Point of Origin

Plot

Point of Origin, produced by HBO, marks the feature directorial debut of accomplished cinematographer Newton Thomas Sigel (Three Kings, X-Men). The film is based on an actual serial arson investigation that took place in Glendale, CA, in the late '80s and early '90s. Ray Liotta stars in the film as John Orr, a skilled arson investigator with a sixth sense for finding the "point of origin," the place where a fire was started. Orr also has a knack for locating the devices used to start the fires. Keith Lang (John Leguizamo), his ambitious young protégé, calls Orr "Professor." Orr is stumped by a series of big fires, some fatal, which seem to have been set by the same arsonist. A commission is appointed to investigate the case, headed up by ATF agent Mike Matasso (Colm Feore) and fireman Mike Camello (Cliff Curtis). Orr uses his influence to get Lang appointed to the panel. But Matasso and Orr are immediately at odds with each other, as the ATF man seems to resent Orr's efforts to maintain control of the investigation. Orr is also dealing with his troubled marriage to Wanda (Bai Ling) and is having an affair with the volatile Kate (Illeana Douglas). As he gets deeper into the case, trying to get inside the head of the criminal, Orr begins to worry that the arsonist has some kind of personal involvement with him. Then the commission uncovers a link to an earlier string of fires, and uncovers evidence that the arsonist may actually be a fireman. The actual investigators, Matasso and Camello, have cameos in the film, and Camello also served as one of the film's technical advisors. These events were also the basis for Joseph Wambaugh's book Fire Lover: A True Story. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Review

Newton Thomas Sigel's Point of Origin is based on a fascinating true story, but Sigel, a respected cinematographer, detracts from the story's impact by emphasizing inappropriately flashy visuals over verisimilitude. The over-the-top style of the film ranges from the frequent scenes that run backwards (somewhat appropriate, as investigators are trying to figure out the crimes' "point of origin") to a cheesily heavy-handed shot of a judge's gavel coming down in slow motion, complete with a jarring sound effect, to a goofily out-of-place fantasy sequence wherein arson investigator John Orr (Ray Liotta) fights off his enemies using moves ripped from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and various Hong Kong shoot-'em-ups. The cast, including Liotta, John Leguizamo, Illeana Douglas, and Colm Feore, is uniformly good, and the actual story being told is astounding. While some of the effects Sigel uses to tell his story (particularly the fire effects) are impressive, it's difficult enough to believe that these incredible events actually happened. In the end, the wild visuals just make the film's connection to reality that much more tenuous. ~ Josh Ralske, Rovi

Cast

Illeana Douglas; John Leguizamo; Ray Liotta

Credit

Newton Thomas Sigel - Director, John Herzfeld - Executive Producer, John Ottman - Composer (Music Score), Cindy Mollo - Composer (Music Score), Anthony G. Nakonechnyi - Cinematographer, Fred Caruso - Producer, Keri Selig - Producer, Matthew Tabak - Screenwriter

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