Published via Ecency

(source: tmdb.org)

Leo Rossi is a character actor with long, prolific and, at times, very interesting filmography. One of the rare opportunities for starring roles was Relentless, series of low budget thrillers in which he played Sam Dietz, LAPD detective specialised in dealing with serial killers. The last in the series was Relentless IV: Ashes to Ashes (also distributed in UK under subtitle The Redeemer), directed by Oley Sassone and released in 1994 direct-to-video.

The plot again deals with Dietz having to stop vicious serial killer. In this particular case, killer targets young women and his ritualistic modus operandi suggests religious motives. Possible clue to his identity might be Dr. Sara Lee Jaffee (played by Famke Janssen), whose patient was one of the victims. Dietz is romantically attracted to her and the killer apparently is also fascinated with her. In the meantime, Dietz has to deal with his female partner Detective Jessica Peretti (played by Colleen Coffey) as well as some personal issues in the form of teenage son Cory (played by Christopher Pettiet) who is going through rebellious phase.

Ashes to Ashes is made with low budget and low ambition, but Oley Sassone, director best known for his work on television (and infamous 1994 low budget version of The Fantastic Four) appears to be the perfect choice for this project. He directs film very efficiently, compensating for relatively uninteresting villain with just enough protagonist’s personal drama to keep audience’s attention and fit all the content into digestible 90 minutes. Experienced Rossi plays the protagonist, as it is to be expected, with a lot of ease, while Janssen, former Dutch fashion model who would soon afterwards have big break with GoldenEye, handles her dramatic role relatively. The film nevertheless suffers because of cliches, including killer dutifully making things very perosnally for Dietz. It is, however, good enough to be recommended for audience that likes underrated actors like Rossi or has nothing better to do than watch mid 1990s direct-to-video thrillers.

RATING: 5/10 (++)