Mulholland Falls (1996) Review

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(More customer reviews)I must first confess my undying admiration of the gorgeous Jennifer Connelly. Now, with my bias out of the way, married plainclothes detective Nick Nolte and doomed party girl Connelly have a torrid affair such that it hurts both to break it off. Hard-guy Nolte and his 3 partners are members of the thuggish but sharply-dressed "Hat Squad," who take it upon themselves to rid the city of organized crime figures transplanted from Back East. With the gracious assistance of the "Hat Squad," these organized crime figures have a way of rolling down the side of the canyon off Mulholland Drive, which is their "hint" that they have overstayed their welcome in L.A., and that it is time to leave town. Hence the title. This was obviously before the days of Internal Affairs divisions and Citizen Review boards.
In what looks to be a routine murder investigation, Nolte and his posse are surprised to discover Connelly's body. Probing deeper, Nolte and his partners determine that Connelly may have been killed for what or whom she knew. Nolte takes it personally. He and his men place themselves in harm's way with the FBI and other well-armed federal agencies. The plainclothes L.A. cops do battle the Feds and, of course, get way in over their heads. Ultimately, no one wins. When you dig deeply enough, no one ever wins.
The upside: this film stars a great ensemble cast--Nolte; Melanie Griffith, his wife; Chazz Palmintieri, Chris Penn, and Michael Madsen, his partners; Connelly; Andrew McCarthy, an effeminate witness; Daniel Baldwin, a smug FBI agent; John Malkovich and Treat Williams. The film looks super, and it recreates 50's L.A. in clear detail, and the dialogue is convincing. Philosophy and psychology are also briefly discussed, which earns it a half-star with me.
The downside: although most scripts made into movies are implausible, the film has difficulty making a believable transition from everyday murder investigation to the scale of atrocity uncovered by the "Hat Squad." This lack of a smooth transition detracts from the credibility of the plotline and the cohesiveness of the film.
The director was obviously influenced by "Chinatown," which is superior viewing, as is "L.A. Confidential," which was released soon afterwards. "Mullholland Falls" is a "Chinatown-lite," although set 15 years or so later.
If you can avoid overly critical comparisons with the best films of this type, you should enjoy it, too.

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In the brutal war against murder and corruption, there's one place where the battles are won. Nick Nolte, Melanie Griffith, Chazz Palminteri, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Treat Williams, Jennifer Connelly, Andrew McCarthy and John Malkovich star in Mulholland Falls, a brilliant, high-powered crime thriller electrified by hard-hitting action, forbidden passion and shocking intrigue.In 1950s Los Angeles, Max Hoover (Nolte) leads an elite squad of four detectives who play by their own rules, dealing with criminals the only way they know howwith deadly force. But when they investigate the murder of a beautiful young woman (Connelly), the detectives find themselves embroiled in a high-level conspiracy and faced with a terrifying secret that the US government is determined to keep hiddenat any price.

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Pure Country (1992) Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought the video to Pure Country after listening to the soundtrack album. The movie is well-done. George Strait plays Dusty Chandler, a country music superstar who gets tired of the loud sound and overhyped special effects(smoke and strobe lights) in his shows. After an argument with his manager, Lula Rogers(played by Lesley Ann Warren), Dusty says to his best friend, Earl(John Doe), "I'm just gonna take me a little walk," and he does that. He returns to his old hometown, cuts off his beard and ponytail, and tries to get back to his down-home country roots, going first to his Grandma Ivy's house and then to the bar where he once played. After Dusty leaves town, Lula tries to keep his show going at all costs. With some important concert dates coming up, including one in Las Vegas, she hires Buddy(Kyle Chandler), a member of Dusty's road crew, to lip-synch his songs. Most of the band members have doubts, but Lula goes ahead with the plan. The first concert date goes smoothly, and Lula justifies what she does by blaming Dusty for walking out. Lula also hires a private detective and goes off herself to find Dusty.
Meanwhile, Dusty goes to a night club, where he meets the young rancher Harley, the other principal character(played by Isabel Glasser). Harley's boyfriend gets jealous upon seeing her with another guy, and a fight starts. After breaking his rival's nose, Dusty is knocked out in the parking lot and wakes up the next morning. He accepts Harley's offer of breakfast and later finds himself taking roping lessons. Before too long, with the help of Harley and her brothers, he becomes a good roper, and it turns out that his skills are needed. Harley's dad, Ernest(Rory Calhoun), is in danger of losing the ranch, and he is depending on Harley's winning her event at a big rodeo in Las Vegas to stay afloat.
I don't want to give away too much of the plot, but it turns out to be a fairy tale in which things eventually work out well for everyone. Harley wins at the rodeo, saving her ranch. Dusty comes back, patches things up with everybody(except Buddy, whom he gets rid of after learning how much publicity Buddy's lip-synching act has gotten) and puts on a great show in Vegas--minus the ponytail, beard and fancy costume. Lula at long last gives Dusty an emotional apology. And despite Lula's efforts to break up his romance, Dusty gets his girl(Harley) in the end.
Though George is the movie's star, Lesley Ann Warren, in my opinion, steals the show as the crafty Lula. Lula professes to be concerned about Dusty and his band members, but everything she does(using Buddy as a stand-in, hiring a private detective, and following Dusty) shows me that she's really in it for the money. It is only after watching Buddy's TV interview and seeing Harley, who turns out to be Dusty's true love, that Lula breaks down. We're not told much about Dusty and Lula's non-business relationship, although those who saw the movie(including myself) will see, from the barroom photo Dusty looks at, that she played in his band before he got popular and that she was his old girlfriend. John Doe's character, Earl, also plays an important role, though it's a minor one. He reminisces with Dusty about the old days(when they went to the carnival and watched the "dancing chicken"). He defends Dusty against Lula's accusations that he(Dusty) walked out, and, being the loyal friend that he is, he walks out himself and follows Dusty to Harley's ranch.
Director Chris Cain and writer Rex McGee did a very good job on this film. Their failure to develop Dusty and Lula's relationship further is the only flaw in an otherwise fine movie. The acting, though there aren't many well-known actors, is first-rate, and George sings a lot of great tunes, including the hit "I Cross My Heart", on an awesome soundtrack. I think, too, that George, who had never acted before except in TV commercials, does a very convincing job as Dusty. I became a George Strait fan after watching this movie. I think that even those who aren't music fans will like it. It's a great portrayal of country music, and it also is a good slice-of-life movie.

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After 25 chart-topping hits, the singing star becomes a movie star!George Strait makes his film debut in an entertaining look into the heart and soul of country music from Young Guns director Christopher Cain.Superstar Dusty Chandler (Strait) is tired of the smoke, the strobe lights and the overmiked sound of his arena spectaculars.One night, something snaps."I'm just going to take a little walk," Dusty says as he walks out of the empty hall, ditching his beard, ponytail - and temporarily, his career - to reclaim his down-home country roots.But his manager (Leslie Ann Warren) retaliates:a stand-in (Kyle Chandler) lip-synchs his songs in concert.And a romance with a lovely rancher (Isabel Glasser) is on again, off again like a rodeo cowboy.The simple life can be complex, but it's nothing a revitalized country boy can't handle!

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