Noir-vember: The Hot Spot (1990)

I've watched many a hot and steamy neo-noir in my time, as those who know me will already know, but very few of them felt as hot and steamy as The Hot Spot, a Dennis Hopper film that leans so heavily into the tropes of noir that it borders on parody and outright silliness. The fact that it works as well as it does is mainly down to the brilliant cast, but they're helped by Hopper and the writers (Nona Tyson and Charles Williams, working from the source novel, "Hell Hath No Fury", by Williams) having absolute faith in the material. That could have backfired spectacularly, and one character almost shatters the "illusion" every time they're onscreen, but it doesn't. It works, and everyone benefits from the feeling of unabashed gleefulness inherent in the material.

Harry Madox (Don Johnson) is a stranger in town. He's not there long before he gets a job as a car salesman by, well, selling a car and then speaking to the owner of the lot (George Harshaw, played by Jerry Hardin). It's clear that he's a fast-talker and can ladle on the charm. It doesn't take Harry long to notice the beautiful Gloria Harper (Jennifer Connelly), a woman who is getting grief from Frank Sutton (William Sadler). It also doesn't take him long to notice how vulnerable the local bank is when any local emergency requires the staff, all volunteer firemen, to leave the premises. Things could get interesting, especially when Harry is viewed as a potential conquest by the wife of his boss (Dolly Harshaw, played by Virginia Madsen). 

Before I get carried away with my praise for the cast of The Hot Spot I think I should start with some of my minor criticisms of the film. Hopper directs the thing well enough, but he could have worked harder to tighten up the runtime. He could also have livened up the soundtrack, and maybe even the score from Jack Nitzsche. The film is elevated by the performances, and the fact that most of the main players deliver their hard-boiled dialogue with a straight face, but it should have had more reasons to make it worth your time. The production design does well at times when scenes are dark and/or steamy, but there are times when it's a bit nondescript. The town never feels like a potential spring-loaded bear-trap, but we noir fans know that every small town in the middle of nowhere is exactly that for our main characters.

I could try to say that Johnson has never been better than he is here, but that wouldn't quite be true. He's a perfect fit for the role, and he delivers his performance with gusto, but it doesn't feel like a stretch for him. He has given better performances in other movies, but this may well be his best lead turn. The same goes for Madsen, who tears through the entire film ready to chew up both the scenery and any man she thinks could taste good enough. Hardin is very good, Sadler delivers another in a long line of his excellent supporting turns, Barry Corbin always feels very right when he's playing a Sheriff, and Charles Martin Smith does well to remain relatively normal while everyone starts manipulating one another around him. And Jack Nance is welcome in a small role. The weak link is Connelly. She sure looks the part, but she is the only one who doesn't seem able to commit to the tone of the piece, perhaps unhelped by the fact that her character isn't written to be as interesting or complex as the others. It's a shame, especially when the third act falters slightly due to her inability to convince viewers that she may be worth whatever price Johnson's character may have to pay for his interest in her.

I've had The Hot Spot recommended to me many times over the years, and I'm surprised it took me this long to finally get around to it. It's very enjoyable stuff. It's easy to see why so many people would mention it when asked to recommend some noir fare from the more modern era. It's just a shame that a couple of things don't work as well as they could. The success of many moments is thanks to the cast. The minor failures would seem to be thanks to Hopper (for his choices while overseeing the casting, visuals, and music departments). Nothing drags it down too much. It's just hampered enough to stop it from being considered a full-blooded classic.

8/10

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Netflix And Chill: Rebel Ridge (2024)

It's a familiar tale, especially when it feels as if it's paying homage to First Blood throughout, but Rebel Ridge is a solid and tense action thriller that deftly mixes some thought-provoking commentary with a full-blooded star-making turn from Aaron Pierre.

Written and directed by Jeremy Saulnier, things start off with Terry Richmond (Pierre) being harassed by a couple of small-town cops. He was on his way with bail money to keep a relative out of jail, but that money is seized by the cops. They are apparently allowed to do that, it's called civil forfeiture, but there's something fishy about the entire process, as becomes even more obvious when Terry tries to reason with the local Sheriff (Chief Sandy Burnne, played by Don Johnson). Terry doesn't have anyone around to lend him support, aside from a courthouse employee named Summer (AnnaSophia Robb), but the local police soon come to understand that Terry doesn't really need anyone to help him. He can handle himself, and he can handle the local police as they slowly figure out that they're in big trouble.

