Tequila Sunrise

Many perceive Tequila sunrise to be a routine, formulaic cop thriller with some nice sets, pretty actors, some guns, some sex....etc. Cynics go on to say that Gibson has never acted worse, that the plot twists are predictable and the love triangle is overly cheesy. I, on the other hand, feel that the film profits greatly from expert cinematography, fluent storytelling and convincing(albeit rather undemanding)acting. Pitting Gibson (the now-retired drug dealer lured back for one last deal) and Russell (the reluctant sheriff assigned to bust him) as best of friends on opposite sides of the law was a strong premise, made even more compelling by the fact that the drug dealer (Gibson) is the sympathetic character and the cop (Russell) is the sly, manipulative sort. There is an apparent sense of irony and it goes a long way to making an otherwise average story, interesting and very watchable. Pfeiffer is the glamorous love interest whose character does a lot to intensify the rivalry between the two men. Much of the drama and strength however comes from the late J.T Walsh as Russell's superior, hell bent on bringing Gibson down and his Mexican drug counter-part who nobody has ever seen. A special sense of irony presents itself at the denouement for Walsh unknowlingly becomes a pawn in the drug ring that has now become the talk of the town thanks to his vendetta.

The also late Raul Julia never disappoints as the charismatic yet enigmatic Mexican law enforcer. Julia and Walsh complement the film beautifully as side characters with dubious intentions. They are multi-faceted and like all the other people in this film are torn between what they should do and what they want to do, and in fact what they end up doing. Nothing is black and white in Tequila Sunrise; it's a very grey area. With every development we learn more about the people and how they are so far from being what we originally perceived. Hats off to to Robert Towne for his writing. Tequila Sunrise may lack the inventiveness, vision, and dynamism of Chinatown (Robert Towne wrote both scripts), but it should, by no means be discarded as a mediocre cop thriller.It is a very slick piece of cinema with fine acting, glamorous sets, and great dialogue. Furthermore, unlike some of it's predecessors it's a film that can be seen repeatedly without losing it's cutting edge. Under appreciated and underrated, Tequila Sunrise is an excellent film

"Tequila Sunrise" is sometimes quoted as an example of neo-noir, a genre of film which uses modern cinema techniques while trying to capture the spirit of the classic films noirs from the forties and fifties. Other examples include Polanski's "Chinatown", the Michael Winner remake of "The Big Sleep", Lawrence Kasdan's "Body Heat" and Curtis Hanson's more recent "L.A. Confidential".

The title is derived from the well-known cocktail which has three ingredients, tequila, orange juice, and grenadine. Mel Gibson is seen drinking this cocktail on a couple of occasions, but the significance of the title may be that the film explores the triangular relationship between a "cocktail" of three main characters, Dale "Mac" McKussic, Nick Frescia and Jo Ann Vallinari. (The film was advertised in France under the slogan "Un Cocktail Explosif").

Mac is a former drug dealer who claims that he is now trying to go straight. Nick is not only the head of the Los Angeles narcotics squad for but also Mac's close friend. Jo Ann is a local restaurant owner with whom both Mac and Nick are in love. The two men's friendship is therefore under severe strain, and not only because of their feelings for Jo Ann. There are suspicions that Mac has slipped back into his old ways and may be trying to pull off one last deal with another old friend, a Mexican drug baron named Carlos. If these suspicions prove correct, Nick will be duty-bound to arrest him.

Like many examples of both film noir and neo-noir, "Tequila Sunrise" has a complex plot, one where the motives of all the characters are suspect and where nobody knows whom they can trust. (The writer/director Robert Towne was also the scriptwriter for "Chinatown", a film with one of the most convoluted plots in cinema history). Nevertheless, I have never really regarded it as authentic neo-noir. There was always more to film noir than a crime-related theme and a complicated storyline. Atmosphere was equally important; in some cases (such as Howard Hawks' original "The Big Sleep") it was paramount. In the eighties it would have been virtually impossible to make a film using the moody black-and-white photography which characterised film noir, but neo-noir directors were often able to give their films an equivalent atmospheric look. "Body Heat", for example, has an atmosphere of extreme heat, of sweat, of physical lassitude, of moral decay and of sexual tension, something emphasised not only by John Barry's jazz score but also Kasdan's colour scheme dominated by blacks, reds and oranges.

