Kiss the Girls stars Morgan Freeman as Alex Cross, forensic detective and best-selling author. Before he can pat himself on the back for preventing a suicide in his home base of Washington, D.C., he's called down to Durham, North Carolina, to investigate the disappearance of his niece. It turns out that his niece is just one of a number of women who have been kidnapped by a predator who calls himself Casanova. Cross consults with the local police and the FBI, but mostly works on his own when he realizes that there is no rhyme or reason to the order in which Casanova kills his victims.

A break in the case comes in the form of Kate Mctiernan (Ashley Judd), a doctor and one of Casanova's victims who managed to escape alive. Because she was drugged and traumatized, Kate initially isn't much help. But the guilt over her leaving the other women behind drives her to devote herself to tracking down Casanova. So with Kate in tow, Cross traverses the country and back again to track down Casanova before he kills again.

Kiss the Girls is directed by Gary Fleder (Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead) and based on the novel by James Patterson. While Fleder starts the movie creepily enough, he loses the momentum. This really isn't his fault, nor is it the fault of the principal players. Though Freeman puts little flair into Cross, he does give an adequate performance, and Judd has a good turn as the strong, smart Kate. It's the story that pulls everyone down. Plot turns make unlikely demands on Kate and Cross, who act profoundly stupid for two people who are doctors. Details are introduced, then dropped, never to be heard of again, and when the killer goes bicoastal, it's just too much to ask.