Perfect Stranger (2007)

Perfect Stranger is a 2007 American neo-noir psychological thriller film, directed by James Foley, and starring Halle Berry and Bruce Willis in their first film together since The Last Boy Scout (1991). It was produced by Revolution Studios for Columbia Pictures.

Under the pen name David Shane, reporter Rowena Price (Halle Berry) and researcher Miles Haley (Giovanni Ribisi) are investigating senator Stephen Sachs, who has been having secret sexual encounters with his male interns, despite his publicly antigay agenda. However, the story is shut down when the source clams up and Rowena's editor, a supporter of the senator, puts a stop to the story. The editor also insists she take a vacation and will not take no for an answer.

While walking home, Rowena meets her childhood friend, Grace Clayton (Nicki Aycox) who seeks her help in taking down Harrison Hill (Bruce Willis) a wealthy advertising executive. Grace gives Rowena her e-mails as proof of their extramarital affair, which Hill recently ended.

A few days later, Grace is found dead, drowned and poisoned with belladonna, leading Rowena to suspect Harrison. Grace was revealed to be in her first trimester of pregnancy. With Miles' help, Rowena goes undercover, under the alias of Katherine Pogue, as a temporary worker at Harrison's advertising company, H2A at 7 World Trade Center. While setting up gift bags for a Victoria's Secret collection launch, she meets fellow advertiser Gina (Clea Lewis) Gina gives her information about the questionable lifestyles of the senior management of H2A. Harrison Hill is revealed to be rich because of his wife, Mia Reinhart-Hill (Paula Miranda) if she divorced him, he would be penniless, revealing the reason why he keeps his affairs with female workers secret. Rowena flirts with Hill both online and in real life, but is warned to stay away by Hill's lesbian PA, Josie (Daniella van Graas) and Rowena is not realizing the online Hill is actually Miles, secretly in love with her. One evening Hill catches Rowena snooping, thinks she is a corporate spy, and fires her.

At Miles's apartment, Rowena discovers a shrine to her and explicit pictures of Miles and Grace. Miles arrives home and Rowena confronts him. He defends himself by providing evidence that Hill had access to belladonna for poisoning. Rowena goes to the police, and Harrison is arrested for the murder of Grace.

After Hill's conviction, Miles visits Rowena. He tells her that he knows she is the real killer and has been using this investigation to frame Hill. Rowena flashes back to a memory of her father attempting to child sexual abuse|molest her, and her mother subsequently bludgeoning him to death with a fireplace poker. A younger Grace watches from her window as they bury the body. Grace has been blackmailing Rowena with this knowledge ever since. Miles describes in detail how Rowena had plotted the murder to end Grace's blackmail and pinned the murder on Hill. Miles asks how she intends to keep him quiet, implying she might sleep with him, since he has long lusted after her. However, Rowena stabs him to death and ransacks the kitchen. She then calls the police, claiming to have been attacked by Miles and that he might have been the real murderer. The film ends with a man looking out of a neighboring window, having witnessed what really happened.

Perfect Stranger

Theatrical release poster

Directed by

Screenplay by

Story by

Produced by

Starring

Cinematography

Edited by

Music by

Production

companies

Distributed by

Release date

Running time

Country

Language

Budget

Box office

James Foley

Todd Komarnicki

Jon Bokenkamp

Elaine Goldsmith-Thomas

Stephanie Langhoff

Daniel A. Thomas

Halle Berry

Bruce Willis

Giovanni Ribisi

Gary Dourdan

Anastas N. Michos

Christopher Tellefsen

Antonio Pinto

Columbia Pictures

Revolution Studios

Sony Pictures Releasing

    • April 13, 2007

109 minutes

United States

English

$60 million[1]

$73.1 million