Runtime: 92 minutes
Directed by: Mitch Brown
Starring: Richard C. Watt,
Frank Himes, Chuck Russell (yes, the director), Neil Lifton, Denise
Sondej
From: Cinemaguild
What an oddity this is:
It's OK for cops to steal a bottle of tequila from the liquor store.
This is a film I had never heard of before the fine folks at Vinegar Syndrome restored it and put out the movie on disc last year. It is a film shot by college students at the University of Illinois (located in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana; I've been there before back in my youth when I grew up in the Land of Lincoln) and for a movie that only cost 15 thousand dollars, I can't complain about the action; hell, there are even shots from a helicopter. If only the story wouldn't have been so generic in general... but note that U of I did not have a film school program.
Still, I was entertained overall. Two young loose cannon cops who are happy to flagrantly break department rules go after a drug dealer (imagine James Franco with funny facial hair); they but some of his underlings but it takes a girl working undercover to give them the big break. Not James Franco is the highlight of the picture... there are intentional and unintentional laughs throughout, such as funny clothing & our “heroes” stealing booze from a liquor store and keeping a dirty book in their unmarked police car, but the heel of Shot was great in how he constantly yelled at his idiot stooges (one of whom resembled Domhnall Gleeson) and was an A-hole in the best of ways.
This doesn't compare to the obvious inspirations the filmmakers tried to ape (The French Connection, especially) yet at least there was enough to where I can give this a passing grade. There are shootouts, car chases-hilariously, you hear squealing tires, even if the cars are on mud and grass-drug busts, arrests, and other smash-em-up action that had its low-budget charm. I did appreciate that this at least has a satisfying score created specifically for the movie and there is plenty of local flavor as you get to see both the city and countryside of Central Illinois; trust me, that area is definitely Illinois in the late autumn time.
Most of the people involved with this did not do much else in the film industry, but there is one familiar name... one who had a prominent role in the cast and later became a director: Chuck Russell-no relation. Directing the likes of the third Nighmare on Elm Street, The Mask and Eraser is a step up from this regional oddity.
This is a film I had never heard of before the fine folks at Vinegar Syndrome restored it and put out the movie on disc last year. It is a film shot by college students at the University of Illinois (located in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana; I've been there before back in my youth when I grew up in the Land of Lincoln) and for a movie that only cost 15 thousand dollars, I can't complain about the action; hell, there are even shots from a helicopter. If only the story wouldn't have been so generic in general... but note that U of I did not have a film school program.
Still, I was entertained overall. Two young loose cannon cops who are happy to flagrantly break department rules go after a drug dealer (imagine James Franco with funny facial hair); they but some of his underlings but it takes a girl working undercover to give them the big break. Not James Franco is the highlight of the picture... there are intentional and unintentional laughs throughout, such as funny clothing & our “heroes” stealing booze from a liquor store and keeping a dirty book in their unmarked police car, but the heel of Shot was great in how he constantly yelled at his idiot stooges (one of whom resembled Domhnall Gleeson) and was an A-hole in the best of ways.
This doesn't compare to the obvious inspirations the filmmakers tried to ape (The French Connection, especially) yet at least there was enough to where I can give this a passing grade. There are shootouts, car chases-hilariously, you hear squealing tires, even if the cars are on mud and grass-drug busts, arrests, and other smash-em-up action that had its low-budget charm. I did appreciate that this at least has a satisfying score created specifically for the movie and there is plenty of local flavor as you get to see both the city and countryside of Central Illinois; trust me, that area is definitely Illinois in the late autumn time.
Most of the people involved with this did not do much else in the film industry, but there is one familiar name... one who had a prominent role in the cast and later became a director: Chuck Russell-no relation. Directing the likes of the third Nighmare on Elm Street, The Mask and Eraser is a step up from this regional oddity.
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