Copycat (1995)
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A criminal psychologist and a homicide detective must team up to stop a serial killer who mimics the crimes of notorious murderers.
The story
After a terrifying attack by a prison escapee during a university lecture, criminal psychologist Dr. Helen Hudson becomes severely agoraphobic and retreats into her apartment. When a series of murders begins to plague San Francisco, mimicking the crimes of famous serial killers, homicide detective M.J. Monahan and her partner Ruben Goetz seek out Helen's expertise. Reluctantly, Helen agrees to help from behind her computer screen. As the investigation deepens, they realize the killer is systematically emulating the crimes of notorious murderers in the exact order Helen presented them in her lecture.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Dr. Helen Hudson, a criminal psychologist, is attacked by Daryll Lee Cullum, a prisoner who escaped and killed a police officer. Traumatized, Helen becomes agoraphobic and lives in her apartment. When a new serial killer begins committing murders modeled after famous killers like Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer, Detective M.J. Monahan and her partner Ruben Goetz seek Helen's help. Helen discovers the killer is following the specific order of killers she taught in her lecture. The killer eventually kidnaps Helen's assistant, Andy, and kills him in a Dahmer-like fashion. The police identify a suspect, Peter Foley, who was corresponding with Cullum. After Ruben is killed in a separate police station incident, M.J. continues the hunt alone. She finds that Foley has kidnapped Helen and left a video. M.J. tracks her to the lecture hall restroom where she finds Helen bound and gagged. Foley shoots M.J., but she survives due to a bulletproof vest. Helen attempts to sabotage the scene by hanging herself, leading to a struggle. M.J. arrives and shoots Foley, killing him. It is later revealed that Cullum had been aiding Foley all along.
- First release year
- 1995
- Runtime (minutes)
- 123
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Jon Amiel
- Writers
- Ann Biderman · writer; David Madsen · writer
- Cast and characters
- Sigourney Weaver · Dr. Helen Hudson; Holly Hunter · M.J. Monahan; Dermot Mulroney · Ruben Goetz; William McNamara · Andy; Will Patton · John Rothman; John Rothman · Daryll Lee Cullum; J. E. Freeman; Harry Connick Jr.
- Genres
- psychological thriller; horror; mystery; crime
- Themes
- gender and interpersonal relationships; victimization of women; agoraphobia
- Tone and mood
- unpleasant; suspenseful; chilling
- Premise and plot tags
- serial killer; copycat crimes; police procedural; psychological thriller
- Content notes
- violence
- Reception
- The film was a moderate box office success and received positive reviews for the performances of its leads, writing, and direction. It was also very successful in the video rental market.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 76% · review count: 58; Rotten Tomatoes · score: 6.5/10 · scale: 10
- Awards and nominations
- AFI's 100 Years...100 Thrills · Nominated · 2001 · Nominated
- Production trivia
- The film was originally intended to have a male detective and a romantic plot line between the leads.; The film's original ending featured the killer kidnapping the detective instead of the psychologist.; Director Jon Amiel chose San Francisco to contrast a beautiful city with cruel human events.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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