ROMEO IS BLEEDING
A film review by Susan Fanelli
Copyright 1994 Susan Fanelli
Starring: Gary Oldman, Lena Olin, Anabella Sciorra,
Juliette Lewis, Roy Scheider.
Directed: Peter Medak
Screenplay: Hilary Henkin
Produced: Hilary Henkin and Paul Webster
Gramercy Films
SAF rating: 3/10 (Lena Olin, cinematography, music)
ROMEO IS BLEEDING wants to carry the unusual flavor of RESERVOIR DOGS or BAD LIEUTENANT. With director Peter Medak, whose previous credits include the good films LET HIM HAVE IT and THE KRAYS, and top-notch character actors Gary Oldman and Lena Olin, they seemed likely to be a successful combination. Those mentioned films, however, brought something to the screen that ROMEO IS BLEEDING did not: a solid, well-written screenplay. Call me cynical, but the jobs of writer and producer don't seem to mix well.
Gary Oldman plays Jack Grimaldi, a good cop turned bad, selling information to the mob and cheating on his wife. His cheating is obvious enough to obtain his nickname, although the name doesn't provide any insight or analogy to the Shakespearean character. Jack has become addicted to "feeding the hole", a hole in the ground where he stores his payoff money. When he realizes his colleagues are being shot, he feebly attempts to get out. Gary Oldman's performance is disappointingly weak; he seems nearly bored.
In the process, he also gets tangled-up with Mona Demarkov, a Russian mobsterette who wants to take over the territory from top boss Falcone, played adequately by Roy Scheider. Demarkov, played by Lena Olin, is a tough but tremendously sexy woman with seemingly no problems maneuvering within the mob world. This character is combination of both Linda Hamilton and Arnold Schwarznegger from TERMINATOR 2. I can't remember seeing a character quite like her. After being shot, handcuffed, and thrown in the back seat of a car, she still manages to cause an accident, kick out the windshield with her legs, grab a suitcase full of money (plus some important documentation), climb through the rubble, land on her shot leg, and still succeed at running for safety. What a woman! Lena Olin's performance is the only glimmer in this dismal film.
Anabella Sciorra is wasted in her role as Romeo's wife. There is little insight into her character. She's depressed, she makes obvious references, she mopes around the house. Juliette Lewis, as Romeo's girlfriend, is treated with the same cliche attitudes, although Ms. Lewis' portrayal certainly didn't improve it. Both women were anything but sexy or attractive.
Poorly developed characters aside, the screenplay also suffers from several logistical problems. It is so discouraging to watch a film and want to shout at the main character (not) to do something. For example, Jack and his friends attend a funeral to hang in the background to scope-out the mob scene. Fine. Jack spots the big boss with his goons by the gravesite. Fine. What does Jack proceed to do? He brushes his friends off by telling them he isn't feeling well, then strolls over to the boss. Why? The boss had all ready threatened him; Falcone simply takes the opportunity to issue more threats by ordering his goons to take off some of Jack's toes by the gravesite. I guess they weren't worried about any federal agents lingering around after the funeral....
Or here's another: Demarkov set-up her own death by cutting off her arm with a circular saw. She proceeded to set the place on fire. Wouldn't the flames burn off the fingerprints? Aren't dental records more important? As bright and resourceful as she was supposed to be, couldn't she come up with a better plot? (And it took her no time at all to get a good-fitting, functional prosthesis.)
Lack of attention to detail certainly adds up in a film. This film doesn't even add up the large details. There is little or no consistency in the story-line. Not much makes sense.
The direction lacks cohesion, surprising from a director whose previous credits are impeccable. The moods shift, the styles shift, and no one can seem to decide if it is a serious film or satire of one. So while it certainly isn't RESERVOIR DOGS, it certainly isn't DIVA.
There's plenty more to tear apart in this film. My advice to someone who hasn't seen it to to wait until it comes on video. There are some quotable lines that would provide a campy evening if not taken seriously. It's not a boring film, just not a good one. Or an intelligent one.
.
The review above was posted to the
rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup (de.rec.film.kritiken for German reviews).
The Internet Movie Database accepts no responsibility for the contents of the
review and has no editorial control. Unless stated otherwise, the copyright
belongs to the author.
Please direct comments/criticisms of the review to relevant newsgroups.
Broken URLs inthe reviews are the responsibility of the author.
The formatting of the review is likely to differ from the original due
to ASCII to HTML conversion.
Related links: index of all rec.arts.movies.reviews reviews