A big city cop from LA moves to a small town police force and immediately finds himself investigating a murder. Using theories rejected by his colleagues, the cop, John Berlin (Garcia), meets a young blind woman named Helena (Thurman) who may be the only witness to the killer. John fears that Helena is the killer's next target but his weak evidence and relenteless pursuit of the case find him getting increasingly alienated from his workmates. A serial killer is on the loose and only John knows it.

Jennifer 8 - the first Hollywood feature from "Withnail and I" director Bruce Robinson - is an atmospheric and quite engrossing suspense thriller. The slow moving plot is compensated for by strong acting, excellent production values and an interesting approach to the subject matter.

The film has an unnerving quality throughout, almost uncomfortably so. This is achieved through the combined use of a very creepy piano soundtrack and some bleakly atmospheric photography that gives the film a foreboding and threatening feel. There is also an edginess to the performances that leaves you wondering about the characters real intentions and adds to the general unsettling feeling. Instead of the usual action oriented approach taken by Hollywood to thrillers, Robinson imbues his film with an air of melancholy. None of the characters were very happy to begin with, and as the plot evolves they get even more depressed. Even the closing "happy ending" scene is tinged pensiveness. Not surprisingly Robinson had battles with the studio over the style of the film.

The script is mostly very good, the dialog being intelligent (with a few notable exceptions) and all attempts at humor paying off. In regards to the plot, it helps if you pay attention. Many people feel the plot is disjointed (including myself after only one viewing), but it actually works quite cleverly in the way events conspire against John. There's a nice twist in the middle where the film turns from a routine crime investigation into something much more interesting. Also well done is how John's eventual discovery of the killers' identity is so reliant on what Helena has told him and in turn how Helena is so reliant on John to save her. The relationship between John and Helena is superbly handled, and it's their dependency on one another that moves the emotional aspect of the film.

While benefiting from not having the cliched Hollywood "psycho killer", the film still falls down in it's explanations of its killer's motivations, they are brushed over quickly and unconvincingly in exchange for a surprise ending. The ending actually works quite effectively, but it's a bit too abrupt for me after investing so much time in the characters. There is clear evidence of a lot of reediting during the closing scenes - for instance a tacked on flashback voice-over to explain what's going on - perhaps those studio problems were returning again.

The film gets it's "thrills" from several well put together suspense scenes, even if they do play off obvious cliches like a blind girl getting stalked and frantic flash light searches of windblown buildings. Robinson manages to provide such scenes with an appropriate nervous energy as well as keeping us guessing as to what will happen. There's also a pleasing discarding of the gore that usually accompanies this type of movie.

Maybe the films biggest plus is its excellent cast who all deliver first-rate performances. Andy Garcia is intense as the police detective obsessed with both his case and his prime witness, hinting at possibly insidious motives. Uma Thurman is very convincing and sympathetic as the vulnerable blind witness. Lance Henriksen gives the sort of performance that begs the question of why he isn't used in quality work more often? John Malkovich is also a pleasing addition to the cast, in top form as a relentless FBI interrogator. If that wasn't enough, great actors like Kathy Baker and Kevin Conway occupy smaller roles.

Jennifer 8 finds a comfortable, if unspectacular, place in the murder investigation genre. While the sombre tone may put off some viewers, and it never quite reaches the heights of something like "Seven", there is still much to admire, particularly in its somewhat unique approach.

Uma gives a great performance as Helena. As a young woman who is pretty much perennially dejected, Uma delivers a subtly emotive portrayal, gaining pathos without becoming pitiful. Faced with the added acting challenge of playing blind she does well, never letting us forget she is blind but likewise never dwelling on it.

A couple of scenes that highlight Uma's talent include one when she is left standing alone in the middle of a party of strangers. She grows increasingly more nervous and unsettled until she can't stand it any more and breaks down. In explaining it away, she cracks a joke to John through the tears, "I just can't walk in these shoes." Absolutely perfect delivery.

In another scene where she is trying to convince John that she's telling him the truth, she gets the perfect emotion in her voice to kiss him and make the line "are my lips lying to you?" work, despite it's cheesiness on paper. It's brilliant, and extremely moving stuff.

Despite a rather lethargic character on the whole (there are probably too few big dramatic scenes) Uma has plenty of moments like these to show her abilities. As the plot advances Uma gets less dialogue scenes, and is there primarily as the target of the killer. In the several scenes where she's stalked/attacked, she does a terrific job of conveying the, literal, blind terror that Helena feels. She also reveals that despite everything that's happening to her, Helena has a very strong heart.

I say again, Uma gives a great performance here, and if you're looking to see her in a thriller, then this is definitely the one you should choose over Final Analysis.