Les kamikazes de l'arnaque

Watching this movie for the second time in maybe ten years, I would say that it really isn't that bad! There were certain lines in the movie that made me cringe, but Corey Haim and Leo Rossi made it work to their advantage. I wish the character of Lorraine would have had more screen time because she was a natural and meshed well, in my opinion, with Nelson (Haim) and Sam's (Rossi) personality. Corey's movies especially, the ones that went straight to video in the 90s would have been something I would have enjoyed in my pre teens to early teens, but you can't deny that he had a talent and charm that made him the kind of actor that you wish would have made it today. (It makes me sad how he went from Lucas to this because he was so good and he could have had more opportunities exploring complex characters, but that's another story...) Corey always finds chemistry with the people he plays opposite whether it is a love interest, a brother (ex. Firstborn, The Lost Boys), or in this case, a father/son relationship. Anne Hathaway said that Nicholas Galitzine could have chemistry with a lamp, I'd say Corey Haim did it first.

My review was written in July 1991 after watching the film on RCA/Columbia video cassette.

A pleasant, unpretentious action picture, "Fast Getaway" will appeal to video fans tired of overblown, hyped-up cinema. Typical of medium-range indie product today, pic had only brief regional test ruins this spring before its ancillary release.

Drive-ins are the natural home for this amoral romp depicting the misadventures of an itinerant gang of bank robbers that include Leo Rossi and his son Corey Haim.

Plot is set into motion when dissension spits up the quartet, leaving Cynthia Rothrock and Len Lerner with a grudge against Rossi and fils. They fink to the cops, and Rossi is caught. Haim's real mother (Marcia Strasman) claims the youngster but poses as an old friend of his dad's rather than coming clean with her true identity.

Haim's reuniting with his dad (he breaks him out of jail) and gradual return to a nuclear family are the subplots to a pic heavy on chases and stunts.

Debuting feature director Spro Razatos brings a background of stunt direction that pays off in several exciting sequences, notably a scene of our heroes hanging off a bridge far above a river.

Acting by the principals is fine, with Rossi and Haim a comfortable team and martial arts star Rothrock giving a good showcase combining her high-kicking violent streak with sex appeal. Beautiful young actress Shelli Lether is a find as the neighbor who ends Haim's lingering virginity.

I honestly had not heard about this movie before. I actually found it while doing laundry on the free stuff shelf they leave down in the room after people move out. There as also four copies of Titanic on VHS and a tape of Eddie Murphy's Delirious. In case you were wondering. With all that choice how could I pass up a promotional copy of a Corey Haim movie I have never heard of...which also stars Cynthia Rothrock...weird.

The movie is about a weirdly overly enthusiastic kid and his dad who are a bank robbing team. They drive from town to town and rob banks and the post office, getting away using plans that are meticulously thought out to the last detail. They also talk about Cynthia Rothrock's chest a lot, or as Mr. Haim says "Call Them Hooters, Dad." In fact, the father-son relationship seems like it is really close. The main topic they talk about that isn't robbing banks, is boobs, and sex with ladies. Some hi-jinks they go through include Haim getting distracted by ladies, talking about ladies boobs, as well as having sex once, which he breaks his dad out of jail just so he can tell him. There are some really great car chases though, including a super fun one at the very end. Also, Cynthia Rothrock kicks everything including furniture and fast food. So, it's not all bad.

Fast Getaway is alright. It has a few fun moments, that mostly include some well-directed car chases. But, I wasn't too into the father-son sex talk plot line which took up most of the movie.

If a viewer sat to watch this without knowing anything of it, not even the year it was released, 'Fast getaway' reveals its nature as soon as it begins. We're treated to slightly dulled cinematography, a hot-headed teen protagonist, a father-son dynamic, light and ham-handed but sometimes unconvincing humor, and needless crass sexism in the dialogue and scene writing. None of these are exactly points in the movie's favor, and at no time could it be confused for anything but B-grade fare - while enjoyable, it's never robustly, actively engaging. Yet a little uncomplicated, cheesy action comedy has never hurt anyone, has it?

