Movies with a message are by their nature problematic.

David Schwimmer for example did a film about teenage girls and the internet. It was more message than movie and for that reason it may well be already lost to time.

On the other hand Paddy Chayefsky's NETWORK was both a message and a film opus. Fantastic movie and it will live forever on the "top 10" lists of viewers all over the globe.

This Aussie effort, featuring a FANTASTIC performance by Bamber, who, to dig out the old cliché, does silent dialog using only his eyes, gives you a nice slow start and then builds and builds and builds.

The best thing about it is that it keeps the viewer off-balance right to the end, achieved by some of the best editing of "flashbacks" I have seen since the days of Sergio Leone.

There is a particular scene at the 1:19 mark involving a small child who "thanks" Bamber that is likely the highlight. True to form, not even this scene ends the way we might expect.

Recommended.

The Conundrum of Vigilante Justice has been the Topic of Many a Movies and the Message is Delivered here with a clearly Different Style and Tone. That makes it Worth a Watch because it isn't just More of the Same, it is More of the Same but Served with a bit of Low Budget Grittiness, coupled with some Clever Turns, that adds to the Film's Gravitas.

Sometimes the Indie Budget Betrays and Exposes some Weaknesses, like a Muddled Montage and Mediocre Acting, that at times is so "In Your Face" that the Suspension of Disbelief teeters.

On the other hand its Standoffish Camera gives the thing a Detached Demeanor. Being Removed from the Proceedings the Audience is in essence Layered and Given a Pass from the Guilt that John Doe states is not as Easy as the Killings.

There Never is an Easy Answer to the Questions Posed in this Scenario and John Doe makes all the Necessary Points with an Occasional Outburst from His Detached Demeanor. The Film borders on the Exploitative at times but does Hold Back enough to be Engaging to say the least.

Writer & director Kelly Doan's "John Doe, Vigilante" qualifies as the most provocative contemporary vigilante thriller since the Charles Bronson "Death Wish" movies. This message-laden saga is at once both issue-oriented as well as action-packed with at least three surprises. The inherent weakness here is that Dolan and scenarist Stephen M. Coates don't develop the characters sufficients and everything is a bit too neat to be entirely believable. Nevertheless, "Joe Doe Vigilante" is quite often a gripping film. An anonymous individual who dons a white mask and a hoodie doles out rough justice in a variety to ways. The eponymous hero, however, confines himself to killing either criminals or people who have gotten away with their heinous crimes. Television news reporter Sam Foley (Gary Abrahams),who has covered Joe Doe's killing spree, points out the problem to fellow journalist Ken Rutherford (Lachy Hulme) about a half-hour into this compelling but loquacious 93 minute melodrama. Foley explains, ". . . the system as it stands, it doesn't work." Foley elaborates, "We're too politically correct. It's all about the perp's rights. The preps get their way. The victims end up getting screwed. And when you go to court, if you're lucky enough to get to court, the courts end up editing the victim's impact statement." Soon afterward, Sam compares a vigilante to a soldier. "A vigilante is simply somebody who violates the law in order to punish a criminal for what they believe is right, for what they believe is justice. So what then do you call a country who sends soldiers to kill people in places like Afghanistan or Iran, Iraq, Korea, Vietnam, in the name of what they believe is right, in the name of what they believe is justice? That country is a vigilante, pure and simple. Only, when a country does it, people call it war, and nobody bats an eyelid. But when a country does it, they aren't anywhere near as clinical or as careful as someone like Joe Doe. And that country ends up killing thousands of innocent women and innocent children."

John Doe (Jamie Bamber of "Battlestar Galactica") is a decent individual who can no longer tolerate a flawed justice system that allows criminals get away with their crimes. He is a combination of Charles Bronson's Paul Kersey in "Death Wish" and Peter Finch's Howard Beale from "Network." He takes justice into his own hands and kills child molesters, wife beaters, and other criminals. The plain mask that he wears represents a kind of objectivity that his notorious exploits encapsulate. Eventually, his vigilantism inspires a conservative, grass roots movement that labels themselves "Speak for the Dead." These people take it upon themselves to punish lawbreakers that the justice system refuses to punish. Dolan and Coates relate the action in flashback, and they outline the vigilante history of our sympathetic hero. Before the jury delivers its verdict, Joe Doe is in custody, and he consents to an jail house interview with Ken Rutherford. The big surprise comes here. Despite its garrulous nature, "John Doe Vigilante" is an intelligent film that doesn't pander with his many brutal killings. Dolan doesn't whip us up into a frenzy. He lens everything from an impersonal point of view until he shows our hero in a podcast confronting the man who inspired him to embark on his vigilante path. At its worst, "John Doe Vigilante" is pretentious but articulate. The ending may not come as a surprise to some, but it is unlike anything we've seen before. Any time that I can watch a movie completely in one sitting, I know that the filmmakers have done something right. Some movies you have to break up into a number of different viewings, but I had no problem watching "John Doe Vigilante" from start to finish late one evening and wrote this review during the process.