I tend to show a lot of movies to people, introducing them to great films is one of my joys. When I run into a truly wonderful film that far too many people have never heard of, well that is the genesis of this page. When my wife confessed that she had never seen this film because she thought it was "Midnight Express," I was amused. When others started telling me the same thing, I was baffled.
This "buddy film"/"road movie"/"crime dramedy" is a joy that people should know about. From Yaphet Cotto's slow-burn FBI agent to John Ashtin's underhanded second banana bounty hunter to Joe Pantoliano's slimy bail bondsman to Dennis Farina's scary crime boss there is not a weak performance in the piece.
But the cream of the crop are the leads. As unlikely a pairing as anyone ever put together, Charles Grodin and Robert DeNiro. If you have seen "Stardust" you know that DeNiro can handle comedy, but this was our first glimpse of just how magnificently the man can do the job.
But this pair's "Odd Couple" credentials are brilliant. Grodin is a whiny accountant who has embezzled 15 million dollars from the mob, and when he jumps bail DeNiro is the ex-cop (run out of Chicago by the same mobster) who is sent to get him. Both men play the comedy and the pathos flawlessly.
I could tell you more about the plot, but it would be a sin to spoil a minute of this dandy little picture that should have been a hundred times more successful than it was.
Here is some of the cast:
Robert De Niro . . . Jack Walsh
Charles Grodin . . . Jonathan Mardukas
Yaphet Kotto . . . Alonzo Mosely, FBI
John Ashton . . . Marvin Dorfler
Dennis arina . . . Jimmy Serrano
Joe Pantoliano . . . Eddie Moscone
Richard Foronjy . . . Tony Darvo
Robert Miranda . . . Joey
Jack Kehoe . . . Jerry Geisler
Wendy Phillips . . . Gail
Danielle DuClos . . . Denise Walsh
One of the way you can tell a true Serendipity Cinema is by the reaction you will get from others who cherish one of these films as I do. They are likely to want to hog tie you and drag you to the nearest DVD player and show you this thing that gave them such joy. Let them! (Well, not the hog tying part, but, well, you know!)
If you have an idea for a Serendipity Cinema, or want to comment email here.The Archive of the old pages are here.
1 comment:
I agree - Midnight Run is one of those lost gems. Great performances throughout - it's got humour but there is emotion there too - but without too much sentimentality.
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