Mystery 101: Dead Talk

Amy Winslow, a professor of crime fiction, is invited by her ex-boyfriend Tim Bishop to deliver a prestigious 'Teachable Talk' in Seattle. Detective Travis Burke, sensing a bit of competition from the 'genius' ex, offers to drive Amy to the city. Upon arrival, they are introduced to Mitchell McHale, a billionaire tech developer who is underwriting the event to launch S.L.O.O.T.H., an AI software designed to solve crimes and potentially replace human detectives. Amy is skeptical of the machine's ability to interpret human behavior. During a rehearsal gala, McHale is found dead outside the hotel, apparently having fallen from the roof. The investigation is led by Lieutenant Rachel Knox, Travis's former partner from his days in Chicago. While Knox initially focuses on McHale's wife Alexis and her lover Billy Poole, Amy and Travis begin digging into McHale's business dealings. They discover that the S.L.O.O.T.H. software was actually a sham, a fact known by venture capitalist Vicky Lin. The investigation takes a turn when they connect McHale to the recent murder of Ray Sweeney, a high-profile defense attorney known as the 'Lucky Irishman.' Amy and Travis visit Sweeney's crime scene and find evidence of a professional hit rather than a robbery. They encounter a young witness, Owen, a 'Quest Master' for a LARPing group, who saw McHale's car at Sweeney's house on the night of the murder. Amy realizes that McHale witnessed Sweeney's murder and was using that information to blackmail the killer into securing a police contract for his software. In a shocking twist, Amy deduces that the killer is Rachel Knox herself. Rachel had been fixing cases for Sweeney to pay off her father's mob debts; when Sweeney blackmailed her to continue the arrangement, she killed him, and subsequently killed McHale to cover her tracks. Travis is forced to confront his old friend, who confesses to the crimes. The film concludes with Amy successfully delivering her talk to a packed house, including her father and friends from Garrison who surprised her by attending.