Blind Eye

The dark and gritty Blind Eye falls short of its Mystic River-esque aspirations, but an engaging, scene-stealing performance by WWF grappler-turned-actor Roddy Piper keeps things interesting in this Canadian police thriller. Big city detective Nick (Levi Oliver, a pale imitation of Josh Brolin) returns to his hometown to help his ex look for their missing daughter. However, he runs into resentment by his former fellow officers, headed by Piper, who for some reason gives Nick false leads. A few twists and dead bodies later, Nick stumbles onto a sinister conspiracy.

Shelf Talk: MTI has fan favorite Piper, who seems to be on the mend from a bout with cancer, doing radio interviews, in addition to the usual viral marketing via the Web (YouTube and MySpace) and targeted radio promotions. The only other name performer in Blind Eye is Nick Mancuso, whose work has primarily been beneath the radar for the past few years. Mystery and police procedural buffs who’ve seen everything else will be fitfully entertained, and definitely let Piper’s legion of fans know of his starring status.