In the Cut

Using the sentimental ditty "Que Sera Sera" to eye-rolling effect as an ironic theme for a victim-protagonist with dangerously bad taste in men, this erotic thriller proves to be neither erotic (who would want to sleep with a creepy cop who always wears a deceitful grimace?) nor thrilling, but merely baleful and unpleasant. Adapted from Susanna Moore's 1995 novel by Moore and director Jane Campion, the film stars Meg Ryan (in a welcome, commanding departure from her screen-sweetheart career trap) as an emotionally wary Lower Manhattanite who becomes entwined in a psychologically reckless relationship with a callously manipulative detective (Mark Ruffalo) investigating a string of gruesome dismemberment murders--even though she suspects he may be the killer himself. If her poor judgment was compelling in some way, In the Cut might have been as gripping as Campion intended with the effectively gritty and perilous underbelly-of-New-York atmosphere she's created. But it's hard to get in Ryan's corner, making this unsettling flick feel less like a thriller and more like a fantasy of feminine self-hatred in which being manhandled by vile men is a turn-on. Not a necessary purchase. [Note: Available in either R-rated or unrated versions, DVD extras include audio commentary by director Jane Campion and producer Laurie Parker, a 15-minute behind-the-scenes featurette, the two-minute featurette segment “Frannie Avery's Slang Dictionary,” and trailers. Bottom line: the “unrated” version adds about a minute of racy footage (including a real-looking fellatio scene with--according to Campion--a fake penis), not that that makes this dismal film any better.] (R. Blackwelder)