Here is a nifty psychological thriller that puts a few fresh twists and turns on the worn out detective movie genre. Bill Pullman is just right as an eccentric sleuth named Daryl Zero. This recluse keeps a very low profile, living in a Los Angeles penthouse and working on a memoir. Steve Arlo (Ben Stiller), his front man, finds a new client — Gregory Stark (Ryan O'Neal), a Portland timber tycoon who is being blackmailed. Zero assumes multiple identities as he gathers information relevant to the case. Everything is proceeding smoothly until he meets Gloria Sullivan (Kim Dickens in a standout performance), a paramedic who takes an interest in him. Zero's philosophy — "Passion is the enemy of precision" — is tested as the two slowly move into a romantic relationship.
Writer and director Jake Kasdan shows how love has a way of opening up long closed doors and dismantling elaborately devised schemes intended to keep people at arm's length. Can a person who has spent a lifetime hiding come out and play? When reason rules the roost, can a person escape his nature? Check out Zero Effect for its interesting answers to these important questions.