Review for 8 Million Ways to Die

8 Million Ways To Die

1986
Dir: Hal Ashby






Introduction

Hal Ashby is not particularly known for his gritty cop thrillers. The famed "hippy" filmmaker made his name during the 1970's during a streak of incredible cinematic entries that spanned various genres, but were resolutely "New Hollywood". Bursting onto the scene in 1970 with The Landlord, Ashby became associated with the group of so-called Movie Brats of the decade, who encompassed such individuals as Martin Scorsese, Brian DePalma, Francis Ford Coppola, John Milius, Peter Bogdanovich and Steven Spielberg. Ashby's personal triumphs came in the form of directing Harold and Maude, Shampoo, and especially Coming Home, a Vietnam drama for which he was nominated for an Academy Award. Sadly, his career spiralled in the years that followed, until his death in 1988.

On the other hand, 8 Million Ways To Die is undoubtedly typical of Oliver Stone's screenplays at the time. It must have read as ultra-modern at the time, and is laced with his trademark, colourful language. Based on a Lawrence Block novel, the plot centres around alcoholic cop, Matthew Scudder. Scudder is actually the subject of seventeen Block novels, and is often thought to be a somewhat autobiographical.

In one sense, it's perhaps appropriate that the rebellious Ashby did take on this project. A conventional, eighties-style, foul-mouthed Oliver Stone script is a far cry from how the Utah native established his credentials, and must have appeared to be the sort of commercial project that would restore his momentum in Hollywood. It also brought together a strong cast, of Jeff Bridges, Andy Garcia, and Rosanna Arquette in the lead roles. Upon it's initial release though, 8 Million Ways to Die was not a commercial success, and only now, this forgotten crime thriller makes it's DVD debut.

The plot is straightforward enough. Jeff Bridges plays alcoholic cop Scudder, who is booted from the force following a shooting of a suspect during a botched drugs bust. Meanwhile his personal life is an equally shambolic affair.

Baywatch star Alexandra Paul comes onto the scene. A high-class hooker of sorts, she leads him to drug dealer/gangster/all-round villain Angel (Andy Garcia complete with a remarkable pony tailed mullet/rat's tail). After he finds her dead, he wakes up two days later in hospital, and has clearly sunk to new depths thanks to the bottle. Trying to clean up, he goes about infiltrating Garcia's schemes, while becoming dangerously involved with his missus, as played by the stunning Rosanna Arquette.



　

Review

8 Million Ways to Die is far from a classic entry from Ashby. Of course, it is professionally shot, and well put-together, and obviously, the cast is hugely appealing. Unfortunately, it is also a murky, muddled thriller, devoid of the requisite thrills for a film of this nature.

With that said, fans of Oliver Stone's screenwriting will find much to enjoy here. The setting is authentically hard-boiled and the character, although hardly unique, are generally rounded, believable individuals. Complimenting this, the collective cast of relative heavyweights produce fantastic shifts. Jeff Bridges is of course, a compelling lead: stumbling and muttering through his drunken episodes, he looks appropriately downtrodden. In Scudder's more lucid moments however, Bridges balances such shenanigans with convincing heroics without becoming a cartoon cop. Rosanna Arquette is also fairly decent, but her character swerves wildly and unnervingly between street-wise prostitute to wailing women-in-distress without a trace of humour. Meanwhile, Andy Garcia is the standout. Several of his scenes could have done with some noticeable trimming, to avoid repetitive yelling of the same lines over and over again .However, he is never anything less than believably sleazy and despicable. It's amazing to think that he went from this to The Untouchables the year following, and generally, that such a talent would contribute most of his better material around this period.

An improvised feel to several exchanges, and a web of various plot threads and characters is all promising in theory, but in execution, it often falls apart. There is a distinct lack of genuine suspense throughout. Compounding the problem, is the volume of scenes that Garcia and Bridges share together. The point is clearly to generate a simmering tension that finally explodes, but instead, their prolonged arguments and negotiations are often dull and overlong. A climatic confrontation in an abandoned warehouse only serves to underline the problems with this film. The scene dissolves into a mess of profanity-laden shouting that occupies a frankly, ridiculous amount of time. At this point, the film descends into farce. Essentially, the familiar plot has several really nice elements and strands, but rarely are they tied together. Instead, this film feels like a series of interludes and exchanges, a few of which do not sit alongside each other in a satisfactory manner.

Amongst all the negatives however, 8 Million Ways to Die still has it's moments, and is a worthy viewing experience. Additionally, despite a horrendous lack of any special features whatsoever- this barebones release looks excellent. The image is crisp and clear, and it's hard to imagine it looking any better.

Fans of Bridges and Garcia should regard this picture as good fun in particular, and find that their favourites, certainly give a solid account of themselves. Garcia especially, seems much more comfortable in a villainous role, than the more heroic ones that he found himself landing following The Untouchables in 1987.

Frustrating, and bursting at the seams with poor decision making, Ashby's film is nonetheless, a curious Eighties relic that I found well worth experiencing.