At Close Range
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Movie Reviews of At Close Range
Movie Review: "Is this the family gun, dad?" Hidden '80's Genre Gem
Summary: 5 Stars
Somehow this movie vanished without a trace when in came out c.'86, but in my years as a video store clerk in that bygone epoch, whenever i recommended it to customers, they thanked me profusely. This slice of no-hope rural oedipal noir was based on a true story. Sean Penn, barely out of his teens and incendiary, is a bored teen in small-town, depressed Pennsylvania farm country, living with his indolent mom and younger bro (played by real-life bro, the late, lamented Chris Penn). Bored out of his skull, with no prospects, Sean is tantalized by fleeting glimpses of his dad, who abandoned him back in toddlerhood, but who periodically stops by to dispense wads of cash to his estranged wife, keeping contact with his son to a minimum. Dad, as is evident by his clothes, the cash, his swagger and his car, is some kind of rural bandit. And he is played by Christopher Walken, to the absolute hilt, in one of the most menacing, hilarious, kitsch-free depictions of villainy I have ever seen. The narrative proper gets going when Walken takes a fancy to his forgotten son, to the point where he initiates him into his criminal world (which seems to consist mostly of hijacking high-end farm equpiment and selling drugs). Penn, thrilled at the money, excitement, and filial bonding, is swept up into dad's heady orbit...until it begins to dawn on him that there are worse things than being fatherless...like having a dad who is a predatory homicidal maniac.
Magnificent script by Nick Kazan, son of Elia, who in the late '80's early '90's specialized in literate, offbeat true crime stories like this, "Reversal of Fortune," and "Patty Hearst." James Foley ("GlenGary Glen Ross") directs beautifully, paying great attention to the no-hope depressed rural environment. Supporting performances are fabulous, from Tracy Walter's Walter Brennan-like gangster underling, to Crispin Glover and Chris Penn as the stoner kids who get carried away into a life of crime and pay a dear price, to the stunning Mary Stewart Masterson as Sean's tough-as-nails tomboy girlfriend. Penn himself is his usual smoldering self, but it is Walken who makes this a must-see; too often self-parodic, here is is absolutely believable, from his cocksure swagger, to his peculiar but convincing Appalachian accent ("a little Elvis, a little Muhammed Ali," he explained in an interview), to his habit of smiling sweetly to himself when he kills people. The story of a man who discovers the joys of fatherhood belatedly, until it gets in the way of what really matters to him, the story of a fatherless boy whose belated reunion with his father goes from rapture to nightmare: this is not merely a true-crime movie, but an archtypal tragedy, and everyone involved should take a bow -- even Madonna, then in her Penn-days, who delivers a terrific title song with the downbeat "Live to Tell."
Movie Review: One of my favorite films
Summary: 5 Stars
Juvenile deliquent Brad Whitewood Jr ( Sean Penn), spends his time in a small town with his friends pulling off petty thefts for small time cash. However, Brad is getting sick of his boring life, and longs to make some serious money. Brad's father (Christopher Walken) is the leader of a serious gang of thieves. Brad has heard the rumors about his father, but never got a chance to know him. So he decides to leave his boring life behind, and sets out to find his father so that he can learn the tricks of the trade and become just like him. At first, Brad's father appears to be a good guy filled with plenty of wisdom and helpful hints on how to make it big. But when Brad witnesses his father intentionally kill someone, he realizes that he may be in over his head."At Close Range" is a great film. The story is based on the real life story of killer Bruce Johnson. With the acception of the character's names being chaged, the film features an accurate interpretation of events. It is truly a shame that no one really knows about this film. It features a powerful and emotional tale of an American criminal family. The film is very captivating and draws you in from the beginning. The story is great because it combines a somewhat touching look at a son getting to know his father, with an extremely well thought out crime story. This film emphasizes the term "appearances can be deceiving" because as the story goes on, Brad begins to learn what type of man his father really is. There is also a nice romance aspect to the story because Sean Penn's character meets and falls for a woman played by Mary Stuart Masterson.
Sean Penn and Christopher Walken offer two of their finest performances in this film, which is another reason why it is a shame that no one knows about this movie. "At Close Range" shows that Sean Penn was a great actor before "Mystic River". He nails the role with his perfect portrayal of being rebellious and naive at the same time. Christopher Walken is great because he plays both the loving father and the hardened criminal so well. Walken's performance in this film will give you the creeps. It really was the perfect role for him. Overall, I would place "At Close Range" at the top of the "unknown gem" category. This film is probably one of the best crime films I have ever seen. The story is absolutely fantastic and the actors involved could not have given better peformances.
