Movie Review: 48 Hrs (1982)

One of Eddie Murphy's earliest hits and one of the original buddy movies, 48 Hrs. provides some edgy entertainment but has a reputation that has perhaps surpassed the actual strengths of the material.

While on highway chain gang duty, convict Albert Ganz (James Remar, most famous for his role as Ajax in The Warriors) shoots two guards and escapes to freedom with the help of an accomplice. Arriving in San Francisco to seek the hidden money from the robbery that landed in him in jail, Ganz is soon cornered by the police in a seedy motel but shoots his way out after disarming burly police officer Jack Cates (Nick Nolte).

With two police officers now dead in addition to the prison guards, Ganz is a most wanted man, and Cates secures the release of Reggie Hammond (Eddie Murphy), one of Ganz's old accomplices, from jail for 48 hours to help end the killing spree. Jack and Reggie are like oil and water, and while Jack is desperate to catch up with Ganz, Reggie is desperate to get laid during his brief taste of freedom. Eventually the two men earn some mutual respect and close in on Ganz as he closes in on the money.

48 Hrs. has not aged terribly well. The plot was never the point, and it does not get better with time: that the only way to find a vicious and trigger-happy maniac tearing through the city and killing multiple police officers is to seek the help of a criminal who has been languishing in jail for two years defies all logic and the reasonable abilities and motivations of most police forces.

Which leaves us with the buddy dynamics between Nolte's police officer Jack, and Murphy's convict Reggie. It is a foul-mouthed, violence-prone relationship that is surprisingly lacking in wit or sharp laughs. As one of the original buddy movies 48 Hrs. was establishing the template rather than improving upon it, but the lack of ideas in the script is a bit painful, as is the over-dependence on Murphy's antics. Five different writers had a hand in the screenplay, including director Walter Hill, and the lack of a confident, purposeful tone is obvious. 

The scenes that work best allow Murphy to take centre stage, as in the red-neck bar with Reggie pretending to be a cop, but even then, the comedy is contrived, with the support actors waiting on cue to bend over and be the punch line of Murphy's cool jokes.

Nolte brings little that is new to the role of the lone cop doing things his way, with everything from his sour demeanour to his strained relationship with his girlfriend (an under-used Annette O'Toole) to his beat-up car borrowed from countless other movie and television cops.

48 Hrs. makes good use of the San Francisco locations, and the Murphy persona benefits from the freshness of talent being discovered rather than over-exposed. But while it's a movie that remains engaging, with the passage of time 48 Hrs. is looking quite ragged around the edges.

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Movie Review: The Warriors (1979)

One of the best films ever made is a low-budget comic-style romp with a no-name cast about a gang on the run during one long New York night.

"Can you count suckers? I say the future is ours, if you can count!" --
Cyrus to the 900 assembled gang members.

Director Walter Hill achieves something remarkable in The Warriors. It is one of those rare films where the story, directing, performances, cinematography, lighting and music come together to create a timeless classic. The Warriors is as enjoyable and current today as it was back in 1979. It's not that the film has aged well -- it simply does not age.

"We've been unable to see the truth, because we've been fighting for ten square feet of ground - our turf, our little piece of turf." -- Cyrus again, working the crowd.

In an undefined but not too distant future, 900 members of New York's various gangs gather at night in a Bronx park, including nine members of the Warriors from Coney Island. The meeting is called by the Gramercy Riffs, New York's largest gang, and their leader Cyrus (a masterful Roger Hill) delivers a rousing speech outlining how by maintaining a truce and uniting, the gangs can rule the City.

"Can you dig it? Caaan you dig it? Caaan yoouuuuu diiiigg ittt?" -- Cyrus driving the crowd to a frenzy, just before getting shot.

Luther (David Patrick Kelly), the unhinged leader of the Rogues, shoots Cyrus dead, and loudly blames the killing on the Warriors. The police suddenly descend on the meeting, and in the ensuing chaos of 900 gang members fleeing the scene, the Warriors make their immediate escape, but not before their leader is killed.

The surviving eight Warriors, now led by Swan (Michael Beck) have to make the long journey back to Coney Island, while pursued by the police, the Riffs seeking vengeance and every gang member in New York.

From this simple premise inspired by Greek mythology, Hill weaves a series of unforgettable scenes: Cyrus' speech; the Warriors escaping from the Turnbull AC's bus; the confrontation with the pathetic Orphans; the baseball bat battle in the park with the brilliantly attired Furies; the bruising battle with the roller-skaters in the men's bathroom; the short but stunning across-the-aisle encounter with the grad partiers on the train; Luther taunting the Warriors with the beer bottles; and the final confrontation on the beach. And let's not forget the Riffs' radio announcer who keeps track of the action as it unfolds -- only her lips are ever seen.

"I'll shove that bat up your ass and turn you into a popsicle." -- Ajax to the Furies before they rumble.

The Warriors contains an almost unfair number of classic moments, all occurring as a natural part of the narrative rather than as pre-announced set-pieces.

The amount of running and non-stop action gives the movie a kinetic energy of its own: The Warriors feels like a power source.

At the same time, Hill manages to inject a lot of humanity into the movie and brings to life several characters, in a film which could have easily been excused for foregoing any individuality. Each member of the Warriors has a persona, including the cool leader Swan; the impulsive Ajax (James Remar); the stalwart Cochise (David Harris); and the young Rembrandt (Marcelino Sanchez). And in a relatively few scenes, David Patrick Kelly creates in Luther a highly-strung, barely-holding-it-together and unforgettable villain.

Into this male dominated world Hill also introduces Mercy (Deborah Van Valkenburgh) as the woman from the very wrong side of the tracks who ironically sees the Warriors, for all their trouble, as a means to move up in the world.

"You're just a part of everything that's happened tonight...and it's all bad." -- Swan to Mercy, just after she kisses him.

Barry De Vorzon created a synthesizer-driven music score that adds to the timeless feel of the movie, while Andrew Laszlo's cinematography bring out the best of a subway-focused New York on a rainy summer night. The vivid and sharp colours and lighting of The Warriors, despite the darkness of the night, emphasizes the movie's comics sensibilities.

"Warriors, come out to plaayeeaay!" -- Luther repeatedly taunting the Warriors while methodically clicking three bottles inserted into his fingers.

Controversial upon its theatrical release for causing riots in some theatres as some real gang members got over-excited, The Warriors is an absolute gem of a movie and proof that excellence sometimes emerges from the most unlikely of packages.








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