BlackJack: Dead Memory (2006 TV Movie) User Reviews (2)

The likable detective Jack, solves "Cold Cases" solo, as a result of becoming a whistle blower

[robinoz · 7/10 · 27 August 2006]

The BlackJack telemovies made here in Australia are a great showcase for the acting talent in Australia in a sea of reality TV shows.

Jack is a knockabout detective who has been banished to the basement of headquarters and given the task of solving Cold Cases. All because of whistle blowing on fellow officers for corruption.

His boss is old school, and hates Jack for obvious reasons and makes sure he makes his life as difficult as possible.

In this episode, a young woman goes missing when her car breaks down one night. Her body is found in a national park. When similarities are found with a previous disappearance, Jack picks up the pursuit of both cases.

Plenty of red herrings and great twists made this an enjoyable movie it was great to see a legend of Australian television Garry McDonald in a wonderfully cast role as the depressed grieving father of one of the girls. Garry has suffered severe depression most of his life mainly as a comedian!

Superior installment

[Steven Reynolds · 8/10 · 20 January 2007]

I've not been a big fan of BlackJack, with its tired cold-case premise and the clunky pairing of hot, tech-savvy newbie, Sam (Marta Dusseldorp) and her grizzled Luddite mentor, Jack (Colin Friels) – a setup which should feel fresh but still somehow feels like a cop drama cliché – and plot lines that were often less than gripping. This episode however, breaks the pattern, thanks mainly to the superior writing of Tim Pye and some fine performances, Garry McDonald especially. It works because the story is built around a strong emotional core – Sam's guilt about the disappearance and presumed murder of her best friend who vanished on the night of her engagement party. When a fresh case with some similarities hits the headlines, she and Jack can't help but start digging up the past. Pye quickly establishes numerous credible suspects and some amusing subplots, while including enough backstory angst to ground the tale in emotional reality, and enough quirky humour to stop it ever toppling over into melodrama. It all works nicely as it shimmies its way to a fine and surprising conclusion. With higher production values, this could easily have been the basis for a serviceable big screen thriller.