Tequila Sunrise
by Robert Towne
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DVD details
Actor: J.T. Walsh, Kurt Russell, Mel Gibson, Michelle Pfeiffer, Raul JuliaDirector: Robert Towne
Brand: Warner Brothers
Cinematographer: Conrad L. Hall
Writer: Robert Towne
Editor: Claire Simpson
Producer: Thom Mount
Producer: Tom Shaw
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround
Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, Full Screen, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 115 minutes
DVD Release Date: 1997-10-29
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
DVD Reviews of Tequila Sunrise
DVD Review: Noir Attempt without much Noir
Summary: 2 Stars
"Tequila Sunrise" is worth seeing for three reasons: Kurt Russell's perfectly drawn noir cop, the sheer physical gorgeousness of Russell, Gibson, and Pfeiffer, and Raul Julia's stylish turn. It's incredible that the same person who wrote "Chinatown" (Robert Towne) brewed this cup of weak tea, whose only accomplishment here is to plate up a serious batch of eye-candy for a couple of hours (not that there's anything wrong with that).
TS's script fails because of its core dilemma: it presents shady, not to say outright evil characters, like a former high-level cocaine dealer, that it also wants you to LIKE. This problem starts with Gibson's role, Dale (Mac) McKussic. Mac, as written and as played by the too-endearing Gibson, is absurd. We are asked to believe that the cuddly, studly, loving Dad is actually the victim here, with a nasty ex-wife, traitorous friends, and an ambitious pal on the police force who wants to move up by collaring Mac's former connection, the legendary cartel leader "Carlos", and who may (or may not) be willing to use Mac to do it.
Gibson's Mac asks you to shelve everything you ever knew about the revoltingly evil nature of cocaine peddling, years of which have apparently left not the slightest stain on Mac's lovability (not to mention his conscience). Never mind all those schoolchildren that the stuff Mac brought in will reach, or the murderers and sociopaths he helped make rich . . .you just stay focused on those baby-blues of his.
Set in the South Bay area of Los Angeles during the 1980s, this story focuses on the difficulties of Mac, a former cocaine smuggler who once enjoyed a serious reputation in the drug trade. Now he wants to go straight, but, as Mac whines, "nobody wants me to quit." Mac's old friend, Lt. Nick Frescia (Kurt Russell), who heads up the area's police drug enforcement unit, might be ambivalent on that score, himself. Russell's Frescia is the only authentically played character in the film: hardboiled, ambitious, slick, and a tad flexible on the rules of engagement, but at heart on the right side.
Nick doesn't really want to send his old pal up, but Nick is under pressure from D.E.A. agent Hal Maguire, (another villainous turn by J.T. Walsh) to use Mac to find and bring in "Carlos". Nick likes Maguire about as much as he likes "Carlos", and is put in the position of choosing between a chance to get Carlos by trapping Mac, or standing between Mac and Maguire's ruthless tactics. As it happens, the mysterious "Carlos" has some "accounting matters" that he wants to clear up with Mac, and despite Mac's protests, is on his way into town, his ETA coinciding with that of Javier Escalante (Raul Julia), a Mexican drug enforcement officer working with Maguire, who is also after "Carlos".
Matters between Mac and Nick become more complicated when they fall for the same woman, restauranteur Jo Ann Vallenari (Michelle Pfeiffer). Deeply attracted to Jo Ann, Mac has taken to eating at her restaurant, always at the same table, offering law enforcement an opportunity to bug the table and to blackmail Jo Ann into cooperating as they try to use Mac to get to "Carlos". In-between all this, Mac hires Jo Ann to cater his son's birthday party, and, needless to say, the boy also falls for the pretty restauranteur (who is also a damned good cook - she not only runs the restaurant, but can dish up pasta quattro fromaggi with the best of them).
Jo Ann is actually a red herring: the truth is, she's only there to provide some romantic interest and relieve the macho essence of the film, and it shows - from a mile off, you can smell the clunky attempt to work her into the story so that it has some sex. The script also calls for Jo Ann to be "slick" but she isn't, not the least bit. Smooth, yes; slick no. The delicately pretty Pfeiffer, at this point in time, just didn't have the bite she later displayed as "Catwoman" and in "White Oleander", when her cherubic prettiness had hardened a bit. It's not Pfeiffer's fault - Jo Ann's part is badly written - maybe a young Lauren Bacall could have pulled it off.
Naturally, Nick also falls for Jo Ann and for awhile there, the viewer isn't sure who Jo Ann really trusts or who she is really interested in - the way this is written, she probably wasn't sure, either, till the last page. Oh - wait, she gets into the hot tub with Mac before the last page. Let me think- is that before or after she made love to Nick in the leaky wine cellar?
Finally, "Carlos" chugs into town, with enough cocaine on board to buy and sell OPEC; everyone meets up in the same place at the same time; more perfidy and double-crossing is uncovered; the guns come out; the explosions start; Jo Ann figures out who she's really in love with, all to the accompaniment of Raul Julia's rendition of "Santa Lucia".
"Tequila Sunrise" tries hard, but that's its problem: you can see it trying hard to be snappy and noir-ish and suspenseful and layered, but it isn't any of those things. There's a difference between a layered story and a confusingly written one - this is the latter. The characters' motivations aren't clear, and they are unbelievable as written. Only Kurt Russell inhabits a role well-anchored in the film tradition this movie apes, but doesn't fulfill. It's a great disappointment, given the talents of its cast and scriptwriter, that "Tequila Sunrise" is so eminently forgettable.
Description of Tequila Sunrise
THE MIX IS DANGEROUS, THE ROMANCE IS SIZZLING, THE ACTION ISEXPLOSIVE WITH THREE OF THE MOST EXCITING PERFORMERS ON SCREENAT ANY ONE TIME.A COOL, CUNNING DRAMA OF FRIENDSHIP AND BETRAYAL, A SEDUCTIVE BLEND OF ACTION AND ROMANCE.Robert Towne is one of Hollywood's most celebrated screenwriters, but because his directorial efforts have been few and far between, anticipation was high when this star-powered crime story was released in 1988. Critical reaction was decidedly mixed, but there's plenty to admire in this silky, visually seductive film about a drug dealer (Mel Gibson) whose best friend from high-school (Kurt Russell) is now working for the Los Angeles sheriff's drug detail. Their personal and professional conflicts are intensified by their love for the same woman, a waitress (Michelle Pfeiffer) at the Italian restaurant they both frequent. There's a big deal going down with a drug lord (the late Raul Julia), but as it twists and turns, Towne's story is really more about personal loyalties and individual honor. And even if it doesn't quite hold together, the movie's got a fantastic look to it (courtesy of the great cinematographer Conrad Hall), and the three stars bring depth and dimension to their well-written roles. --Jeff Shannon
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