High Heel Homicide (4 Stars)

The police are hunting for a serial killer. The only clue is a shoe left behind on the lawn outside a victim's house. Is this a variation of the Cinderella fairy tale? Not quite, but it's still the final clue that helps Detective Brent Harvey find the killer.

This is the 21st film directed by Dean McKendrick, made in 2017. It's his fifth erotic thriller, but it's the first film in which he's captured the essence of the films made in the 1990's, the golden age of erotic thrillers. If you've watched as many erotic thrillers as me, you'll know what I mean.

Someone is killing ex-policemen and leaving them naked on the floor with a letter painted on their chest. Déjà vu? This is the second time Andy Long has been murdered by a beautiful women at the beginning of a film. He gets an A on his chest.

The second victim gets an L.

The third victim gets another L. He's not naked, because the killer was disturbed and didn't have time to have sex with him.

It's not a secret who the killer is. From the beginning we see Carter Cruise callously murdering her victims. Erotic thrillers aren't necessarily murder mysteries, even if the two genres sometimes overlap. Besides, if a woman is killing men during sex, the viewer wants to see her in action.

We don't discover her motives until halfway through the film, after which we think the rest is predictable, but in the last ten minutes we get a plot twist. I know that I've criticised modern films for overusing plot twists in films, but plot twists are an integral part of erotic thrillers. Dean McKendrick got it right this time.

Brent Harvey doesn't have to solve the case alone. He's aided by his partner, Mia Li, who doesn't believe in wearing a bra. It must be a distraction when he's working on a case. Or is it only me who can't help staring at hard nipples under a flimsy top?

Maybe girls with small breasts can get away with not wearing a bra, but in Mia's case the buttons on her blouse are straining. I'm sure she has accidents when she's chasing a criminal.

Brent Harvey is an excellent actor. This is the second of three films that he made with Dean McKendrick. I'm interested in seeing films that he's made with other directors.

I'm sorry if my review is making "High Heel Homicide" sound like a comedy. It's just the way I write. It's a serious film. It's not just a serious film, it's a very good film. It's still available on DVD from Amazon. Fans of erotic thrillers won't be disappointed, even if the film is in the typical Dean McKendrick style.