Blood and Concrete

I've always liked Billy Zane and the parts he plays. Sometimes offbeat, other times erratic, but he always has fun with them. And this tight little flick is no exception. This film reminds me of one of those curious "Indy" movies that comes along every now and then with no particular aim in mind other than to entertain. Granted, the plot has been done before, but it's the characters and the actors portraying them that makes this movie enjoyable. Jennifer Beals looks great, plays her part to perfection, and was surprisingly good singing a haunting rendition of "One Girl In A Million."

I watched this movie for Billy Zane, and fell in love with it for Jennifer Beals and the Wonderful Song "One Girl in a Million."

If you watch this movie and immediately don't buy Vinny Golia's CDs, you have much better control than I do.

Put up with the first ten minutes, and you'll be swept off your feet.

Although the first ten or fifteen minutes of this video may make you wish you'd rented something a little more fast paced, the rest of the film will leave you hungry for more. The quirky humor of this movie is a very unique treat, much in the vein of The Blues Brothers.

The movie is set in a surreal Los Angeles. Our hero, Joey Turks, is a poor excuse for a car thief, who wishes he was a lounge singer (his biggest hero is Frank Sinatra). This in a movie that came out BEFORE being retro-loungelizard was hip. Joey gets caught up in the murder of a drug dealer and some stolen drugs. He is used as a pawn by the police and the nefarious criminal kingpin, but all he wants is to get out of his life of crime and settle down with his new girl, Mona.

This is dark comedy at its finest.

If you get a chance to catch this obscure movie, you're in for a treat. What could be more fun than a wannabe criminal (Joey Turks) who is too honest to get beyond petty thief, being chased by a gay hit-man and his fat crime boss (Spuntz), being framed by an aging police detective (Hank Dick) for the murder of a low-life trash talking' drug dealer, and as fate would have it, finding the girl of his dreams and falling in love - all on the same day. Nevermind the run-ins with the wannabe-masochist ex boyfriend and the criminal turned philosopher turned daddy... No, Joey has bigger problems! It seems that someone has stolen the entire supply of a new street drug called libido from H. Spunz who is very unhappy. Spunz thinks Joey took the drugs and Detective Dick thinks Joey will lead him to Spunz. All Joey wants to do is get out of town.

This brilliantly-written and superbly cast movie is entertaining from start to finish. The characters are so well conceived that you'll laugh just looking at them. The hit-man (Bart) and ex-boyfriend (Lance) are especially funny. Jennifer Beals (Mona) and Billy Zane (Joey) turn in exceptional performances in their roles. There is a certain sweetness about their fateful meeting and subsequent falling in love amidst the chaos. This movie is great fun - not meant to be taken seriously - entirely enjoyable nonetheless. If you get a chance to rent the video or see it on cable, you're in for a treat!

Fun enjoyable, offbeat, and quirky. Starts off with Beals attempted, but interrupted suicide. You then follow Joey Turks (Zane), a sleazy, two bit,criminal through the strangest day in his cheesy,life. All this while wearing horrible and tacky clothes. Add to this a,dead body in the pool, a comic-book-style LA noir cop, and Zane's,Forrest Gump approach to crime, and you get an absolute treat. Beals is,great as the odd, wounded bird of a girlfriend. She has kind of a Wednesday Addams meets Cyndi Lauper thing happening.

It doesn't have a lot of CGI, or big bangs, just some fun dialog and good writing. Fun and entertaining.

Overall: Watch this if you get the chance.