Jade

This unanimously panned film in the erotic thriller sub-genre marked both the beginning and the end of David Caruso's career as a leading man in feature films, and turned out to be among director William Friedkin's biggest commercial flops. There's no doubt that this is a flawed film with a cluttered Joe Eszterhas script that doesn't really hold up, but it's a lot better than its reputation would suggest. Friedkin himself was saddened by the film's lack of success, citing it as his favourite movie. And one can see why, because there are some portions of crisp filmmaking in here which are as edgy and emphatic as Friedkin was in his New Hollywood films of the 1970s, such as The French Connection. In particular, there's a car chase segment which stands out, directed with an old-fashioned craftsmanship that makes most of today's modern action sequences look inorganic. For as long as he is able to veil the script's obvious plot holes, Friedkin along with an industrious and fairly believable David Caruso make this an enjoyable thriller.

A wealthy art collector (and admirer of world leaders Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher and Richard M. Nixon) is murdered in his San Francisco mansion. Due to repeated chops with a hatchet, there is an abundance of blood. Along with many pricey artifacts, the dead man has an amply supply of sex paraphernalia. His most prized possession appears to be a collection of his partners' pubic hair. Four hours later, red-haired assistant district attorney David Caruso (as David Corelli) is at a dance attended by still sexy old flame Linda Fiorentino (as Anna Katrina "Trina" Maxwell). He still longs for her, but she married best friend Chazz Palminteri (as Matt Gavin), a rich defense lawyer. Employed to investigate, Mr. Caruso finds a cuff-link at the murder scene. Curiously, he decides to withhold it from other collected evidence...

The cuff-link is from "The Golden Bay Club" where Caruso and Mr. Palminteri are members. Also discovered is the murder victim's collection of pornographic pictures. Most importantly, there are photographs of California Governor Richard Crenna (as Lew Edwards) with a young prostitute. Caruso confronts Mr. Crenna with the dirty pictures and is threateningly told he has a future in State politics comparable to Jerry Brown - a line they must regret, as Mr. Brown is presently serving an historic term as Governor. Everything seems to come together in an intriguing web of sex, mystery and murder. But, by the end, "Jade" proves looks can be deceiving. This is a puzzle with pieces shoved into place, by director William Friedkin. He shows the usual skill with car chase scenes, but doesn't make this story coherent.

***** Jade (10/13/95) William Friedkin ~ David Caruso, Linda Fiorentino, Chazz Palminteri, Richard Crenna

Don't believe all the negs about this pix. It's not just another "Basic Instinct," either. Chaz and Linda are the consummate couple. V-e-r-y classy. The set decorations are fantastic. I absolutely vote Linda the quintessential queen of soft porn (or was it "hard"--I haven't yet seen the uncut version). Was it Linda or was it Memorex? Whoever it was, her legs are fabulous! Angie Everhart's sultry soliloquy describing her passion for LF (Trina) was like butter melting on a hot lobster. I found myself replaying that scene over and over just to capture the full essence of the moment. The hit-and-run scene was extremely graphic, (wow,what a stunt!) except to Friedkin fans who expect a certain amount of gratuitous violence. The final scene with CP and LF was perfect. I could feel the sexual tension jump out from the screen. The beautifully haunting song, "Mystic Dream," by Loreena McKennitt fit the dark mood perfectly. I still don't know why I love this movie; to borrow a line from the film, it must be "hysterical blindness." Go see this movie with a date, and have a great time together afterwards!

This is a decent erotic thriller/mystery brought down by predictability, cliché and some rather bad writing. The film does have an impressive pedigree, having been directed by William Friedkin, and starring Chazz Palminteri, Linda Fiorentino as well as a pre-CSI: Miami David Caruso. All of the actors do a serviceable job, but they have to deliver some of the hammiest dialogue I've ever heard. The script is devoid of any real surprises or thrills, and so it relies on an over-insistent score. It's like it's shouting "Look at me! Take me seriously!", except it's impossible to take anything in this movie seriously. The most impressive part of the movie is the intro (before the score has become overbearing), which features some creepy music and surrealistic camera-work. It's too bad that they overuse the style throughout the film, though. Another bright spot was a well-filmed (but ridiculous) car chase through San Francisco, but it wears out its welcome once they hit Chinatown and the movie almost literally comes to a halt. So, there's also some issues with pacing, particularly in that sequence. However, the biggest problem with this movie is the script, penned by Joe Eszterhaz (who also wrote BASIC INSTINCT and SHOWGIRLS). Not only is the story relatively unengaging, but it's rather misogynistic towards its female characters, and the voyeuristic camera-work doesn't help in that regard either. At best, it's a rather bland erotic thriller with some decent performances, but it could be worth a late-night watch if you're into this sort of thing.

San Francisco ADA David Corelli (David Caruso) is attending a ball with friend Matt Gavin (Chazz Palminteri) and his wife, David's former love, Trina (Linda Fiorentino). David is called away to the brutal murder of a wealthy businessman. He finds a silver case engraved with the Chinese character Jade. The police uncovers photos of Governor Edwards (Richard Crenna) with an unknown woman later identified as prostitute Patrice Jacinto (Angie Everhart). Bob Hargrove (Michael Biehn) is a disagreeable police detective. As the investigation continues, the Gavins are pulled into the sexual political intrigue.

Joe Eszterhas' psycho-sexual script may not be fitting material for director William Friedkin. The rewriting is evident of that and not necessarily fixed anything. This concentrates more on the lurid in this stylized erotic thriller. Bless his heart, Friedkin tried. There are some car action on the steep streets but he has done better work before. Driving thru the parade may be an interesting idea. The execution is more frustrating than thriller.

The movie got caught up with the Caruso factor during its initial release. He is a perfectly serviceable actor if he doesn't get romantic. His sex appeal is limited and any attempt at sexuality is awkward at best. His character is rarely a lawyer and runs around investigating like a cop. He plays a better cop than a lawyer. Corelli should have been a police detective. Fiorentino has her great smoldering dark sexuality and that helps in this role. The story is a little messy and drags sometimes. It needs a little simplification to allow better flow and heightened tension. None of it is that compelling but it's not completely bad.