Pour la mort d'un flic

L. A Heat. (1988) Joseph Merhi.

PM Entertainment's low-budget, bullet-shredded, late 80s shoot 'em up, L. A Heat is greatly elevated by the charismatic presence of big Jim Brown. LA Cops go hard after a violently gunhappy drug dealer which affords bargain bucket action impresario Merhi plentiful opportunities for softboiled B-Movie badinage and righteous amounts of slo-mo squibage! The skeezy downtown L. A setting is grungily atmospheric, and there's a boisterously old school Blaxsploitation vibe throughout that I really dug. Straight-shooting detective Lt. Chance (Lawrence Hilton Jacob ) is a tough, likeable good guy, and psycho copkiller Clarence ( Kevin Benton ) makes for a convincingly malign street thug.

In 1989 to 1990, Lawrence Hiton-Jacobs starred in three movies as detective Jon Chance: CHANCE, L.A. VICE, and L.A. HEAT. All three of these movies were also early efforts by the studio PM Entertainment. If you've seen any of the other Jon Chance movies - or any PM Entertainment movies made during this same period - I think you'll have a good idea what to expect with this movie. The production values are unbelievably low - it looks like they shot on videotape and transferred it to film. A lot of dialogue was obviously looped in post-production. The script and direction are awful; scenes end abruptly before the viewers get all the information they need, the dream sequences are goofy in nature, and for the longest time the story comes to a complete halt and the characters do nothing important at all. There is an occasional chuckle from the utter lameness, but for the most part the movie is painful to watch. If you do decide to watch the movie, beware of the DVD - the DVD manufacturer used a TV print of the movie, which not only results with all the foul language being bleeped out, but with some video glitches. Obviously, quality control was not a high priority for the DVD manufacturer, though seeing the movie one can understand why.

Ill keep this short; writing about stuff like this really makes me realise to what extent the English language is limited.

From concept to post-production, this film is flawless. The direction and, specifically, the editing of the piece show years of creative experience in the field. Laurence Hilton-Jacobs returns to the screen with a proto-naturalistic approach to the portrayal of a broken man living in a world which does not appreciate him. The beauty of this is that it seems to reflect the life of Merhi so far. His unique style when directing his works has not always been accepted by an audience of which the majority are used to much more mainstream, commercial films.

The overall 'feel' of the film is of perfection and finesse. It maintains this finish while keeping its art-house status and evading the glossy overcoat which is becoming more and more popularly associated with the industry in America. Over the years I've familiarised myself with the abstract writing style of Kanganis, and it has become a little habit of mine to expect these little surprises that he has for us with each release. The reflection mentioned above seems to have come about naturally; the troubled mind of Merhi and artistic aptitude of Kanganis come together to bring the film together with a fine-tuned taste, but not pretentiousness, and to end it with such a gritty climax as it does.

Merhi is an overwrought genius whose presentation, when grouped with the textual gold of Kanganis' script and the on screen presence of Hilton-Jacobs of such charm and without antecedence is, frankly, magical.

Whenever Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs plays the character "Jon Chance" It's a helluva good show. I've seen several of these movies on late night TV and they're really good. I'm gonna try to get his works on dvd or video tape soon.

I'm sure all of you remember Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs, right? Yes, he was the man who made a name for himself starring as Freddie "Boom Boom" Washington in the TV hit sitcom, "Welcome Back, Kotter" back in the 1970s. Recently, LHJ has just attempted to make a name for himself in the B-movie market as evident in such works as L.A. VICE (1989), QUIETFIRE (1991, his best film to date), and the original L.A. HEAT...

In the city of Los Angeles, California, no one is to be trusted. No one really knows who are the true good guys and bad guys. Detective Jon Chance (Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs) on the other hand, always dreamt of being a cowboy hero, living by the "code of the West." He always pictured himself as an exemplary hero who always felt that the use of guns was not a necessity. However, Chance needs to stop dreaming. He must return back to reality!

Chance's assignment (and he has no choice but to accept it) is to capture this mean faced drug dealer called Clarence (Kevin Benton). This assignment has escalated into a personal vendetta for this vice detective when Chance's partner, Carl (Vince Inneo) is murdered by this nefarious drug dealer during a routine drug bust. The predicament gets even worse when, during a second undercover stakeout, several more cops are fatally shot. A drug war ensues between Clarence, who is trying to retrieve his drugs and money, and the police, who are out to avenge the loss of their men...

An authoritative police Captain (Jim Brown) enters the scene, disappointed at the lack of results Chance is able to materialize. Jon Chance is down-on-his-luck. The Captain gives Chance 72 more hours to apprehend Clarence or else...it's his badge and dignity that are on the line...

To complicate the situation even more, Chance must deal with a small-time drug dealer named Spyder (Myles Thoroughgood). Spyder requests to Chance that he must exterminate a pitiless mob boss named Sylvio (Robert Gallo). In exchange for this favor, Spyder may or may not be able to help Chance find Clarence. Chance is obsessed with arresting Clarence, but in these modern times, every step could be his last. He must remember not to make any rash moves. Meanwhile, Chance also learns that the boys with badges may be the ones behind this conspiracy...

Chance declares a one-man war against corruption in the streets...and in the police department.

L.A. HEAT is possibly the first PM Entertainment movie to include "name" actors such as Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs and Jim Brown. This movie also makes use of the seedy locations of Los Angeles. Quite frankly though, this low budget thriller has many problems. This movie starts off extremely well, but for reasons unknown, this movie starts meandering a bit too much. For one, the characters spend too much time just standing around and being idle. They also enjoy arguing and grousing towards each other too. While some of the dialogue is needed to advance the movie's plot, much of the inane one-liners and irrelevant conversations could be deleted just for the sake of picking up this movie's arduously slow pace.

Though this movie moves at a gratuitously sluggish pace, what L.A. HEAT lacks in energy, it compensates that fault with a raw sense of humor. Some of the welcome dialogue is intentionally funny, especially in the beginning when Chance converses with his partner. It's also funny to hear these people, both cops and criminals, curse at each other's throats.

Believe it or not, the script does allow for character development. The dream sequence in the beginning is effective, providing an insight about Chance's character. Kevin Benton's high-spirited performance as a lady-loving drug dealer with an animadversion towards cops gives this film some texture. Pat Johnson contributes adequate work as Chance's love interest and Myles Thoroughgood is good as a deceptive delinquent.

It's hard to believe that this movie was directed by the legendary Joseph Merhi, the same guy who hailed masterful pieces of art such as RAGE (1995), and LAST MAN STANDING (1996). L.A. HEAT is enjoyable, considering the lack of action, but it's low budget places this film at a major disadvantage. This film needs more action. Otherwise, it would have been much more acceptable as a superficial time-killer. Then again...could the PM guys just please get rid of that annoying high-pitched voice which sang that disruptive theme song!

Think you can handle the heat...the L.A. HEAT? Well, L.A. HEAT is worth watching only once. Then stash this film away where you will never again be reminded of the burden and boredom you have suffered through watching this movie. This movie is exploitative junk aimed for the crowd who likes these type of films. This movie though is a well-meaning effort from Joseph Merhi, but it is just too mundane for my tastes. It is followed by a not-so-needed sequel, L.A. VICE (which had better action, but weaker performances). This sequel was made within a year. Go figure.

Now, back to Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs. Will LHJ become a household name after starring in a few B-movies? Probably not, but he will be back. (As a matter of fact, LHJ fans, this actor is lucky enough to have appeared in Mya's recent video, "My First Night With You." Believe your eyes when you see LHJ featured there as Mya's father.)

RATING: ** out of **** (For effort.)