Two firemen in a burning building get a treasure map - stolen gold church items are hidden in a closed down factory in St. Louis. Once there, they're trapped in by a black gang considering i... Read allTwo firemen in a burning building get a treasure map - stolen gold church items are hidden in a closed down factory in St. Louis. Once there, they're trapped in by a black gang considering it their territory.Two firemen in a burning building get a treasure map - stolen gold church items are hidden in a closed down factory in St. Louis. Once there, they're trapped in by a black gang considering it their territory.
- King James
- (as Ice T)
- Cletus
- (as Tiny Lister)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
It was held back from release under its original title of "The Looters" due to the L.A. riots in the summer of 92. Where under its new title it was released at Christmas and promptly bombed at the box office. A shame since it's a taut and claustrophobic thriller crafted with knowing skill by Walter Hill. Clearly an urban take on The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, with dashes of Rio Bravo thrown in for good measure, film makes the most of the premise without using pointless filler and by not being afraid to up the racial hatred aspects of the stand off. Hill's construction of the action is first rate and smooth, and the cast are firing on all cylinders to make the material work in what is practically a one location picture. 7/10
Add to this an excellent cast of genre and character actors for a very captivating film. Bill Paxton and William Sadler ("Die Hard II") turn in intense performances as the lone protagonists, especially Sadler whose career unfortunately never reached the level it should have. Ice-T is in one of his more effective roles as King James, the gangsta leader. Ice Cube also stands out as the upstart, rebellious follower of James, Savon; his "king of the streets" speech is the monologue highlight of the movie. Art Evans (also from "Die Hard II") is perfect as the wise old angry homeless man, who reluctantly helps out Paxton and Sadler despite their initial treatment of him. And the criminal elements include noticeable performances from De'voreaux White as the unfortunate hostage 'Lucky'; Tiny 'Zeus' Lister Jr. as the musclebound henchman 'Cletus'; and the underused Stoney Jackson as the overly-suave crony 'Wickey'.
This was the last of a string of box office disappointments (including "Johnny Handsome" and "Another 48 Hrs.") that Hollywood allowed Walter Hill to make before relegating him to the role of mainstream hack. "Trespass" was released with little fanfare, having its release date postponed from summertime to after Christmas as a result of the 'crisis' that was the LA riots. Besides its original title of "Looters", "Trespass" also includes the recurring theme of seeing events via videocamera (which would have been a troubling reminder of the Rodney King and Reginald Denny beatings), not to mention a heavy, uncompromising racist slant not too common in modern-day action movies.
Though not Hill's best, it is far from his worst. A must-see for fans of stylized action. 8/10
The movie concerns a couple of hick fire fighters (Bill Paxton and Bill Sadler, in great roles): one a classic hick, the other a borderline psycho, chasing treasure in the ghetto. They eventually cross paths with some big-time G's (gangsters) led by Ice-T and Ice Cube.
The story still sounds familiar, and for Hill it is a return to certain familiar territory. Like many of his pictures the movie centers around machismo and male posturing, but not since Hill's 48HRS had he done a film that contained some subtle social commentary on race relations, and paranoid stereotyping. There are fierce gun battles as expected, and the story is never boring. "Die Hard in the Ghetto" , may have been an equally suitable title.
The movie is tense , funny and great, and sadly, was ignored at the box-office during its' Christmas 1992 release. Fortunately, it has been immortalized on home video and DVD.
I had no problem with the actors and actually found some of the conflicts on both sides interesting. Even some of the "bad guys" were struggling to deal with decisions they didn't necessarily agree with. I didn't really see the characters as all bad or all good. Each had their own demons that they brought with them and they were all susceptible to the lure of gold.
good acting throughout from all concerned (including lesser known stars). it is a simple idea for a film played out very well with lots of tension and bursts of violence.
it features a good rap soundtrack by the stars in the film too (considering im a metal fan and dont like much rap thats kinda shows its not too bad hehe)
well worth watching, i've just got to find it on dvd now hehe
Did you know
- TriviaWalter Hill said of the film, "I wanted to make a down-and-dirty thriller. I wanted to shoot it in a fast, hard style. I wanted to work off the cuff, making it all happen right there."
- Quotes
Vince: Look, I don't wanna get in the middle of no big gang hassle!
Savon: Gang? You think we some punk ass gang?
King James: I am a businessman. These are my associates.
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Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Trespass
- Filming locations
- Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill, Cabbagetown, Atlanta, Georgia, USA(the derelict buildings where much of the movie is set)
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $14,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $13,249,535
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $5,012,910
- Dec 27, 1992
- Gross worldwide
- $13,249,535
- Runtime1 hour 41 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1