The film stars three of the up-and-coming stars of the eighties in Gibson, Kurt Russell and Michelle Pfeiffer. None of them really give their best performance here, although Pfeiffer is always very watchable. Although in the eighties Gibson was best known for his "tough guy" roles, especially in the "Mad Max" series, he does not bring much menace to the role of Mac or suggest his criminal background. Roger Ebert called him "the nicest drug dealer you'd ever want to know".

In 1988 Towne was much more experienced as a screenwriter than as a director. He had worked on the scripts for more than a dozen films and several TV series, but had only directed one previous film, the very different "Personal Best". It is therefore perhaps not surprising that "Tequila Sunrise" comes across as more of a writer's film than a director's one. Towne inserts all the plot twists and turns that we have come to expect from noir and neo-noir, but there are none of the visual touches we associate with the genre. The film is surprisingly slow-moving and wordy for what is supposed to be a crime thriller, dominated more by talk than by physical action except during the (literally) explosive finale. Towne may have had ambitions to become an auteur director like Polanski, but "Tequila Sunrise", a run-of-the-mill crime drama, is not the work of an auteur. 5/10

I remember this movie for one real thing, the soundtrack. I bought it on vinyl and played a few songs until they were scratched, the fabulous "Do you believe in shame" by Duran Duran was one of my favourites and remains so to this day.

I like this film, I really do. Okay so it now looks dated, but the rest of the film is extremely good. Mel Gibson plays a big time Drug Dealer now trying to go straight but seemingly lined up for one final big deal, or so the Police think, and his old school friend who is now the Chief of Police in the same city, Kurt Russell. Russell rocks, he really does, and they play off each other so perfectly. Michelle Pfieffer is the female caught between them who falls for one, and then the other, each playing the reverse of what you think their character may be and each, in their own way, using her to gain information on the other. That plot device alone makes the movie work for me and I love watching the dynamics between all three characters.

Although a couple of plot turns need a little twist of the imagination, it's still very well written and carried through to the screen with these actors giving good performances to take it there. I still have a soft spot for this movie.

Now after saying that, let me say this. I do not think it is his best movie. I realize he has made much better movies. This movie is flawed but if you look hard enough everything is flawed. The reason this is my favorite Mel Gibson movie is A: Mel's performance, it was very good. Probably not his best but he plays paranoid well. B: Raul Julia he was awesome in this. Same with Michelle Pfeiffer and Kurt Russell. Next is the story. A tale of a drug dealer trying to clean up his life to impress a restaurant owner, but is derailed by everyone else in his life. His brother is trying to set him up, his high school buddy is trying to stop but not bust him, and steal his would be girl. His other old friend who is supposedly the biggest dealer in Mexico is trying to get him back into dealing. His ex-wife wants his money, the DEA wants him in jail, his lawyer isn't really helping and all his kid wants is his attention. This is a character the has every reason to trust no one and still tries although he is usually right and shouldn't. To me this is a fun film with interesting characters doing what should be uninteresting things. True it all ends in true hollywierd fashion but seeing Michelle Pfeiffer looking great in some power woman suits and Kurt Russell looking like a 50's cigarette poster and trying to be slick is fun. Plus the performance by J.T Walsh (one of my favorite character actors) as the seedy DEA agent makes this worth the time.

This is one of those guilty pleasures. I still find myself watching it over and over some 14 years later. After a while, who even cares about Robert Towne's serpentine plot twists. The reason this movie still works is simple - it is great entertainment. This movie takes 3 stars at the peak of their physical beauty who were just beginning to realize their acting potential (admittedly, in the years since, only 2 of them realized that potential). Michelle Pfeiffer attained a perfect trifecta in 1988 with comedy (Married to the Mob), drama (Dangerous Liasons), and this melodramatic actioner. The movie takes itself too seriously, but we don't have to. It's a silly fantasy world with stunning beach sunsets, tequila and sports cars, good drug dealers and bad cops, etc. Like Miami Vice, this movie portrayed the late 80s, and for those of us who grew up during that flashy, fun decade, _Tequila Sunrise_ is a fun-filled nostalgic trip. It's about a beautiful people living angst filled lives.

It's mindless and fun. So enjoy it for what it is.