There are, to date, 11 crime novels from Norwegian author Jo Nesbø featuring detective Harry Hole, novels which have sold many millions of copies worldwide. So that takes a little bit of the mystery out of how this overstuffed, undercooked thriller landed talented director Tomas Alfredson (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy), talented actor Michael Fassbender (the best part of Alien: Covenant), talented editor Thelma Schoonmaker (Scorsese’s oeuvre)…hell, even Val Kilmer, Charlotte Gainsbourg, J.K. Simmons, Toby Jones, and Chloë Sevigny show up! It’s a pity, because there’s some squirmy vitality in the hothouse premise of a boy being so angry at his mother for a) having him out of wedlock with an abusive, adulterous cop, and b) killing herself when said cop threatens to stop coming ‘round for beatings and boinkings, that he grows up to become a killer of adulterous women. And it’s clear that the real story, the real subject, is how parents treat (or mistreat) their kids — Harry included (even though the kid in question isn’t really his). Promising! But alas, as every mistreated child knows, promises are easily broken. (2017) — Matthew Lickona
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