Another very well done Jesse Stone movie. A dead 14 year old, pregnant teen found floating in a Paradise pond leads to some very revealing scenarios. Turns out the girl has turned into a slut after she switches to a news school. As the film progresses Jesse finds out that the accused, a well known writer named Shaw uses his annual fund raiser to meet and seduce young girls and is the father of the dead girl's fetus. He is also a yachtsman and the knot tied to hold the body down doesn't make sense, it was a square knot which will come undone. This leads Jesse to the real murderer's, a local drug dealer and his gunman bodyguard. They killed the girl and planted her to get Shaw out of the picture because he was writing an expose on the dealer. They all meet in an abandoned building where the dealer ends up shot by his guard and Jesse kills the shooter. Just a nice old fashion detective movie.

Mr Tom Selleck has often been sold short,particularly in the early stages of his career when he appeared to be just another good - looking big guy,albeit one with a sense of humour.More recently he has been flexing his acting chops and in the "Jesse Stone:Death in Paradise" he gives a performance well beyond the call of duty. Chief of a four person police department on the Massachusets coast,he is a man to inspire loyalty and confidence,respect and obedience;a remnant,if you like of all our distant memories of what we would like small - town cops to be. He is not a perfect man by any means,arriving in Paradise on the back of a marriage break up and he has a drink problem that he seems unable to resolve. He is stubborn,principled,brave and flawed,not unlike Robert B.Parker's more famous character,Spenser. He does not show emotion but he is not emotionless. Mr Selleck portrays these complicated and contrary characteristics with very little indications other than the eyes.Mostly he looks impassive but his true feelings are visible through his eyes.It is an exceedingly impressive performance of a depth rarely seen in TV productions. The story is almost ancillary to the character development,Mr Selleck is obviously in this for the long run. Mr W.Devane is excellent as the cop - turned - shrink who dishes out tough love to Jesse at $180 per hour. Lovers of Mr Parker's novels will appreciate the characters that cross from the Spenser series,Commander Healey of the State Police and Gino Fish the Boston mobster with a whimsical turn of mind. I have just read the first post - Parker Jesse Stone and the character has made the difficult transition between the authors quite flawlessly. I wholeheartedly recommend the "Jesse Stone" series to all lovers of joined - up TV cop shows.

I thought the characterisation, especially of Stone, were very good. Selleck had the right air of a good man with problems. Molly and Suitcase were good support in the force. The relationship between Stone and Lily Summers seemed a little strange but Orla Brady was pleasant and gave the impression that there was a lot hidden below the surface.William Devane and Stephen McHattie were underused.The murder mystery was somewhat flimsy - especially the ending. Stone works out the killer based on knots. (And Shaw doesn't look like an experienced yachtsman, to me !) Of course, he has absolutely no evidence. In a 1960s detective show, the villain would have broken down and confessed in front of a room of witnesses. We aren't that unrealistic now. Instead, the villain's henchman accidentally shoots his boss saving Stone the trouble of proving that he planned the murder. Then Stone has to kill the henchman (who had actually committed the murder) - in self-defence of course.That's two guys that Stone shoots in self-defence.Overall, though, I enjoyed the movie. Definitely above average.I'd be interesting in reading the book to compare the two.

This is the third in the Jesse Stone movie series and I thought it was the best. Selleck is just perfect as the flawed, but honorable main character. What makes this series so good is what others have written; the pacing of the films is thoughtful; the characters are adult and complex; it has plot and intelligence over car crashes and special effects though it has action and romance in it to be sure. You like Selleck's character instantly and his scenes with his other officers,the State Police Detective and the shrink he see's about his drinking, are all terrific.In the special features on Stone Cold Selleck says people have a 'hunger' for this type of adult entertainment where plot and story are more important than rapid fire visuals--and that is so true. It's surprising how good this series is--it's way better than 95% of what's in the theaters. Tom Selleck in a really good cop movie or Pirates of the Caribbean part IV--it's no contest.