Destiny Turns on the Radio

I guess I must be a bit odd, but this movie represented so many important things to me - Destiny (soul mates), Las Vegas (I was drawn to this city and love it here), mysticism/magic (the gold pool, the coyote, the Marilyn Monroe Motel (like the 'Blue Angel' here in Vegas), and the music - Just My Imagination, always a favorite by the Temptations, and here played by Booker T and the MGs, added just the perfect touch for the two main characters' love scenes. (Plus Louis Prima's Old Black Magic at the end, was perfect for many reasons.) Also, the quirky humor was great - Pappy's sincere discussion with his son about the 'peneal gene', and how 'prisons make him nervous', and his greeting to his new daughter in law. Loved Thoreau's scenes too. I agreed, Quentin Tarantino's role in it was enigmatic, but not 'quite right'. I had the feeling he would have rather played Julian's role. Question: how can I contact the writer and learn how he came up with the plot concept and the choice of music?

The film tells a story about marginal people--people living in the interstices and on the edges of our system. Stories of this type allow writers and directors to concentrate on interactions among a fairly small group, and (usually) they create interesting, likable people for us. This film, with its bow to magic realism, is both amusing and surprising. Tarantino is not effective as an actor, I feel. Apparently he is too self-conscious or, perhaps, does not rehearse. Aside from his performance (and it is not actually bad), the performances are fine. Just about every actor in the film does a good job.

There are only certain movies that can overcome their technical failures. Movies like "Destiny Turns on the Radio" have an authentically magical spark that draws you in despite some bad production values. What's more, its whimsical but truly bizarre story never alienates its audience. It is solidly entertaining and memorable throughout. Featuring some dazzling performances (minus Quentin Tarantino's lackluster turn as the suave Johnny Destiny) and a truly unique story, "Destiny" is a low-key gem.

Dylan McDermott is downright charismatic as Julian Goddard-a fugitive who was able to escape a Nevada penitentiary through a once in a lifetime brush with luck and fate. He is rescued by Destiny and delivered back to his old life of crime after 3 years. He hooks up with hotel manager Thoreau, his longtime partner and friend-played by James LeGros who is one of the film's most shining assests. With a fresh new hand at life, he sets out to get back with his ex Lucille, who is looking for her big break as a singer (by any means necessary). She is now with a piggish casino owner played by a surprisingly funny James Belushi. Of course, Goddard needs to thwart him, his goons, not to mention a handful of cops on his tail in order to get to his long lost love. All the while, Johnny Destiny is planning his return to his netherworldly realm through means of a hotel pool portal (don't ask- watch the movie).

There are a lot of things that just don't work in this movie. Fortunately they are not hard to look past. These include the terrible sound, which require some leniency from the viewer. They also include some jokes that go flat-notably a completely needless subplot starring none other that Bobcat Goldthwait. As you know, Quentin doesn't do much for his great role and to top it all off, there are some things that don't make a whole lot of sense in the script.

The beautiful thing about this movie is that it doesn't stop being so effortlessly likable. It gets very far fetched, but it never turned me off the whole time. In fact, it only proceeded to draw me in and captivate my imagination. Not to mention it's sprinkled with great bit parts like Tracey Walter as Goddard's desert-rat father, a hilarious David Cross as Lucille's sleazy agent and Allen Garfield as Vinny Vedivici, the slob producer who can make her dreams come true.

It may not hit all its marks, but "Destiny Turns on the Radio" convinces you it doesn't have to. It is one of those irresistible movies that you don't know why you enjoy it, but can't help doing so nonetheless. Don't be shy, accept "Destiny".

Aside from an earlier comment written about this movie, I happen to believe that DESTINY TURNS ON THE RADIO is a fine indie film. The dialogue is actually quite pungent with one-liners and gritty 'over-the-top' tough-guy-ness which makes it rather enjoyable. The story takes place in Las Vegas where an animistic spirit in the form of a man, Johnny Destiny (played by Tarantino), brings luck and good fortune to whoever he comes into contact with. The cast is idealistic and sparked with character, especially in the cases of wacky Thoreau and angry Julian (played respectively by James Le Gros and Dylan McDermott), and in a surprise casting move with comic veteran James Belushi as Tuerto, casino manager of The Stardust and new lover of the befallen Lucille (Nancy Travis of 'SO I MARRIED AN AXE MURDERER'). Johnny Destiny is the somewhat loose glue binding all of these characters together, which is a far stretch I'll admit, but the fun is in how it plays out, the excessive Las Vegasy overacting (which shouldn't be mistaken for real acting) and the quips of the dialogue. The only problem with this film, however, is that Tarantino's acting is horrid and somehow his association with this movie lumped it into a generic Tarantino-esque category, making its viewers somewhat upset due to the overwhelming lack of F-words, point-blank gunpoint stand-offs, and bloody faces. What DESTINY TURNS ON THE RADIO does offer, however, is a magical, mystical feel in a city where lady luck is prayed upon every second, and characters who obviously take themselves too seriously only to learn that success and fortune can fade in the flash of a lightning bolt. Other interesting and great casting mentions go to Bobcat Goldthwait and David Cross.

I don't know what convinced Quentin Tarantino to take a role in 'Destiny Turns on the Radio,' nor do I really want to. Essentially it is a rip-off of his ultra-popular "Pulp Fiction," released in 1994, only that movie had a point and this one does not. Dylan McDermott heads an all-star cast as a crook that is let out of jail, only to find his old pal (James LeGros) has lost their cash to a mysterious wanderer named Johnny Destiny (Quentin Tarantino), hence the title.

However, things aren't as clear as they seem to be. Sure, the movie's title is easily explanatory – but what on earth Johnny Destiny stands for (other than, of course, destiny), why he's there, who he really is, what he's doing, why he wants to do what he's doing – none of it is explained.

Furthermore none of it is ambiguous like 'Donnie Darko,' where we enjoy guessing and forming our own conclusions. Nope, it's just stupid and guessing what any of it means wastes too many precious brain cells that doesn't deserve to be burnt on such lousy, paper-thin material.

It's like someone, somewhere, said, 'Let's make a movie with Quentin Tarantino. It'll have no plot, we'll just have some weird characters interact and tell jokes and entertain the audience.' Entertaining, perhaps, but not in a good way.

The ending stinks of studio interference and more often than not the movie is just downright confusing. It could very easily be one of the worst films of all time, if not for the fact that it is rather sporadically amusing at times (its strongest traits of very little) and there are some OK performances from James Belushi and LeGros. The rest of the cast is a dud -- Tarantino tries, but fails, in a cameo-sized role. He's flamboyant and obviously savoring the opportunity to pay homage to all the cool-cat characters of classic cinema, but it's soon revealed that his character, Johnny, is just plain strange and unlikable. I expected to feel something – anything – when he appeared on-screen, but I didn't. Co-star McDermott in particular is just plain awful, lacking the charisma required for the role. Often appearing in made-for-television movies, McDermott once again establishes the fact that he's not the sort of actor you'd wan

Dialogue is stiff (stuff like "kiss me, baby" manages to sneak in). Overall it's just a goofy movie that thinks it's a lot cleverer than it is -- not awful because it doesn't take itself too seriously and is fun sometimes, but overall just a big mess of various ideas that clash together. A pure marketing scheme, cashing in on Tarantino's image no less.

I did enjoy one performance, in particular -- James LeGros ("Phantasm II"), who reminded me of Barney from "The Flintstones." A likable actor playing a likable character with depth -- too bad he had to waste his talent on a movie that is otherwise so very thin.