The Third Coincidence

What works on the big screen doesn’t necessarily work on the page, as shown by this crude political thriller from Bishop (The Beholder). An inventive killer takes his grudge against the Supreme Court and the Federal Reserve Board to deadly extremes: he poisons Justice Adam Monroe; cuts Justice Herbert Clarkson Montgomery’s throat; and ensures Federal Reserve governor J.T. Santee suffers a fatal accident while driving too fast in the Poconos. President Samuel Schroeder calls on Jack McCall, a special assistant to the CIA director, to head a special task force. More killings follow, along with demands from someone identifying himself as Commander LW of the American Militia to Restore Representative Government. McCall’s team works feverishly to identify the killer, while LW continues his one-man, cross-country crusade to eliminate a growing list of targets. Pedestrian prose, stock characters, and a repetitive plot doom this cinematic effort. (Feb.)