Head Above Water

Judge marries bimbo and gets all that he deserves; that's the short version. Long version: Judge George (Harvey Keitel) and his local buddy, Lance (Craig Sheffer), go fishing on a boat (as men are wont to do) foolishly leaving the judge's young, attractive wife, Nathalie (Cameron Diaz), alone on the island when her young and good looking ex-boyfriend Kent (Billy Zane) turns up unexpectedly. Knowing she's safe with an old friend, she joins him in drink and celebration and, much to her surprise, wakes with little memory of the night before. Not to worry; no sex has transpired; she has remained faithful to the term wedlock. Kent, however, who is still naked in the married couple's bed, is very dead. Naturally, Nathalie's first thoughts are of how jealous George will be and so she does what any bimbo would do; she hides the body in the cellar. This starts off a chain of events from which there is no turning back (to say the least) and one can enjoy a few laughs along the way while following and trying to figure out the twists and turns. Things go from bad to worse until even the talent of Harvey Keitel is unable to save the day. Scriptwriter Theresa Maria and director Jim Wilson owe, I would venture, more than a passing debt to Hitchcock and one wonders, finally, why the film simply hasn't been titled "The Trouble With Kent."