The Getaway
by Roger Donaldson
from Universal Studios
"This is going to be the last big score, I promise." Famous last words--uttered by crack thief Doc McCoy to his wife--that set forth a whirlpool of deception and violence in Roger Donaldson's 1994 remake of The Getaway. Bailed out of a Mexican jail by shady businessman Jack Benyon (James Woods) in order to hit an Arizona dog track for him, Doc (Alec Baldwin) and Carol (Kim Basinger) flee for south of the border when the robbery goes wrong, with the million-dollar loot in tow. Following close behind are Benyon's men and Doc's double-crossing partner Rudy (Michael Madsen).
The updated version shares not only the original film's plot, but also the added twist of having husband and wife Baldwin and Basinger step into the roles of the first real-life couple to make the film, Steve McQueen and Ali McGraw. This time, however, the woman's role has been given a tougher '90s edge, with Basinger pulling almost as many punches and firing as many shots as Baldwin, compared to McGraw, who followed McQueen around in wide-eyed, silent terror.
The Getaway maintains the same deliberate, neo-noir pace that made the first film taut, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere in the wide-open, desolate Southwestern landscapes. The scorching sun and heat only add to the strain, making it virtually impossible for anyone to find a dark corner or alleyway to hide in. The car chases and shoot-out finale are charged, though a secondary plot line, between Rudy and the woman he kidnaps and seduces (Jennifer Tilly), comes across as unnecessarily and incongruously brutal. --Natasha Senjanovic
A husband and wife crime team are on the run from the law and from a crime boss they doubled crossed.
Genre: Feature Film-Action/Adventure
Rating: UN
Release Date: 5-MAR-2002
Media Type: DVD
The Doom Generation
by Gregg Araki
from Trimark Pictures
Made for a fraction of the cost of Oliver Stone's similarly themed Natural Born Killers, Gregg Araki's The Doom Generation is more persuasively outragous in its cultural satire, scarier in its violence, and more profound in its vision of a hate-fueled, media-drunk America seemingly determined to eat its young and dwell stupidly on their vengeance. Rose McGowan (Scream), James Duval (Nowhere), and Johnathon Schaech (That Thing You Do!) star as a trio of friends (Schaech's character actually being a complete stranger who steps into their car and into their lives one club-hopping night) who end up on a sex-and-crime spree that draws the fixed stare of television coverage. Araki makes a case for their continuing innocence in a society whose anti-outsider malevolence is barely disguised in the media but is quite naked out in the heartland, where a punishing level of bigotry is not unknown. Araki's jokes and techniques are crude yet forceful, and his anger is absolutely clear where Stone's was obscured and overreaching. The climax is among the most shattering and enraged scenes of '90s cinema. The DVD includes cast information, a theatrical trailer, and French and Spanish subtitles. --Tom Keogh
Gladiator Eroticus
by John Bacchus
from Ventura Distribution
Women of the Night
by Zalman King
from Lions Gate
Zero Woman
by Daisuke Gotoh
from Tokyo Shock
Zero Department fights for the fealty of its solitary assassin, Zero Woman, when a fumbling waiter melts her icy heart and tries to rescue the world-weary killer from her soul-crushing life. But is her callous, conniving boss right when he insists "There is no place for you but in the Zero Force"? Mikiyo Ohno milks Zero Woman's solitude for tortured loneliness and turns her violent destiny into something approaching pulp tragedy: "I have yet another memory that can't be erased," she laments after yet another fatal showdown. The high-concept hits (she miraculously pulls a gun from her clinging bathing suit to ace a businessman in a swimming pool) and sexual interludes (the nerdy boyfriend scores big-time booty!) are shuffled through a barrage of flashbacks and a subplot about a scarred masseuse whose secret weapon is poison body oil. Sort of takes the fun out of foreplay, doesn't it? Like most of the films in the series, the shot-on-video production manages to turn a low budget into an austere style, but the busy script often gets in the way of the visceral thrills and bogs the story down in unnecessary detail. She shoots people and she likes to get naked: what's there to explain? --Sean Axmaker
Section 0 is the most covert operation in the Japanese police department. Meet Special Agent Rei, code named Zero. She's beautiful, strong, seductive, and deadly. Rei is on assignment to retrieve millions of dollars in stolen stock certificates from the mob. However, a gang attempting to steal money from a mob courier sends her mission way off course!
Virtual Desire
by Jim Wynorski
from Image Entertainment
Technology and murder collide in this highly charged suspense thriller torn from today's headlines. Stuck in a go-nowhere marriage, Brad Collins begins having illicit affairs via the Internet. Each new, steamy liaison brings him closer and closer to danger as a killer stalks the Internet and has made Collins a target.
Zero Woman: The Hunted
by Norihisa Yoshimura
from Asian Pulp Cinema
Rei was the Zero Department's deadliest killer, but her skills made her a threat. Now, this sleek and sexy assassin has been marked for death by a rival organization. Once the hunter, she has now become...the hunted.
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