I maledetti di Broadway

Love, laugh and a tragic comedy from the Broadway of the 1920s. Based on novells by Damon Runyon director Howard Brookner (who died of AIDS) in his first and last movie "Bloodhounds" shows the world of gangsters, go-go girls and other bastards. Madonna, Matt Dillon, Jennifer Grey, Esai Morales , Steve Buscemi are all very good, but Randy Quaid takes the palm. Gotta see it!

"Bloodhounds of Broadway", which is set in 1928 New York, is actually a film ahead of its own time (1989) in some aspects; with its interlocking stories of tough guys, beautiful dames, underworld figures, bars, gambling, all taking place in a dark megacity, it reminded me of an early "Sin City"! But the filmmakers have put a lot more care in getting the "look" of the film right than in engaging us in the stories and the characters, some of whom are even difficult to keep straight in the first half. The all-star cast is not used to its full potential, although Madonna looks great with a dark bob haircut and has a brief and PG-rated but still hot "strip" number. ** out of 4.

BLOODHOUNDS OF BROADWAY is for many accounts, a bad movie. It opened in very few cinemas and achieved very little at the box office, and it was televised as a presentation for AMERICAN PLAYHOUSE a year later. So why did I watch it? Because from time to time I love to see movies with a bad reputation for seeing for myself if they are really that bad. So, it's BLOODHOUNDS OF BROADWAY bad as its score of 5,2 and only 8 reviews to date would imply? Let's see.

The film hasn't a real plot to speak off. Instead, it consists of some stories. Most memorable: The Brain (Rutger Hauer) is a gangster that is accompanied by gambler Regret (Matt Dillon) and an outsider with two bloodhounds to a meal. Feet Samuels (Randy Quaid) is in love with showgirl Hortense Hathaway (Madonna) and wants to spend one wild night with her before suicide, and after a while Hortense will consider of leaving show business for moving to New Jersey and raise a family. Regret will continue to be the world's unluckiest gambler, tho Hortense's colleague Louise Lovely Lou (Jennifer Grey) will love him anyway.

So, it's BLOODHOUNDS OF BROADWAY that bad and deserving of the hate? Not really. Sure, it's not that greatly acted but entertaining. Matt Dillon plays the part of a loser so goddamn well, and the viewer feels his pity for real. Madonna actually surprised me because, she has the reputation of being such a terrible actress, but here she did a nice job other than singing. The rest of the cast is a who's who of various B-listers (Rutger Hauer, Randy Quaid, Steve Buscemi, Esai Morales and Fisher Stevens just for naming some) that are very entertaining and make the cast colorful. I kinda reflected on the joke of the waiter that sees the dogs and says 'Warthogs belong in the ringlings' because it had never been heard before, and it means 'Something that shouldn't belong in a certain place'.

If you can look past the few reviews and bad box office return, it's still a nice time passer. Nothing more, nothing less.

After touring the world in 1987, Madonna decided to surprise her audience once again with a total departure from her previous work. Her part in ´Bloodhounds of Broadway´ is an absolute delight. She is funny and touching (something she hadn´t showed in her movies since ´Desperate seeking Susan´) as Hortance Hattaway, a twenties show girl who´s been around the block a few times and has footprints all over her back. Two of the most entertaining highlights are her performances in the nightclub where most of the action takes place (it´s New Years Eve). Especially the duet with Jeniffer Grey (who´s not dubbed, but took singing lessons to do the job herself!) is a real treat. Shame there´s no soundtrack available.

If you like the jargon and swagger of "Guys & Dolls," you should enjoy "Bloodhounds of Broadway," another collection of Damon Runyon stories pieces together to make an ensemble film, without quite as much music. This one unfolds much like a three-act play. The first act takes place during the day on December 31, 1928. The second rings in the New Year and the third shows our characters meeting their (mostly) happy endings the next morning. The fact that 1929 will not be universally kind to all of them adds a bittersweet note to the final frames. Madonna has a small role, and it's not her finest performance, but saddled with the clichéd "showgirl with a heart of gold" character, she does well, and her final moments with co-star Randy Quaid are charming. Quaid himself gives a marvelous performance, as does Julie Hagerty as a "society dame" who'd rather be a gun moll, and Rutger Hauer as a dying gangster in an effective and underplayed morality story.