this they take in Jed Hill (Alec Baldwin) a well thought after surgeon and old passing acquaintance of Andy. When Tracy needs an emergency operation Jed is the one that carries out the complex surgery which results in Tracy’s reproductive organs being removed without her consent. When Tracy awakens she takes the news badly turning on both Andy and Jed, making this a battle over money. In a separate turn of events a vicious serial killer stalks students on the campus, murdering young girls and taking their hair.



Malice turns out to be nothing like what you first expect, aspects considered important at the start turn out to be minor, while the little hints of story turn out to become major events shaping the way the movie looks. This is a movie about betrayal of trust, and honesty, more than its original conception from opening credits as a serial killer thriller.

Why I feel Malice is comparable to a Giallo movie comes from a surprising coincidence; a movie made just prior to Malice by Italian director Dario Argento, the king of Giallo bares some striking resemblances, that movie was Trauma which in the movies final moments (both movies) as so close in similarity they could almost be the same movie.

I love the red herrings that the movie offers; so many points raised that lead to nowhere and a somewhat surprising villain by the conclusion. I think it’s the whole villain element that makes Malice in my eyes a winner, although the build up to those events is equally enjoyable, it’s always great to watch a movie that has a certain unknown quantity about it.



Malice gives you a real feeling for the community that the story revolves around, while being a university community (usually involving a big area) you get the feeling that everyone knows one another. The bars are local haunts, and you understand all this small communities quirks and foibles. You might be wondering why I have gone off on this tangent, I personally feel that this is Malice’s greatest strength, showing you a community that you really want to be part of and then screwing with your sensibilities showing you almost an image off hell.

Every good movie deserves a good cast, and Malice is ram packed with phenomenal actors, other than out three main leads who are not always at the top of their game, especially Bill Pullman who finds himself in unusual territory (his only other thriller being The Last Seduction). The leads are joined by Gwyneth Paltrow, George C. Scott, Anne Bancroft, Josef Sommer, Stephen Gallagher, Saw’s Tobin Bell and Wild Palms’ Bebe Neuwirth. All of which regardless of your personal views perform their hearts out, Scott who was quite ill at the time of filming offers a bit of legendary glitz, as does Bancroft, both of whom sadly since have died. An interesting reaction to the movie is also the fact that despite your views on each of the characters change at the end, at the movies opening you like them all.

Like every good movie soundtrack is very important and legendary composer Jerry Goldsmiths is no exception, this amazing choir based score is brimming with potential and again adds a new dimension to the movie, it’s very innocent sounds adding a degree of the unknown to the film. You might even believe from the score that this were a love movie, and the opening scenes (with the exclusion of a gritty murder) would do nothing to dissuade you that Malice was indeed a love story.


Malice runs for an hour and forty five minutes, but its speedy exposition, and constantly changing storyline makes this compulsive viewing, the movie ending in a seemingly record time; while you feel that you know the characters intimately.

Malice is 18 years old and it seems timeless, it’s as fresh now as it was then, lots of the cast have transformed since then, but there is a nice purity to a lot of them especially Kidman and Paltrow. I have seen Malice as many as 10 times since its release in 94, and I still find it as refreshing to watch now as I did then.