In fairness, the stunts and action sequences - mostly chase scenes - are done very well, and duly entertaining. Though we're treated to some tropes and predictable story beats, there are dashes of cleverness scattered throughout. Relegated to a small supporting role, it's nonetheless fun to watch Cynthia Rothrock turn up the playful smarm as conniving criminal conspirator Lilly, and there's minor gleeful energy in seeing her play opposite Ken Lerner as Lilly's notably less witty partner, Tony. Yes, Rothrock's martial arts skills are employed only to the same purposefully gauche ends, but that's no major fault. 'Fast getaway' will never be remembered for world-class acting, but the cast at large do a good job of embracing the spirit of the modest (if too often juvenile) romp.

Even bearing in mind the gawky, deliberate flavors that the film maintains, James Dixon's screenplay is a little overbearing at points. Even putting aside noted strains of sexism, the dialogue and scene writing is outright crude in some instances (boys will be boys, dontcha know, hyuk hyuk). The narrative is pretty unremarkable, not especially feeling any different from a slew of similar titles we've all seen at one time or another, and the same is true of the characters as written. The feature's technical craft, or rounding details like costume design, hair and makeup, and so on, are done well such as they are, but don't specifically inspire. 'Fast getaway' mostly occupies a familiar and well populated cinematic space, and it's hard for much about it to stand out.

Still, though definitely flawed, I can't say I didn't have a good time. The action is concretely ramped up at the climax, lending to a satisfying air of tension and suspense. Marcia Strassman lends a measure of welcome sincerity in her supporting role as Lorraine. All in all, I think my expectations were met rather squarely, if not in the ways I anticipated. It's nothing anyone ever needs to go out of their way to see, but if you're a particular fan of someone in the cast it's passable enough. Moreover, this is the type of picture to put on if you want something amusing but unsophisticated to help pass the time. I can't fathom any reason for 'Fast getaway' to earn a notably strong recommendation, but it's good enough as it is.

Good lord, I've got to stop wasting my money on movies from the post-1989 catalog of Corey Haim (except for Prayer of the Rollerboys, which was a decent surprise). This being, of course, yet another film in which those not so overly nostlagic will realize that Corey had hit rock bottom and would never recover.

Fast Getaway is the light-comedy adventures of a team of father-and-son bankrobbers. After a disagreement among their gang of four which included a clueless doofus and a black belt blonde, Nelson (Corey Haim) and his dad decide to rob banks alone. Only Nelson's dad expects it to be temporary, wanting his son to go legit so he can end up in law school or business school (the man has no clear idea of his expectations as to which graduate school track he expects his son to take other than whatever will allow an easy transition into white collar crime) much to the chagrin of Nelson, who loves the life of easy money. But, the team are not as invincible as they think they are when they're busted for robbing a bank in a squat town in Utah around the same time a stranger to the past enters their lives as does their scheming former partners.

It has all the depth of the notorious 'Cool as Ice' "action" film (ranked as one of the worst 100 movies on IMDb), and about as much of the same cheesy writing. I particularly enjoy the scene in which Nelson and dear old dad, trying to escape from the police by anchoring over a bridge, plunge thousands of feet straight down into shallow, rocky rapids and live to tell the tale...completely unscathed, mind you. Or, the finale in which brave Nelson is being dragged from a truck while holding onto a chain link fence that neither eletrocutes him or gets too hot to hold as it is scraped across the pavement for miles. Nor, does it flip with the sharp turns of the truck and the lack of support by his weight. And, I especially cringe at Corey Haim's half-concocted Italian-American accent that reared itself during random moments, not to mention his terrible array of slang, especially in many of the references to women.

Recommended for anyone who can watch any number of Corey Haim's early 90s disasters and actually find them enjoyable.