The Lost Son Movie Review

Forget 8MM. The Lost Son's look at a troubled P.I. who gets caught up in what turns out to be a nasty child prostitution ring is exceptional considering it's barely anything more than a direct-to-video thriller packed with stars that barely speak English.

French Ÿber-actor Daniel Auteuil stars as Xavier, an investigator with a seedy past -- he's had a mysterious scrape or two, and now, to get by, he does double time, accepting money for an engagement only to blackmail the subject for more. When a wealthy woman (Nastassja Kinski) and her family hire Xavier to find a grown man who's gone missing, Xavier ends up cracking a child porn gang wide open.

Unlike the aforementioned lame 8MM, The Lost Son really does get seedy, with a prostitute pal and plenty of loathsome characters that do more than wear leather masks to show how distasteful they are. It's hardly Triumph of the Will, but the villains make your skin crawl.

That is, when you can understand them. Between Auteuil, Kinski, and cockney Katrin Cartlidge, the many (and varied) accents are so thick the movie actually becomes difficult to follow at times. And that's not even mentioning that Kinski has never had a shred of acting talent to lay claim to.

The bottom line on The Lost Son: It's an nteresting diversion if you can't find anything better to rent at the video store.



Lost and found.