Mulholland Falls

Rating:
Summary: A Cops vs. Federal Government story of murder
Review:

Format: Color
Not for sale to persons under age 18.
Studio: Mgm/Ua Studios
Video Release Date: June 23, 1998

Cast:

Nick Nolte ... Max Hoover
Melanie Griffith ... Katherine Hoover
Chazz Palminteri ... Elleroy Coolidge
Michael Madsen ... Eddie Hall
Chris Penn ... Arthur Relyea
Treat Williams ... Colonel Nathan Fitzgerald
Jennifer Connelly ... Allison Pond
Daniel Baldwin ... McCafferty
Andrew McCarthy ... Jimmy Fields
John Malkovich ... General Thomas Timms

Kyle Chandler ... Captain
Ed Lauter ... Earl
Larry Garrison ... Perino's Maitre d'
Chelsea Harrington ... Lolita
Johnna Johnson ... Bar Woman
Rick Johnson ... Staff Car Sergeant
Britt Burr ... Staff Car Driver
Melinda Clarke ... Cigarette Girl
Ernie Lively ... Foreman
Richard Sylbert ... Coroner
Michael Krawic ... Assistant Coroner
Titus Welliver ... Kenny Kamins
Robert Peters ... Cop #1
Father William M. Thigpen ... Priest
Drew Pillsbury ... Chief's Assistant
Brad Hunt ... Guard
Aaron Neville ... Nite Spot Singer
Buddy Joe Hooker ... DC-3 Pilot
Eddie Caicedo ... Gasping Patient
Price Carson ... Honor Guard
Azalea Davila ... Perino's Girl
Sky Solari ... Perino's Girl
Alisa Christensen ... Spaghetti Girl
Bruce Dern ... The Chief
Rob Lowe ... Hoodlum
Johnny Martin ... Mafia Hitman
William L. Petersen ... Jack, Mafia Mobster
Sharmagne Leland-St. John ... Woman in Night Club
Louise Fletcher ... Esther

Max Hoover (Nick Nolte) is the head of a special police squad that is given carte blanche when it come to methods of running bad guys out of L.A., including throwing them off cliffs; hence the title: as one of the bad guys observed, "There are no falls on Mulholland Drive," Until of course, he discovers them as he falls down the cliff.

The instant crime which the story centers around is the death of a young woman, whose body, it turns out, is discovered to be radioactive, and was a paramour of General Thomas Timms (John Malkovich), who is in command of an Atomic Energy Commission base. The AEC and the FBI, on the one hand, and the LAPD on the other, head for an inevitable jurisdictional clash, in spades.

I will not divulge further details of the plot, except to say that it is rated "R" for language and violence--deservedly.

But, unlike several other reviewers, I found the film interesting and am watching it for the second or third time.

Perhaps not a "great" film, but certainly entertaining within its genre, and well acted and directed.

Joseph (Joe) Pierre

author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books

Rating:
Summary: Mulholland...FALLS--Oh, NOW I get it!
Review: Let's get to the good stuff about this movie before the real fun of dissecting it. For Nick Nolte fans, you'll enjoy it because he's good in it and cuts a swaggering figure in a fedora. For Jennifer Connally fans, this is a must have (you naughty boys) and you'll want to keep your finger hovering over the pause button. In the meantime, you'll be cursing the director for editing the heck out of that really good 8mm B&W movie starring the impressive Miss Connally and spending most of the film on something about radiation and men with hats in a shiny Buick. Even though this impenetrable storyline features the additional treat of one of the Baldwin brothers (Adam? Stephen??) getting the crap beat out of him, I still found it lacking since the complete footage of Miss Connally's kinky films were never found and fully displayed to their archival stature. Talk about an extra for your DVD edition!

Now for the bad stuff. The film tries for atmosphere, but only occasionally succeeds. The shot out at the A-bomb crater is impressive, but on the whole, the movie spends too long doing too little. Of the cast, only Nolte is given enough meat to excel. This is a strong cast, but with the exception of Nolte, they have little to do. Melanie Griffith looks fresh off collagen injections to enlarge her upper lip, sadly ruining her beautiful face. Lord help me, but I kept expecting her to go "quack!" Why is it some gorgeous women keep obsessing about their bodies-tattooes, piercing, injections, etc.? They are like masterpieces that continue to have work done to them and hence ruin their natural beauty (ahem, end soliloquy). And miscasting reaches new heights with uber-quirky John Malkovich as an Army General! Apparently they offered him the part in the B&W porno flick and he was theirs for whatever role nobody else wanted.

Well, I don't want to give away the ending, but for me , the whole movie FELL FLAT. My interest PLUMMETED in the climactic scene. So don't feel you should DROP EVERYTHING to go out and rent this movie.

Rating:
Summary: Good Film To Watch if You Want to Kill some Time
Review: Nick Nolte in another one of his no nonsense roles plays the leader of an elite squad of cops who specalize in terminating organized crime in 1950's L.A. Nolte's enigmatic performence is worth seeing when it's put to good use, as for everyone else involved in the film are pretty much wasted. Nolte's chrachter cheets on his wife, with a pretty young thing(the ever pretty Jennifer Connleny) who he finds brutally murdered and realizes her death leads to an conspiracy with the army. The story isn't really clearly defined and tries hard to follow the same allure of Polanski's CHINATOWN but it suffers from it's own heavy handness of a tiresome script. The best scene in the film was when Nolte & Palmintari were engaged in a fight on a plane with two army officials Palmintari is shot during the fight and as soon as they land Palmitari dies in Nolte's arms. In the end Nolte lost a friend, breaks up the elite squad and tries to get his wife back but she is gone for good. This is a good film to watch if nothing else is on but i wouldent go out of my way to see this film again and again. Reason why the film's story is too obivous and pretentious to be enjoyed

Rating:
Summary: Modern Film Noir... a classic!
Review: This movie is NOT on the level of Chinatown, LA Confidential or some of the genuine film noir made in the late 40s.... however... if you enjoyed them, you will enjoy this one, and I give it 5 stars for the atmosphere, music, style, costumes, and story so typical of those other great films. ESPECIALLY interesting is Jennifer's portrayal of a "Black Dahlia" type character, pale blue eyes and all.... and Treat Williams role as a military thug, which he plays beautifully. The score by Dave Grusin is absolutely gorgeous and brings the perfectly beautiful shots of period Los Angeles and matching sets to life. Cinematography and sound is first rate. I can hardly wait to own this on DVD.