A businessman gets caught up in extortion, murder and blackmail.A businessman gets caught up in extortion, murder and blackmail.A businessman gets caught up in extortion, murder and blackmail.
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We enjoyed very much seeing this movie, the story idea is really good. There are 1000s of Hollywood films worse than this one, which offers not only the regular really cool action parts, but also some really big stars and you can see them acting well together. Maybe one day, a big studio movie will even come up with a high-budget remake of this brilliant story, where nothing is as it appears on the first look...seriously, that the murderer in the first place only mistakenly believes, that he killed Ron Sloan, this is an interesting way on how to begin a tricky story... moreover we liked it a lot, that the movie plays really in Hollywood and you get to see some of the Hollywood and Valley areas you do not see in all the other independent films... so, all in all, a quite entertaining piece of an independent Hollywood movie!
This is the most gloriously contrived flick I have ever seen. Dennis Hopper's character and his actions are laugh out loud funny. Man this is a so bad it is good flick in the truest sense. Hopper's inner monologues and Madsen's bad guy mugging for the camera make this silly, silly movie so much fun. Sit back and laugh at this laughable movie. Fun stuff!
First of all, this movie is not even remotely what the box is trying to sell it as. It's not meant to be taken totally seriously, and is in no way a tense, psychological thriller of any kind. It is a hilarious dark comedy that, despite two fave actors of mine (Dennis Hopper and Michael Madsen) being in it, really defied my expectations. I have to admit I rented it solely for those two names (especially since Madsen was playing a serial killer), but I did not expect it to be as enjoyable as it was. Hopper plays an uptight, jumpy, rich jerk who drives around in his hummer in between jumping down people's throats. The sight of Hopper, looking dead serious in a business suit and odd shades, driving the hummer is funny as hell, whether it was meant to be or not (and looking at the rest of the movie, I find it highly probable that it was). Hopper gets blackmailed by an opportunistic scumbag when his own daughter becomes responsible for a drunken hit-and-run incident, and Hopper, being the loving father, tries covering it up. This is to no avail when the con man scumbag comes calling, but things look up a bit when Daddy loses his temper in a bad way and Madsen, playing a devil-may-care serial killer, happens to be lurking in the area and offers a helping hand to the frantic Hopper, who must dispose of the corpse. It just gets funnier from there, and that's where I'm going to leave it because giving away the ending in this case would probably eliminate one's will to see it. All in all, it's just as I said, a good dark comedy.
Like most everyone who views this movie, I did it for the stars Michael Madsen and Dennis Hopper. The two are extremely underrated and sadly, because of that, have to headline a lot of crap. In this film, Hopper plays a guy who accidentally kills a blackmailer and is offered help from the mysterious Madsen.
The film actually isn't as terrible as it could have been. I've seen both in much worse, both independently and working together (LAPD, horrible film). The direction was pretty poor and the script needed a few re-writes, but both give the best performance possible with the material offered. Also the ending is pretty strong, so you can tell the story had potential. But when a glowing review of a film is, "It could have been much worse", it doesn't say much for the film itself.
All in all, this is one that can easily be skipped if neither of these actors draw you in. But if you're a fan of either or both, give it a watch. They both give strong performances that outshine the obvious flaws of the film. Trust me, there are much worse options out there.
The film actually isn't as terrible as it could have been. I've seen both in much worse, both independently and working together (LAPD, horrible film). The direction was pretty poor and the script needed a few re-writes, but both give the best performance possible with the material offered. Also the ending is pretty strong, so you can tell the story had potential. But when a glowing review of a film is, "It could have been much worse", it doesn't say much for the film itself.
All in all, this is one that can easily be skipped if neither of these actors draw you in. But if you're a fan of either or both, give it a watch. They both give strong performances that outshine the obvious flaws of the film. Trust me, there are much worse options out there.
Films is forgettable, but really takes you on a ride. Madson and Hopper are really incredible, especially Madson. Most of the film there is suspense, and you see how people can change under certain conditions. A physco playing with a successful lawyer like a puppet, and it ends all well,
I would give it a 7/10, it is a one-flick movie though.
I would give it a 7/10, it is a one-flick movie though.
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- Malibu, California, USA(main location)
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