I can see some people being disappointed by Rebel Ridge because of what it doesn't do, but I hope more people really appreciate it for what it does. Saulnier maintains a great balancing act of keeping things tense and entertaining without ever resorting to the standard gunfights and combat that we've seen before. The hero here isn't just a man pushed to the edge and fighting back. He's someone who also has to think about the consequences of every word and move, well aware of how easy it could be for law enforcement to find an excuse to shoot a black man without anyone asking too many questions. The police, on the other hand, act in the knowledge that they can make a mess and figure out a way to clean it all up later. They are the only ones constantly using lethal force, and that's an important part of the message of the movie.

With no disrespect intended, I am glad that John Boyega ended up not being able to play the lead in this, paving the way for Pierre to come along and stamp his authority all over it. Pierre is cool, calm, and collected, but also looks as if he could find a dozen different ways to kill you while smiling and nodding politely as you get ready to shake hands. That's the essence of the character, and Pierre excels in a performance that allows him to be impressively physical, but also charming and able to handle an American accent disguising his native British tongue (which I only mention here due to my surprise when hearing him speak in some press interviews about the movie). Johnson is just as well-cast in the main antagonist role, his easygoing manner and charm covering an air of menace and growing discomfort. Robb gets a slightly trickier role, but the screenplay does well to make her a friend to our hero without forcing them into a full-blooded and passionate relationship. Various officers are played by David Denman, Emory Cohen, and Zsané Jhé, and all three enjoy roles that allow them to often be in the thick of any action, and James Cromwell plays a judge in a couple of scenes in which he delivers some exposition and mourns for the state of his town in that calm and measured Cromwell way he can do so well.

This isn't a throwback to the muscle-bound action films of yesteryear, which I think some may hope for when they hear First Blood mentioned as a main reference point, but it's all the better for it. Saulnier has honed his craft over the years, I have yet to see something from him that I didn't thoroughly enjoy, and I hope he keeps getting opportunities to tell the stories that he wants to tell. Few people do tension as well as he does (the sequence here with police waiting on an internet router being rebooted as they try to find out more about our hero is one of the most satisfying bits of setup and immediate payoff that I have seen in years). Every thing that he gets right here helps to overlook the slight mis-steps, such as the runtime and a slight problem with the tonal shift as things get darker and more dangerous.

8/10

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Netflix And Chill: The Other Woman (2014)

A rom-com that is very much an anti-rom-com, The Other Woman is a fun time with a solid trio of lead actresses who all seem to be having fun playing off one another.

Cameron Diaz is Carly Whitten, a successful attorney who believes she may have found a special man in Mark King (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau). Unfortunately, there's a big problem. He's married. Carly finds this out when she attempts to surprise him at his home, which then leads to her forming an unlikely, and initially very unwanted, friendship with Kate King (Leslie Mann). The two eventually realise that there's also another woman in Mark's life, which then connects them to Amber (Kate Upton) and turns them into a united trio determined to make Mark pay for his lies and bad behaviour. Revenge is a best served cold, and most things tend to feel colder when there's a lot less money in your bank account, which is what the ladies have in their sights.

Whatever I write here could be taken as a positive or a negative by people who already have their mind made up on this film. It's the kind of thing that is easy to dismiss, but also the kind of film I like to recommend to those who don't mind straying away from their usual choices. Men may assume this is going to be unbearable, although I know I am making my own assumption there, and women may pass over it in favour of any number of movies that received bigger and better marketing, but this is a perfectly enjoyable way to pass 109 minutes, thanks in no small part to a number of people having fun with the comedy.

Diaz may not be one of the comedic strengths, she just doesn't work as well here as she has in other comedies, but she's very good as the smart and powerful woman who ends up in an awful position, and then ends up formulating a plan to help a woman avoid some painful consequences of inadvertently being married to a scheming cad. Mann is hilarious though, very funny in almost every scene, and the perfect choice to sugar-coat the bitter pill at the heart of this. Upton also does well, very sweet and silly to immediately offset the potential extra jealousy that she brings to the situation. Coster-Waldau knows his place, and he sets himself up brilliantly for the many punchlines making use of him, and there are enjoyable little turns from Don Johnson and Nicki Minaj. Taylor Kinney may not be doing much, but he's there to catch the eye of Diaz, despite being the brother of Mann's character (which could make things even more complicated . . . or maybe not).

