Allow me to point out the last three movies written by "Mr. Brooks" writer/director Bruce A. Evans: "Jungle 2 Jungle," "Cutthroat Island" and "Kuffs." After writing three such dogs should your "next job" involve anything other than being run out of Hollywood? Okay, I will say this: His last credit was ten years ago, so maybe Hollywood is learning, but I still don't think you let this guy direct. You first see if he can bring a competent director coffee, and then if he can do that, you move him up to donuts.

"Mr. Brooks" is about the most ridiculous movie I've ever seen, mostly because it's trying to position itself as a realistic thriller yet its plotting is about as likely Bill O'Reilly and Barney Frank teaming up for the next "Dancing with the Stars."

Kevin Costner plays the title character, a serial killer who's been trying to go straight, but gets the killing bug, motivated by his imaginary friend and/or alter ego, Marshall (William Hurt). Mr. Brooks kills again and is photographed in the act by Mr. Smith (Dane Cook). Instead of notifying the police, especially Det. Tracy Atwood (Demi Moore), Mr. Smith shows up at Mr. Brooks's place of business and threatens to turn him in unless Mr. Brooks allows Mr. Smith to join him on his next murder. That, in my book, is some goofball plotting, to say the least.

The subplots are equally dumb. For one, there's Brooks's daughter, Jane (Danielle Panabaker), who seems to have taken after her father and quits college after apparently killing a fellow student. Then there's Det. Atwood's impending divorce and personal history that includes the disorienting fact that she's worth some 60 million dollars.

With that much convoluted crap going on, it's ironically predictable that the film is going to end in some miasmatic twist fest. Would such a film be complete without one of those misleading dream sequences?

Rumor has it that Costner has said, before the film even came out, that he's interested in continuing with this character. I'm sure such an endeavor would make a fine attraction at his local dinner theater.