DIGGSTOWN
A film review by Frank Maloney
Copyright 1992 Frank Maloney
DIGGSTOWN is a film directed by Michael Ritchie, from a script by Steven McKay. It stars James Woods, Lou Gossett, Jr., Bruce Dern, Heather Graham. Rated R for language.
DIGGSTOWN is based on Leonard Wise's novel THE DIGGSTOWN RINGERS. Presumably the novel is better than the script. Steven McKay, whose previous claim to fame is the script for Steven Segal's HARD TO KILL, has no interest in his characters, sets up situations and drops them without a word, fails to clarify motivations and relationships, and generally does his best to undermine the fine acting turns by James Woods, Lou Gossett, Jr., and Bruce Dern, as well as some successful boxing sequences, and a nicely corrupt small town.
Of course, it would be a mistake to lay all the blame at the feet of the writer. One must also remember the failures of the director, Michael Ritchie. Ritchie directed one of the great and timeless political movie, THE CANDIDATE. Since then he has been settling for the small and short-lived: Chevy Chase's Fletch flicks, THE COUCH TRIP, THE SURVIVORS. Ritchie has all the earmarks of the classic Hollywood sellout, as DIGGSTOWN amply demonstrates.
If you must see this film, go for the performances. The three principals are all fine. Woods is the ex-con con man out to take a big killing in Diggstown, some sort of small-town boxing capital (named for its favorite-son boxer, now its favorite vegetable). Gossett, whom we are asked to accept as a 48-year-old retired knock-out artist, is clearly trying to redeem himself for his lowbrow series of IRON EAGLE movies, sweats, bleeds, and wise-cracks; it's never quite believable, of course, Gossett is too old and too thick in the waist, despite his excellent condition, for the part, but still it's a game effort. Dern is a cold-hearted, power-hunger s.o.b. who can betray anyone, even his own son. He is reptilian and unctuous, vicious and driven, and one has to admire his black, black heart.
The supporting cast is also good, especially Oliver Platt as Woods's front man, Orestes Matacena as the heavy money from Miami (there something so sinister about his bald pate and huge ponytail), Thomas Wilson Brown as Dern's fawning son. Dern's other hangers-on are also suitably corrupt and venal. There are two actors who play a pair of brothers, whose names I didn't catch, and who did fine in their parts as two of the fighters who sign on to challenge Gossett to ten fights in 24 hours.
You might want to catch this one on video, but I cannot recommend it to anyone but a special-interest viewer, even at matinee prices. The script and direction problems simply swamp the acting and the result is to leave one with a feeling of being cheated by a couple of con men, which is a little too recursive for real life.
-- Frank Richard Aloysius Jude Maloney .
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