by Vera Khano
Staff Writer
Skeet Ulrich's performance in Touch was truly a turnaround from his most recent big-screen portrayal in Scream, where he played a psycho teen out for blood. His role in this flick seems a little on the innocent side - a sweet, harmless, gentlemanly type angelic saint who can perform miracles.
Ulrich is emerging as one of the film industry's most talented and sought-after young actors. You might (or might not) remember him from other films, including Boys, opposite Winona Ryder; Kevin Spacey's Albino Alligator; the teen hit The Craft; and Last Dance, Sharon Stone's death-row drama.
In Touch, Ulrich is Juvenal, who not only heals ill people with his hands, but affects their entire lives as well. It's not just the infirm who luck out here.
The film is primarily a variation on Pulp Fiction (in the beginning) with a bit of a Phenomenon-meets-Leap of Faith plot. There are no real good guys or bad guys, just interesting characters.
Touch is a funny, sly film that kinda curves around the edges. The punch lines are kept so low that, in order to get them, you have to see everything in a different way, much like Pulp Fiction. You may think you are lost at first, but the movie develops a gallop as you get further into it.
Bridget Fonda seems a little out of place as Juvenal's girlfriend Lynn, with her gentle and delicate mannerisms. As Bill Hill, a religious leader gone used car salesman, Christopher Walken is his usual self - a laid-back stud who is cunning in his intentions.
Tom Arnold is exceptional as August Murray, whose role is a satirical sniff towards religious goodie-goodies. Arnold's portrayal shows these people do consist of something original that may be useful after all. Janeane Garofalo showcases her welcome sarcasm and bluntness in a relatively minor role as Kathy Worthington, the intrepid reporter who is out for the truth about Juvenal.
As for the film's R rating, it contained no real sex scenes despite nude sequences featuring Ulrich and Fonda which were unnecessary to the film's story. Those scenes feel tacked on, as if the producer needed something to make the film longer.
Touch has its quirky moments, and Ulrich is definitely on his way to the top, but it basically boils down to an "I-feel-like-getting-out-of-the-house" picture, and nothing more.