Murder by Numbers

Murder by Numbers is a 2002 psychological thriller film produced and directed by Barbet Schroeder. It stars Sandra Bullock, Ben Chaplin, Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt. It is loosely based on the Leopold and Loeb case.

Richard Haywood and Justin Pendleton, two wealthy, intellectual high school students, plan to commit the perfect murder to prove their superiority over other people. They kill a woman and set up Richards marijuana dealer, janitor Ray Feathers. They then incinerate the evidence. The case is assigned to Detective Cassie Mayweather and her new partner, Sam Kennedy. They work together well, and begin a romantic relationship very early on in their partnership. Footprints found at the crime scene lead to Haywood, who has an alibi. Cassie becomes obsessed with the idea that Haywood is guilty, and refuses to pursue the case from other angles. This displeases Captain Rod Cody and Cassies vindictive ex, Assistant D.A. Al Swanson, who fear that Richards influential parents will end their careers.Meanwhile, Haywood kills Feathers and makes it look like suicide. Sam and Cassie fall out over differences in their professional attitudes towards the investigation, and Cody bans Cassie from pursuing the investigation further when she disobeys instructions. ........

Source: Wikipedia