Writer Melissa K. Stack generally does better with the situations and set-pieces than with the dialogue, but the screenplay feels improved by director Nick Cassavetes having that game cast. Everyone knows what they're doing, both behind and in front of the camera, and it's the kind of entertainment that often seems bad to people who haven't truly seen how much worse things can get in various sub-genres. 

The pacing is great, the tone stays light enough even as it dances around a subject that could have turned things much darker, there's a good dose of female empowerment, an enjoyable soundtrack, and a huge dog that is used just enough to create an extra couple of laughs before being placed in the background as the central plot strand develops and moves resolutely towards a VERY satisfying finale.

6/10

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Knives Out (2019)

Written and directed by Rian Johnson, Knives Out is a hugely entertaining murder mystery that actually doesn't bother too much to keep things mysterious. Johnson seems to expect viewers to be one or two steps ahead, allowing them to get extra pleasure from many of the incidental details along the way.

It all starts with the death of Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer). This death is investigated by a detective named Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig). Everyone seems to have a motive, and the fact that the death seems like an obvious suicide makes the whole investigation a rather strange affair. While the family bicker over what could be revealed in the will, Harlan's nurse (Marta, played by Ana de Armas) finds herself caught up in a lot of drama that she'd really rather do without. Monsieur Blanc views her as a valuable resource, however, due to the fact that she has a condition that makes it incapable for her to tell a lie without having to immediately vomit.

A whodunnit that quickly turns into a howdunnit, I cannot think of a major mainstream release that I enjoyed as much as Knives Out when I saw it in the cinema last year. Although not perfect, and murder mystery purists may be irritated by some of the decisions made by Johnson, it's a dream mix of a quality cast having fun with a smart and playful script. And everything is overlaid by Johnson making directorial decisions that help it all to retain the sheen of classic cinema while never distracting from the dialogue, the mix of characters, and the interplay between everyone.

With the likes of Plummer, Jamie Lee Curtis, Don Johnson, Michael Shannon, and Toni Collette playing members of the Thrombey family, you can rest assured that there are some great performances, but the real surprises come from those you might not expect greatness from. Craig, as much as I tend to enjoy him onscreen (especially as Bond), looks like he's having the most fun he's had in years, accent and all, and it's infectious, particularly while he is being supported by LaKeith Stanfield and Noah Segan. De Armas is so good in her role that this is surely her gateway to many more opportunities (I assumed she wouldn't be around much after Knock Knock, but her turns in both Blade Runner 2049 and this show that she is making some canny career choices). Chris Evans is a dick, and I love him for so happily sliding into that kind of role after so much time being decidedly non-dickish in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, especially when he's so good at that mix of charm and irritating arrogance.

Nobody puts a foot wrong, from the big stars to those who may only have one or two lines, and it's hard not to think that Johnson brought out the best in everyone with his plan to deliver something that manages to feel both fresh and traditional at the same time. From the opening scenes to the standard "assemble the suspects as the killer is about to be revealed" finale, this is pure Agatha Christie fare, through and through. It just has some more swearing, and a bit of vomit. You shouldn't let either of those things put you off.

9/10

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Noir-vember: Dragged Across Concrete (2018)

There are a number of things about Dragged Across Concrete that make it an interesting watch. First of all, the continuing development of the filmography of S. Craig Zahler, a man who has made quite a name for himself by crafting films around unpleasant characters with unpleasant attitudes. Certain things keep coming up again and again, making you question how much of himself Zahler puts onscreen (especially when so much of the runtime has characters saying, either overtly or more subtly, "I'm not racist, BUT..."), but you also have to accept that writers and directors can have fun with unpleasant characters without necessarily sharing any common ground with them. It's just unfortunate that Zahler seems to keep doubling down on elements of his work that are, at the very least, quite troubling, certainly on the surface. Second, you get a fantastic performance from Mel Gibson, all the more effective for it making good use of the baggage he now inevitably brings to many of his roles. Third, it certainly gives you plenty to talk about after.

Unfortunately, the main chain of events shown onscreen aren't really that interesting. Two cops (played by Vince Vaughn and Mel Gibson) are caught being a bit too rough with someone during a raid. This leads to them being suspended, without pay, and leads to them eventually hatching a plan to get a payday from some criminal they suspect of lining up a big deal. It turns out that the big deal is actually a bank robbery, and things start to get more dangerous, and much harder to keep on track when innocent lives are at stake.

