The Minus Man is a 1999 thriller film starring Owen Wilson and Janeane Garofalo. It is based on the novel by Lew McCreary, and directed by Hampton Fancher, who also wrote the screenplay. The film centers on a serial killer whom Fancher describes as "a cross between Psycho<nowiki>'</nowiki>s Norman Bates, Melville<nowiki>'</nowiki>s Billy Budd and Being Theres Chauncey Gardner". The site’s critics consensus states: "While its subdued thrills and lack of answers may prove frustrating, The Minus Man delivers a chillingly measured performance from Owen Wilson." In the Los Angeles Times, Kevin Thomas wrote "it is above all such an unsettling experience you find yourself still taking it all in well after the lights have gone up".

In praising the film, Andrew Sarris writing for the New York Observer said: "A surging undercurrent of black comedy drives us out to sea without ever breaking to the surface with glib psychological or sociological explanations. We cannot laugh out loud, nor can we feel any grief". Sarris singles out Garofalo's performance as "incandescent ... one of the most enticingly endearing female movie characters in recent years – witty, bubbly, but at the same time lonely and terrified of rejection". Glenn Lovell described the film as "an assured blend of Camus and Hitch's small-town classic, Shadow of a Doubt" in his Variety review.

The film was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival.

Marketing

The Shooting Gallery's The Minus Man promotional campaign and materials, like many independent films (see Sony Pictures Classics' When the Cat's Away and Miramax's The Crying Game) tried to spark discussion/word of mouth among audience members after they left the theater. In addition to the tagline "Don't see it alone. Unless you like talking to yourself", one trailer for the film showed a couple discussing the film as they leave the theater. Their conversation takes them from place to place all over the city, until the man (played by Eddie Ifft) marvels at how beautiful the sunrise is. The woman (played by Marin Hinkle) realizes she is late for work and rushes to her job as a lifeguard, where two people are floating dead in the pool. The ad ends with the tagline "Careful, you can talk about it for hours". They partnered with local coffee houses and bars to provide opportunities for these supposed hour-long conversations.

The main trailer featured the tagline: "When he's around nothing adds up" and touted the film as the product of "the producers of Sling Blade" and "the writer of Blade Runner and The Mighty Quinn".

References

  • The Minus Man page at aboutfilm.com
  • Interview with author Lew McCreary