https://thecineviewer.com/mikesmurder.html
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Archived from the IMDb Discussion Forums — Mike's Murder
JohnnyBoy — 7 months ago(September 01, 2025 10:09 PM)
https://thecineviewer.com/mikesmurder.html
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JustinCase — 7 months ago(September 02, 2025 01:09 AM)
Good take on it.
There are elements that make it interesting and I think it could have been done better.
Overall I find it to be a refreshing take for an original idea.
Those guys were not very smart.
They were left alone in the room with the drugs.
Of course the distributor is going to weigh it again.
Even though they took a small amount for personal use the mob has to send a message not to do it again to others while eliminating the mistrust.
The scene where the partner begs Debrah for help and then the henchmen grab him right in front of her I found to be one of the most disturbing scenes since I had not seen too many up to this point.
IRL she would have been killed being a witness.
This is a movie so she gets to live.
Wonderland, which is a movie I think we discussed before, starring Val Kilmer is also about thieves stealing from mob connected drug dealers who end up all dead only that one is based on true events.
Then there is a similar scene in Boogienights which is based off of that.
Hmmmmm….
Could the original and true Wonderland murders, from three years before Mike's, have inspired M's M?
How you die does not redeem how you lived. - A black pastor on the life and death of Charlie Kirk -
JohnnyBoy — 7 months ago(September 02, 2025 04:23 AM)
I think the drug dealing murders were quite common going back to the 70s. Think of the movie Blow when it all began. Hollywood even did some films noirs about it. Mike's Murder was an updated take to show nothing had changed in Los Angeles. Wonderland is also next.
I actually found leaving Debra Winger's character alive to be perfectly acceptable because she had nothing to do with the original issue. She dated the wrong guy, that's all. In fact, she should find elsewhere to live in, but whatever. An interesting scene she did was taking advantage of Pete's drug paranoia by shaking the fridge to pretend there's an earthquake to get out of the hostage situation.
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JustinCase — 7 months ago(September 02, 2025 05:36 AM)
OK I just re-watched and here are some more thoughts of which some are different.
This second viewing the movie grew on me a bit more and I thought it was better this time.
The first time I was so hung up on the title.
"Why bother making a movie all about a murder?"
Now I get it and what it's all about.
I thought the actor who played Pete did an excellent job of playing the jerk who then becomes super paranoid and scared ****less.
I could feel his fear and desperation after making a mistake of which there is no way out and him trying to correct it while being paranoid.
He was ****ed no matter what and I felt it too.
It's a good movie to play on the emotions like that.
As for the Betty and Mike show, I think Mike just wanted casual sex with her now and then, but flaked on it for some reason, and she was interested in more than that and wanted to give him another chance even though he was such a jerk and a flake to her for always blowing her off like that.
"I'll call. I promise."
9 months later.
"I'll call. I promise."
Get the hint and move on, girl.
And she tried to with a geek.
Where I thought the sub plot of the video media show was a bit awkward and not sure what it had to do with the overall plot.
She dated the wrong guy, that's all.
Yeah, what is a yuppie doing with a drug dealer?
He even tells her he's in trouble and she is still open to dating him?
Oil and water.
Did bank tellers really make that much in LA to afford a decent sized house like that with a two car garage?
I actually found leaving Debra Winger's character alive to be perfectly acceptable because she had nothing to do with the original issue.
I now agree having just seen it.
I had a Mandela Effect where I thought we saw the killer stick his head through the door and tell her they would leave her alone since she was not who they wanted.
She didn't see their faces so I get it now why she was left alive.
If they had been following Pete then why not get him sooner?
They sure tracked down where Mike lived real quick.
As Pete asked how did they know where to find them?
I call it, "Movie Coincidence," to explain those encounters with no explanations.
Also the house Pete lived in looks like the same location of the houses from the TV show Simon & Simon where one of them lived.
How you die does not redeem how you lived. - A black pastor on the life and death of Charlie Kirk -
JohnnyBoy — 6 months ago(September 02, 2025 10:36 PM)
I was thinking about that when Pete managed to live so long. Either it's to fill in the running time or they wanted to see if there's anything else left to him. Eventually, they decided there wasn't and killed him.
Either way, I thought Pete was a selfish loser, probably a lifelong trait he carried through his school days. At that point, Betty should've said, "Why…the…hell are you bothering me?" I figured she had to be naive and from the Midwest, so she didn't know any better in situations like this, hence her trying to help out with Mike's murder when she should've left it alone. They barely knew each other after all. I think she figured it out at the end through the phone call.
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JustinCase — 6 months ago(September 02, 2025 11:09 PM)
Yeah, not that Pete was likable.
Just that the actor did a good job at making me feel his paranoia.
He could have gotten on a bus or train or even plane to get out since he had $1500 but I think they still would have gotten him.
No sleep and doing coke I'm sure didn't help.
I figure he went to Betty as a last resort since he tried everyone else and was either paranoid with strangers coming to the door or turned away and didn't know.
At that point, Betty should've said, "Why…the…hell are you bothering me?" I figured she had to be naive and from the Midwest
Or perhaps she was just too scared that if she said the wrong thing, or anything at all, it could trigger him and he might make it worse like he almost did with the knife.
I think she figured it out at the end through the phone call.
The call with her parents?
What did she figure out?
One thing I didn't get was why Mike had to pay back the record producer all of the $3,000 he borrowed for drug buys when he made it sound as if he was also "working my ass off," laying tiles.
Seems like he should have been working in exchange for the debt instead.
How you die does not redeem how you lived. - A black pastor on the life and death of Charlie Kirk -
JohnnyBoy — 6 months ago(September 03, 2025 12:21 AM)
Mike was a gay hustler, bought and owned by the black guy.
The call with her parents? What did she figure out?
Her dad wanted her to get a gun, and she rolled her eyes or something to that effect.
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JustinCase — 6 months ago(September 03, 2025 12:26 AM)
Mike was a gay hustler, bought and owned by the black guy.
Ah.
So that was his "work" and why he didn't have time for Betty and lied to her.
Makes sense now.
What about the other dude at the house?
A lover of the black guy or someone else he was using?
How you die does not redeem how you lived. - A black pastor on the life and death of Charlie Kirk -
JohnnyBoy — 6 months ago(September 03, 2025 12:32 AM)
I thought he had the gay vibe for the longest while until the Chippendale wannabe confirmed it by playing the home video. All males at the black guy's house…same deal. Reminds me of Alfred Molina in Boogie Nights.
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