Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #100434 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-02-20
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 111 minutes

Amazon.com
"I've never done anything violent to anyone," says the mild-mannered Vann Siegert, "Just the minimum that was necessary." Indeed, if you have to get knocked off by a serial killer, Vann (Owen Wilson) is definitely your man. Just a quick, sweet swig from a silver flask of poisoned amaretto and you're out, with a narcoleptic slump into eternal slumber. There's no taunting or torturing; he's friendly about the whole thing. You can see Vann almost--almost--wishing his victims wouldn't take that final sip. He doesn't hold any particular grudge against these people; rather, as he puts it, "I take the natural momentum of a person and draw it toward me." If someone looks like they're on a crash course--like the boozy, asthmatic heroin addict played convincingly by Sheryl Crow, her acting debut--he merely accelerates the process.

Wilson proves to be a mesmerizing if unlikely serial killer, his flat, Midwestern delivery ringing more sincere than sinister, more Charlie Brown than Charles Manson. His voiceovers purportedly allow us into the mind of a killer, but what we hear isn't all that different from what we see. Vann isn't faking the nice-guy veneer, he is a nice guy, with this one little quirk. Clearly, this is not your typical edge-of-your-seat thriller, but the slow, dreamy pace is nonetheless entrancing. There are moments of intense grace and humor here, too. Janeane Garofalo breaks away from the smart-aleck mold to portray a postal employee smitten with Vann, and Mercedes Ruehl takes a compelling turn as his troubled landlady. "I like the detail of a thing," Vann says. "Especially if it's got a purpose." While we may not know for certain whether this film has a purpose, the details dare you to stop watching, even for an instant. --Brangien Davis

From The New Yorker
When Vann (Owen Wilson) steps into the sunshine or gets caught in a cop's high beams, his blond hair, fair skin, light clothes, and blank features render him practically transparent. Vann is surely the gentlest, most unassuming serial killer ever put on-screen. Director Hampton Francher gives his picture a washed-out, low-contrast look, and the effect is more reflective and dreamlike than scary and creepy. Francher also wrote the engaging screenplay (based on a novel by Lew McCreary), which works as a meditation on randomness and causality. Wilson is perfect as the polite, compulsive poisoner who tries to settle into a small California town but knows that it'll never work out. The excellent cast includes Brian Cox, Mercedes Ruehl, and Janeane Garofalo. -Ken Marks
Copyright © 2006 The New Yorker

Customer Reviews

Minus Man
The movie follows a serial killer, Vann (Owen Wilson) , into a small town to start a new life. Before he gets there he meets "Laurie" (Sheryl Crow), a dead beat drug user. When Vann arrives in the small town, some locals begin to disappear. No one really knows who or what is doing it. Vann has a job as a postman and becomes friends with Janeane Garofalo's character and the story unfolds from there. Janeane Garofalo has been in some not-so-great movies as of late, but this was one that was sadly over looked. Sheryl Crow's first acting roll is a must see. She pulls it off well. This is the first time I've seen Owen Wilson, and now I think I'll go look him up on Amazon to see what else he is in. All three actor's performances are wonderful and the movie is told in a not-so-traditional manner, making for a great film. DVD extras include: Serial Killer biographies, Theatrical and video trailers, production notes, cast & creww information, and more.

The Minus Man is a spectacular film!
This film lived up to all of my expectations. I'd seen the ad campaign and heard reviews from friends saying it was an intense film, and after watching it, I had to agree! I thought it was a terrific adaptation from the book, and I was as much disturbed as I was pleased. I love to have my ideas of normalcy challenged! Owen Wilson played the part really well- toned down and kind on the outside... Garofalo played a smitten, sensitive woman for the first time I've seen, and was perfect in her role! All the acting in this movie is great, but I was most surprised by Sheryl Crow's performance. She was totally in character and a lot of fun to watch.

I had to own this movie- I found that it translated great on DVD in widescreen.

Sociopath on the loose
I must say that I had no idea what this movie would be like but found myself pleasantly surprised by both the story and the central perfomances.

A young drifter by the name of Vann Siegert wanders into a small coastal town and slowly people in the town begin to disappear - it's no plot spoiler to say that Vann is the man causing these disappearances - we do see the movie through his eyes. He possesses a disarming charm and kindness that people feel they can trust him, most notably his landlord Doug followed by his wife Jane and his co-worker at the Post Office, Ferrin. Slowly things begin to change and tension builds as Vann ensures that his cover is not blown.

While this probably doesn't sound too different from your average serial killer yarn, it is made more believable by spot on performances. Owen Wilson is a revelation as the drifter Vann, with the charm of a Tom Ripley, his drawling voice and easy smile, not once suggesting a killer behind it. Brian Cox and Mercedes Ruehl are both excellent as Vann's landlords, with Ruehl just topping Cox with a lovely understated performance not overshadowed by Cox's occasional histrionics. Finally, rounding out the main cast is Janene Garofolo, as Ferrin, and she nails her role as the co-worker who hopes for romance perfectly.

The distraction of Vann's hallucinations don't work that well but this is a minor discrepancy in an otherwise excellent film. With his work on this movie and scene-stealing turns in such movies as the otherwise awful "The Haunting", and "Meet the Parents", Wilson certainly shows he is capable of much more.