Pendulum

Plot

A revered Dallas law professor is brutally murdered and District Attorney -- and possible Senate candidate Edward Mills (James Russo) -- has vowed to find the killer. Meanwhile, the homicide squad is busy trying to stop a serial killer targeting the city's prostitutes. Dallas homicide detective Amanda Reeve (Rachel Hunter) has her hands full with both cases, but finds herself in physical and emotional danger when she encounters two lovely lesbians who are suspects in the professor's death. As the foul nature of the professor's true nature is revealed, Amanda becomes confused by the increasingly complicated case, which soon includes her former lover, Assistant D.A. Cobb (Matt Battaglia), as a suspect. ~ Buzz McClain, Rovi

Review

It would be easy to pass over this sharp-looking, slowly developing thriller by calling it boring and overly complicated. But if you get on director James Deck's wavelength, you begin to see that he's trying for something slightly nobler than just another thriller-filler for cable pay-per-view. The story is told with novelistic touches in the details, and the characters unfold at a pace that will either keep you intrigued or have you hitting the Stop button before a third of it is done. Former glamour model Rachel Hunter takes a few daring moves in creating her character -- wearing little makeup, sporting a red wound on her cheek from the opening scene -- and James Russo brings invaluable menace to the story. The mystery of who killed the professor is a transparent one, and how the hooker slayer ties in with the professor's death is iffy, but Deck's style nearly overcomes the plodding plot. Not quite, but nearly. The chrome and glass world of monied Dallas is vividly captured; there's nary a cowboy in sight, which holds true to the town. ~ Buzz McClain, Rovi

Cast

• James Russo - Edward Mills

Rachel Hunter - Amanda Reeve; Matt Battaglia - Cobb

Credit

James Deck - Director

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