At first, the story seems rather simple. The film opens with Dr. Malick, a psychiatrist (played by Alfred Molina), listening to a testimony of a murderer who is about to be executed. As a final attempt to stop the execution, he tries to convince the judge that the man was not in his proper state of mind when the murders were committed. What follows is a seemingly unrelated scene. It’s raining hard in Nevada and the roads are flooded. Because of the bad weather, 10 stranded guests are forced to spend the night in a motel. They arrive randomly. First to come was limo driver Ed (played by John Cusack); then came his boss, an out-of-the-frame actress named Caroline (Rebecca De Mornay), and members of the York family led by Mrs. Alice York (Leila Kenzle), who was accidentally hit by Ed with his car. With very worried husband George (John C. McGinley) and speechless young son Timmy (Bret Loehr) at her side, Ed forces his boss to get her a room in the motel and flees immediately in search of medical assistance for his victim. It is at this time that he bumps into Paris (Amanda Peet), a former prostitute, who begs him to give her a lift. As luck would have it though, his car refuses to run. Fortunately, they were able to get a lift from newlyweds Ginny (Clea Du Vall) and Lou (William Lee Scott). Completing the magic 10 circle are Rhodes (Ray Liotta), a suspicious-looking cop who claims to be transporting a prisoner (Jake Busey) to jail, and the rather shady motel manager Larry. During the night, these travelers – don’t get scared now – start getting murdered one after the other. What’s more intriguing is the fact that each murder scene has a room key in it, with the room number counting backwards from 10. As anyone would guess, these travelers have come to believe that it was all the prisoner’s doing, considering that the man has escaped from Rhodes. But when they see that the prisoner himself is murdered and the killing goes unabated, the remaining survivors frightfully realize that the murderer is one of them and if they don’t catch him/her fast, they just might not live through the night. In an attempt to save their lives, they try to discover if their group gathering was by mere chance or an inevitable circumstance. By now, you think you know the connection between Dr. Malick and the series of murders. But trust me, you really don’t. At least not until you reach the ending, where I can guarantee you a much unexpected surprise.
Indeed, Identity is a brilliant psychological thriller of today. It’s sure to give its viewers a mind-boggling and heart-stopping time. This film is really comparable to the spine-tingling Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. In this movie, however, there are more twists and the characters are intertwined puzzlingly. What’s more, the plot is designed to make the viewers think that they already know the story when they actually know just half of it. At first, it feels like a typical murder movie. In the end, however, you’d probably be left with your jaw dropping and saying, "I didn’t see that coming."