Murder By Numbers - Solid little thriller, saved by its cast

`Murder by Numbers' is a pretty run-of-the-mill sort of thriller: two spoilt, rich teenagers decide to commit a murder and see if they're smarter than the cops. Unfortunately for them, the `cops' are Sandra Bullock and Ben Chaplin - and these two just won't let go.  It's an interesting premise as many murders (at least the ones I've seen on screen!) are never 'pre-planned' to this degree.  The two boys spend much time (thankfully before the story kicks off) going through all the different ways to kill someone without getting caught and working out the 'perfect' crime which will not only never come back to haunt them, but also frame someone else in the process.

So it's a cat and mouse sort of game between the two pairs. Like I say, it doesn't sound like anything that special... and it's not. However, the film is raised above average by the stars. Sandra Bullock acts out of her `kookie-comedy' kind of comfort zone. You'll probably expect her to fall over or hit her head on a frying pan at any minute, but she never does - she plays it straight all the way through. Plus the two kids are kind of creepy and you will be definitely be rooting for Sandra and Ben to bring them to justice.  Even if one of the two murderous teens in question is played by Hollywood heart throb Ryan Gosling, who seems to delight in playing something other than just a 'pretty face.'

However, while we're on the subject of 'creepy,' Bullock really does do a few things that go against her 'good girl' image.  In fact, I'm guessing that if her character was a male, she may well be thought of as a - sort of - villain of them film who needs bringing to justice herself!

And that's about it. If you like either Sandra Bullock or a better-than-average cops hunting killers kind of film, you should like this - at least enough to give you a couple of hours entertainment.

7/10 if I woke up on Groundhog Day and had to watch this again, I could live with that