John Doe Vigilante

An extremely unpleasant, fuzzy-headed thriller, John Doe Vigilante revolves around a man who becomes an urban folk hero to many after he violently and cruelly kills a succession of reprobates: pedophiles, rapists, domestic abusers, and unpunished bullies. Since he wears a mask, no one knows who he is, but a death row inmate (Jamie Bamber) convicted of Doe's crimes asks to be interviewed by a handpicked journalist named Ken (Lachy Hulme). As Ken probes the would-be Doe's vaguely-worded claims, he also interviews a number of people involved in the case, including investigators, Doe's fans, and others. What Ken finds is that everyone had a reason to allow Doe to go on killing for as long as he did. Director Kelly Dolen is as subtle as an oncoming truck, while the story's implication that Doe is simply a manifestation of our collective dark side and widespread distrust of the legal system seems largely to be an excuse to film wrenchingly brutal scenes. Not recommended. (T. Keogh)