Under Suspicion

Synopsis: A lawyer is asked to come to the police station to clear up a few loose ends in his witness report of a foul murder. This will only take ten minutes, they say, but it turns out to be one loose end after another, and the ten minutes he is away from his speech become longer and longer...
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Director(s): Stephen Hopkins
Production: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
  2 nominations.
 
IMDB:
6.5
Metacritic:
43
Rotten Tomatoes:
49%
R
Year:
2000
110 min
Website
784 Views


"Hurricane Lucy ripped across

Puerto Rico last October 12...

causing even greater devastation

than Hurricane George two years ago.

This time the damage

was considerable.

This time the damage...

was estimated

at $1.8 billion.

This time-

This time the damage-

This time the damage is est-"

Jesus.

Chantal?

Shouldnt you get that?

- Hello?

- Henry?

Victor Benezet here.

How are you?

As well as can be expected

under the circumstances.

That's good.

I'm sorry to call you like this,

but I need you to come in.

- There's a charity ball tonight.

- It's just a few questions.

I understand why

you were distressed yesterday...

but we do need

to make a proper report.

I'm giving the toast tonight.

And I'm looking forward

to it, old boy.

Can't we do this tomorrow, Victor?

Its a fund-raiser.

This'll only take ten minutes.

See you at the station, then.

- Arias.

- Yes?

Hey, how you doing?

Tell me your speech

won't be in sufferably long.

They won't serve dinner

until you're finished.

If you're hungry, write a check,

because I can crawl all night.

Don't bait Henry.

He's nervous.

Henry loves being the center

of attention, don't you?

- Excuse us, will you?

- Yes, go ahead.

I have a position

for a good handyman...

in case you ever tire

of these long policeman's hours.

Nothing works around here.

I do appreciate your coming in

on such short notice, Henry.

You look marvelous.

Just grand.

- You get younger every day.

- Thank you, Victor.

You met Detective Owens

yesterday at the house.

Happy San Sebastian to you.

Same to you, Mr. Hearst.

I'll burn us some coffee.

Nonfat milk if you have it.

I don't think he heard me, actually.

He reminds me a lot of you.

Only listens when it suits him.

That's unfair, Henry.

Not only am I a good listener...

but I keep it all in here.

Anyway, we should have this

cleared up in no time.

Perhaps under the circumstances,

I should be calling you "Captain."

Oh, no.

No need for that formality.

I do apologize about the timing.

I know you're due

across the street.

We just need to clarify some

of the details from your report.

Your superintendent is one

of the charity's biggest supporters.

I know, I know.

So if you'll help us put an end

to some of these nagging questions-

why, we'll have you

on your way.

I would've thought you'd be

at the party already.

You do know how to have fun,

dont you, Victor?

Tuxedo's all ready to go.

I must say, Henry,

you seem in high spirits...

what with all this

on your doorstep.

How should I behave?

How's Chantal?

Waiting.

A noble quality

in that young woman.

Something mine didn't seem

to want to do.

I was sad to hear that. We always

thought you made a charming couple.

Charming, perhaps...

but dull, apparently.

You see the children much?

Both of my daughters

are living with their mother...

back in New York City.

Must be hard

during the holidays and all.

We should get on with it.

- No milk?

- I'm sorry.

No, thanks.

You're into charity.

Why don't you fund-raise us

up a cappuccino machine...

so all the lowlifes that come through

here can enjoy a solid cup of coffee?

I was just going to ask

Mr. Hearst about the dog.

Oh, yeah. Right.

The "mystery dog."

Actually, I like "ghost dog."

That's got a nice ring to it.

Can we start again?

I come in here

like you ask...

and Mr. Congeniality here is

taking a hostile manner with me.

It's this case, Henry.

It has everyone on edge.

But its just-

This business is strange...

going by what's in the record.

But let's see.

Here. January 6.

Yesterday afternoon.

You say you were...

out jogging with a dog.

Yes. Man's best friend.

Belonging to a neighbor of yours...

named Ricardi.

You ever own one?

When I was a boy,

my family had Great Danes.

But you don't own one now?

Chantal prefers cats.

- So, do you have a cat?

- Too unsanitary.

Chantal would want a cat,

but only if it could be sanitized.

What do you mean?

Cats are always licking themselves.

I dumped a girlfriend once

because of her damn cat.

Thing had me up all night

slurping away.

A dog is a lot more unsanitary...

but at least when

they're sleeping, they sleep.

Thank you for that.

Anyway, the messiest is a canary.

She refused that too.

But for once I stuck to my guns.

I can be quite firm

if I need to be.

What was his name again?

Tango.

Do you write that

just like "tango"?

How else would you write it,

like "waltz" or "fox-trot"?

When you were questioned...

you said...

"I discovered the girl."

What we're not clear about here

is what the dog was doing.

So?

Logically, you would expect that

the dog would have found the girl.

Well, I suppose it did.

But you say you found her.

Well, me, the dog-

We were together.

We found the body.

What difference does it make?

I called the police.

Unless, perhaps, you think the dog

called and disguised his voice.

Mr. Hearst...

two young girls

have been found strangled...

within the past 16 days.

It is my job

to find the murderer.

You're a principal witness

to the crime scene.

Now, I have to make sure

that the facts of your statements...

agree with the other facts

of the case.

Mr. Hearst doesn't appear

to be as distressed today.

I'm a guest here. I'll be

treated with respect, Sergeant Opie.

Owens.

- That's Detective Owens.

- Please.

- O-W-

- Please!

Let's all-

Let's all relax.

Everyone has somewhere else

they'd like to be.

Now, Henry, if you don't mind...

please...

tell us one more time

how you came upon the girl.

I jogged up to Ricardi's

like I always do.

I grabbed the dog.

Better run him

a little faster, Henry.

He's getting a belly

as round as yours!

F***in' old geezer.

Come on, boy.

Let's go. Let's go!

This dog-

He was definitely with you?

What dialect do you need this in?

Yes, the dog was with me.

The dog was with me.

Got it?

You're saying Tango-

He was there.

Good. You're catching on.

Tango's all right.

Keeps me company

on my runs.

We took the path

by my house like always.

- Suddenly Tango wasn't there.

- Tango, come on, boy!

I called to him,

but he wouldn't come.

I could hear him.

He was growling, barking...

acting peculiar.

That's when I turned back.

I kept calling.

Tango, come on, boy.

The dog wouldn't come.

You couldn't see the girl

at this point?

Obviously not from the path.

But I could see Tango

in there moving around.

So you ventured off

into the grove.

That's when I saw her.

At first I thought

she was asleep.

She was almost-

I want to say-

angelic.

The way she just lay there.

Her eyes-

They were dark brown.

They were still open.

Sue Ellen Huddy.

She was three days shy

of her 13th birthday.

- How did you discern she was dead?

- I touched her.

I mean, I put my head

on her chest.

There was no heartbeat.

That was that.

- The dog found the body.

- That's correct.

Mr. Ricardi states firmly that

you did not run the dog yesterday.

He admits that on most days you do,

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Tom Provost

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Submitted on August 05, 2018

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