Dragged Across Concrete is a taut, 90-minute thriller that steeps every character in scene in the essence of neo-noir and builds to an expected climax of bloodshed and loss. Well, it could have been. If only Zahler had managed to rein himself in, and cut back on the many moments of excess that lead to the whole thing being a bloated and trundling mess that exceeds two and a half hours in length. Which would be understandable if he had better words to feed his talented cast. He doesn't. Any attempts at commentary, or even just cool, fall flat, and there isn't one character you end up wanting to see live to the end credits.

As good as Gibson is in his role, and he's very good, everyone else is pretty much wasted. Tory Kittles and Michael Jai White try their best, playing two men involved in the robbery who don't necessarily approve of the sudden jump to ruthless violence, but Vaughn can't make anything of his role (a bigger shame when you consider how well Zahler used him in Brawl In Cell Block 99), Don Johnson starts to get into his stride and is then out of the movie after only a couple of scenes, and Jennifer Carpenter is perhaps treated the worst of all, in a couple of scenes that are simply bizarre in how they unfold. Laurie Holden isn't given much to do either, just appearing to justify the actions of Gibson, in his work and, by extrapolation, his criminal plan.

If things keep progressing at this rate, Zahler should be along in a couple of years with his next movie, a thrilling dramatic reconstruction of the Rodney King beating from the point of view of the poor, overworked, police officers involved. We'll just have to wait and see. Suffice it to say, I will be waiting for news of any future films from him with much less anticipation.

5/10

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Prime Time: Brawl In Cell Block 99 (2017)

My brain works in mysterious, and usually successful, ways. Not for the benefit of anyone but myself, but it's really only myself that I care about when it comes to the movies. I don't mean that I am a completely selfish git, although at times I am, but I mean that I am the only one I want to spend time with, initially, when considering movies, and formulating my opinions on them. Well . . . unless my wife is beside me, and then we bounce ideas off one another. More importantly, my brain SEEMS to know when I am fully settled on my opinon, and also when I need more time, and perhaps another viewing, to really nail things down.

I first watched Brawl In Cell Block 99 some time ago, and I absolutely loved it. I was ready to rave about it, I was ready to give it a very high rating, and I was ready to tell everyone that Vince Vaughn had finally realised the potential that I'd seen in him in films like Clay Pigeons and, yes, the Psycho remake. But my brain did its thing, and kept me quiet for a while (about this film, I am rarely as quiet as anyone would like me to be).

Revisiting it very recently, I am first going to say that I would not have been unhappy to share my initial thoughts. It's a superb film, with writer-director S. Craig Zahler giving viewers some of the finest exploitation fare that we've had in some time. It may have the budget and star power separating it from true grimier and grittier films but it has the sensibility of any number of low-budget gems that show someone on a bloody and violent quest for revenge. It also does it all without the need to constantly wink at viewers and overtly reference all of those other movies (a la Tarantino, not that I dislike that approach from him).

Anybody waiting for a brief plot synopsis . . . that was basically it. That's all you need to know. This is a revenge film, and it's one that has a lot of broken bones and general trauma.

The cast includes Jennifer Carpenter, who does well with her relatively small amount of screentime, Don Johnson, who continues to enjoy his recent resurgence, Udo Kier, and Marc Blucas. Dion Mucciacito is a main baddie, but he's less important than all of the obstacles in between him and our "hero". And that "hero" is the standout. I stand by the praise I wanted to heap on Vince Vaughn when I first saw this. Having coasted along in comedy roles for a number of years now, it's almost a revelation to be reminded of how good Vaughn can be, especially in a role that doesn't let him settle into his usual, quick-talking, cocky persona. Vaughn is one scary beast of a man here, believable as someone with the strength and just enough smarts to be one of the most dangerous individuals you could end up tangling with.

Having heaped all of this praise on the film, is there anything it gets wrong? Yes. Not much, but enough to drag it down a bit. It's too long, for one thing, although it never felt to me as if it dragged. I just can't help thinking that this could have been whittled down to just under the two hour mark. It also peaks a bit too soon, because once viewers have been shown just how graphic and nasty things are going to get there's something a bit anti-climactic about the rest of the scenes that continue to heap on the extreme violence.

If you have the stomach for the content, and for giving Vaughn another chance, then Brawl In Cell Block 99 is HIGHLY recommended. I really liked Bone Tomahawk, also by Zahler, but I like this one just a bit more. I'm already looking forward to what he's giving us next.

8/10

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