Main Cast: Jeff Chase, Joey Lauren Adams, James Caan
Release Year: 2000
Country: US
Run Time: 104 minutes
Plot
New York hit man Eric O'Byrne (Matthew Modine) is sent to Miami to murder movie stunt coordinator Lance Huston (James Caan) in retaliation for an on-set accident that killed a powerful capo's nephew, who also was a drug smuggler working on a large deal with eccentric kingpin Draven (Cuba Gooding Jr.). Eric works his way into Lance's world by starting a relationship with Lance's daughter, Clarissa (Joey Lauren Adams), a sensitive pediatrician, and before long he becomes a stuntman working for Lance. But the godfather becomes anxious to have Lance killed, and Eric finds that when the time comes to pull the trigger, love and loyalty complicate the hit. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
Review
It's for movies like this that VCRs were invented. This is fabulous stuff, from the story to the casting to the effects to the soundtrack. That it never played in theaters speaks more to the crowding of the multiplex screens by duplicate and triplicate studio megahits-of-the-moment than it does the quality of the moviemaking. Veteran stuntman Ric Roman Waugh has pieced together a superb story peppered with fiery action and daring stunts that actually contribute to the plot instead of simply jolting the viewer out of a cinema-induced stupor. This clearly is a labor of love Waugh has been polishing for some time, and it shows. The blossoming romance between Eric and Clarissa is entirely believable, the plot turns never challenge credibility (particularly one devilish one involving Draven), and the actors, particularly James Caan and Cuba Gooding Jr., know they are in something special, and they act like it. A stylish production with inventive photography, the ten-million-dollar budget is all on the screen, and then some. There is nothing wrong with your VCR -- this actually is a good movie. ~ Buzz McClain, All Movie Guide
