Tom Selleck is on strong form but his talent is wasted in this limp TV-movie crime drama. He gives a sympathetic performance as a former LA homicide detective turned New England police chief, whose sleepy small-town life is shattered by a string of murders and the rape of a high-school student. Yet despite its sensational set-up, this first in a series of films based on Robert B Parker's Jesse Stone books is relentlessly dull and formulaic. Poor pacing, sketchy characters and zero tension highlight the plot's flimsiness, while the lazy signposting of events results in a seriously underwhelming climax.

Jesse Stone is a former L.A. homicide detective who left behind the big city and an ex-wife to become the police chief of the quiet New England fishing town of Paradise. Stone's old habits die hard as he continues to indulge his two favorite things: Scotch whiskey and women. After a series of murders, the first ever in Paradise, and a high school girl is raped he's forced to face his own demons in order to solve the crimes.