Su e giù per i Caraibi

From John Cusack's earlier days, this film is a cute one that slipped through the cracks. It features a shaggy-haired John from his earlier, hapless romantic teen phase. Ben Stiller, as ever, plays a jerk. It's not a must-see, but a good one to pass the time with and just have a laugh at the strange things Cusack has to do in this movie--aside from getting wet and topless...

High points of the movie: watching him get stoned with a bunch of island natives, get drunk in an island bar and shanghaied into service on a boat, and then arrested and thrown into a local jail. The crazy pirate, played by Robert Loggia was excellent comedy relief as well.

Hot Pursuit is a mildly funny comedy which is likely to draw interest from audiences searching for John Cusak movies.

Dan Bartlett (Cusak) is supposed to go on vacation with his girlfriend. Lori Cronenberg. to the Islands. But, he has to bail at the last minute after flunking his Chemistry exam and his girlfriend leaves without him. A generous Chemistry teacher helps him out though, and Danny is once again able to go. But, what a surprise (not), he misses his flight and opportunity to join Lori and her family for a vacation on the beaces. Thus begins one misfortune after another as Danny spends his vacation moving from one place to the next to reach his girlfriend. Each time, something stops him from getting where he has to go. The plot is predictable (the procedure), though sometimes what the situation brings is not (the substance). But Danny is persistent, even if growing ever more tired of all the ungodly obstacles that seem to pop up just as he arrives.

Meanwhile, the boat that Lori and her family is traveling on along the coast is being navigated by a murderer, who eventually gets the Cronerbergs involved in his plot. Danny not only must reach his girlfriend, but save the Cronerbergs from the madmen before it's too late, delivering an ending which at times wavers from being too over the top (Danny's plan of escape involves nothing more than a jeep ride and some grenades). Sometimes, the climax doesn't seem enough (the explosions of the grenades look like someone threw a sandbag at a tree).

I think John Cusak fans will nonetheless enjoy the movie as he delivers typtical and youthful Cusak insanity present in his early films, even the ones with the most stupid plots. Even so, there are some funny moments in the movie from other characters, especially Kieth David as one of the Jamacians who gives Danny a lift. And Robert Loggia as Mac, who commands the boat that Danny hithces on.

Formulaic, uninspired but painless teen comedy. It's the typical formula where the young hero encounters every imaginable object as he tries to get to his (constantly changing) destination; thanks to his wits, and to pure luck, he overcomes all of them. This film shares with many 80s comedies ("Stripes" comes to mind) the bad habit of turning into an action film halfway through, but the beautiful locations (beautifully photographed) keep it pleasant enough. (**)

No the film won't win any oscars, but the tropical locations, John Cusack's talent, and gruffy Robert Loggia make this a very watchable film. I have seen this movie dozens of times and never get tired of it.

This is the movie that made me fell for John Cusack's acting. He has so much energy, so much presence in this movie, it's impossible not to like his character! Robert Loggia was also very good and the chemistry between the two makes the movie worthwhile on its own.

This is an excellent action comedy: It's light, funny and enjoyable. A little comedy from the 80's, with no pretension whatsoever other then to entertain you and make you laugh… Unfortunately, the end is not that great. Those were the times when the good guy had to defeat all of its enemies within the last 10 minutes of the film. Nevertheless, the movie is entertaining and deserves to be seen.