The Caveman's Valentine

    The Caveman's Valentine
    2001

    Synopsis

    Romulus, a misunderstood musician turned recluse hiding from personal demons in a New York City cave, finds the frozen body of a young drifter in a tree. The authorities, including his police officer daughter, claim the death is accidental. Romulus is convinced the man was murdered by a prominent art photographer but how can he prove he's right when everyone thinks he's insane?

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    Cast

    • Samuel L. JacksonRomulus
    • Colm FeoreLeppenraub
    • Ann MagnusonMoira
    • Aunjanue Ellis-TaylorLulu
    • Tamara TunieSheila
    • Anthony Michael HallBob
    • Erik LaRay HarveyYoung Rom
    • Rodney EastmanMatthew
    • Jay RodanJoey / No Face
    • Lyriq BentSeraph Dancer

    Recommendations

    • 75

      New York Post

      Holds less water as a mystery because its plot holes - and choppy pacing - make it seem as disconnected from reality as its hero. But Jackson is so frighteningly effective, and affecting, as Romulus that you're sucked in anyway.
    • 75

      Philadelphia Inquirer

      So suggestively atmospheric is Amelia Vincent's cinematography and Robin Standefer's art direction that mood -- and of course Jackson's performance -- sustains the movie.
    • 67

      Entertainment Weekly

      There is pleasure in giving oneself up to the gusty swirls of the film's imagery, and especially to the handsome grandeur of its star.
    • 63

      Chicago Tribune

      The movie loses its magic by the time the solution is revealed.
    • 60

      TV Guide Magazine

      Overall it's a frustratingly uneven movie, delicate at one moment and bluntly obvious the next.
    • 40

      Los Angeles Times

      As impressive as Jackson is and as thought-provoking as director Kasi Lemmons' movie is, it's ultimately satisfying neither as a genre piece nor as an art film.
    • 30

      Film.com

      It may have a good liberal conscience, and genuine sympathy for the rare perspective of a homeless person, but this movie is a fundamentally sentimental exercise.
    • 30

      Chicago Reader

      Kasi Lemmons directed this tepid thriller, whose only genuinely creepy aspect is its cavalier and uninformed use of mental illness and classical music to heighten the meager suspense.