A solid 5 stars...
Movie Review: "Daddy, Daddy....Give me something"
Summary: 5 Stars
"AT Close Range" is without question, one of the finest movies that the 80s produced.
Sean Penn plays a young criminal, who runs into his big-time criminal father(Christopher Walken) and joins Walkens' band of misfits. Along the way, Penn realizes what a terrible person his father is and tries to leave the gang. Walken is not liking that idea and has a different plan for Penn, one which involves his lovely girlfriend, played by Mary Stuart Masterson.
Chris Penn is also in this movie and plays Sean Penn's younger brother(that must have been diffcult for him).
This movie is sooooo great, because of Walken. His performance is undeniably creepy and overly effective. His character is drunk and doped-up for the entire movie and is always hiding his "evil" side. Walken is so capable of pulling this off, that it is impossible for me to even consider who else would have played this role had he not.
This movie is a little slow-moving, but that is simply to set the depressing, un-eventful daily life that takes place in this farm town this movie is set in. It almost explains why Penn gets involved with his father's crew---shear boredom.
There is some humor in ths film, most of which is provided by a drunk Walken character, stumbling and rambling about life.
The best line is when Penn tells Walken that he no longer wants to work with him and Walken; in a typical Walken voice, utters "Where ya gonna go...what'd ya gonna do....Food, clothes, pretty girl in your lap...you'll be crawling back to me; Daddy, Daddy, give me something"..I can rewind and watch that scene for hours.
This is truely a fantastic film and I highly recommend this one to anyone. Not suitable for young children as there is a lot of violence and some killing.
EVeryone else, I will be VERY surprised if this movie is not enoyed by all!!
HE GONE
Movie Review: The Devil in Blue Suede Shoes
Summary: 5 Stars
The film purports to be based on true events. The saga of the Johnston gang, a "family" of burglars based in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and reigned circa 1980 and then unfolded into murder happened while I was in high school. The story got big play in the Philadelphia region and some national coverage. Oddly enough this movie was filmed in Tennessee. Also noteworthy is that when this film was released in 1986 it didn't even get a theatrical run in Philly. I had to wait until it was released later that year on home video before I saw it. Bear in mind that at the time Sean Penn was not the esteemed Academy award winning actor he is now but was better known as Madonna's husband. Christopher Walken, despite the Oscar he won for "The Deer Hunter", was a marketing challenge for Hollywood. As for the film itself, it perfectly captures the essence of the events and the place it occurred. I worked near Lancaster County around that time and my late brother-in-law was from the area and came to Philly because the mills had closed there. You can imagine if you were a young person at that time the desolation you might feel and Penn perfectly captures that restlessness. You can also imagine how someone like him would be drawn to a charismatic, albeit evil, father figure as assayed here by Walken. Walken's Brad Sr. is one of his great portrayals in an impressive career. With little histrionics or tics Walken embodies evil incarnate. There is also an excellent supporting cast here with Mary Stuart Masterson as Penn's innocent girlfriend, Chris Penn and Crispin Glover as Penn's buddies, and Tracey Walter as Walken's brother as standouts. This is most definitely one of the better and more underrated films of the eighties. Credit should also go to director James Foley and scriptwriter Nicholas Kazan for not only delivering a powerhouse film but for also getting it right.Movie Review: Penn and Walken Terrific Together
Summary: 5 Stars
This film shows Sean Penn as a young man who is saddled with a father mired in low level living and constant crime. The criminal father is played by Walken but not as you've seen him in the movies before. Usually Walken plays top crime figures in major US cities. I've gotten very tired of seeing him in that role, in fact. However, here he is a hick and a criminal. His crimes are anything and everything that will get him through the night. The fascinating part is that Walken's character is more horrific than a mafia crime boss because he has no rules or limits whatsoever in his narrow, primitive world. He will harm anyone or anything, including kith or kin, who gets in his way. At times Walken seems like an ordinary bloke you'd see at your neighborhood tavern yet, in others, he is quietly chilling. Penn, as his son, is caught in a number of different directions as he's coming of age. Penn's character is sufficiently young and unformed and he could still turn out good or bad as an adult. It could go either way. However, what catalyzes him into growing up even faster is that his father undertakes his most vicious acts yet, acts that cry out for justice. Just to show you how young Penn was in this movie, he was then married to Madonna and she sings the big song on the movie soundtrack! The scene I can never forget is the one where Walken puts his finger up to his mouth, signalling "quiet," in almost a playful fashion. He has just committed his most atrocious crime to date and that is how laid back he is about it.