Movie

Final Move (2006)

Chess-themed serial killer movies have been done before, but Final Move adds a paranormal element. Psychic Dan Marlowe (Matt Schulze) assists Detective Krieg (Lochlyn Munro) with his investigation. It appears someone is copying the recently executed “Chess Piece Killer” Thomas Page. Marlowe previously identified him from a vision, but did he make a mistake? Cue lots of murders as the duo go on a psycho hunt, and – yes – a city map is used as a chessboard. Why does that always happen?

The annoying colour palette – a horrible orange tint – makes some scenes difficult to watch. The opening murder is well staged, but the other killings are over too quickly. Some are only shown in psychic visions, green-filtered and filmed on shaky cam.

Another problem is that the villainess is too easy to spot. There’s an attempt to fool us into thinking an African American chess player is the bad guy, but the masked killer is clearly Caucasian. On the plus side, the film moves along at a brisk pace. The subplot about Marlowe’s strained relationship with his wife is well done, though it’s obvious the murderer will target his family.

Villainess

Iris Quarrie (Rachel Hunter)

An FBI agent helping with the investigation (or pretending to), Iris is a rare example of a female serial killer with a high body count. She tasers a woman after taunting her over the phone, hangs a man in an elevator, and tosses a judge through a top-floor window. Can’t complain about a lack of variety.

The opening murder is the most impressive. After making some nasty (voice distorted) threats, the masked psycho attacks her victim, roughs her up, and electrocutes her as she writhes in agony. When the police search the crime scene, they find a chess piece in the victim’s hand.

The killer leaves messages for Marlowe, phones him, and even breaks into his house. This hints at a personal connection, and despite the police arresting several suspects, viewers will suspect Iris after she attempts to seduce the married Marlowe. Her response to his rejection is to bed another man, have forced sex, and call him Danny. The director may as well hang the guilty sign around her neck.

After the elevator hanging, the killer escapes to the roof and makes a dramatic escape on a zipline, with the cops shooting in desperation at the fast-moving, black-clad figure. The assailant is masked, but on reviewing the footage of a rooftop shootout, it seems to be Rachel Hunter (or a close match) under the hood. Points for that.

Krieg grows suspicious of Iris when CCTV footage places her at the latest kill scene, but Marlowe is reluctant to accuse her. Iris attempts to throw the police off by claiming another suspect assaulted her. Since this happens off screen, it’s no surprise the attack turns out to have been staged. When Krieg and Marlowe find the suspect dead, they should identify Iris as the killer.

In the climax, the masked killer lures the men to a warehouse. She shoots Krieg and confronts Marlowe, with his kidnapped wife and daughter strapped to an explosive-rigged chair. When the black-clad Iris removes her balaclava, it’s no surprise she’s the copycat chess killer, but good to have an actual reveal.

There’s an average confrontation between the villainess and Marlowe where she taunts him only to get shot. The hero’s choice of post-mortem line is oh so predictable: “Checkmate.”

Honourable Mentions: Masked Assailants / Zip Lines

The Last Stand (2013) – Magnet Girl (Diane Lupo), Agent Ellen Richards (Genesis Rodriguez)

Two relatively under-used villainesses in this (kinda) comeback action thriller for Arnold Schwarzenegger. He plays a sheriff who must defend a town when an escaped crime lord and his private army roll in. Expect lots of shooting, explosions, fistfights, and general mayhem.

The black-garbed Magnet Girl, who remains masked throughout, is the point woman for the villain’s dramatic breakout. She presumably gets her name from the sequence where she descends atop a crane electromagnet and airlifts a prisoner transport van. She matches the police for firepower, riddles one officer with assault rifle rounds, and keeps the rest pinned down as she ascends. Sadly, this is her only action sequence, and she disappears with no explanation soon after.

Agent Ellen Richards is a weak addition: an FBI agent on the crime boss’ payroll. She’s revealed as a turncoat early on, but doesn’t do much except be the main villain’s passenger during his ride to the border. Ultimately, he gets fed up with the woman and kicks her out of his car. She then disappears, only to return at the end and get arrested.