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List Price: $14.98 | | Label: Lions Gate
Salesrank: 34680
Released: March 3, 2009 |
| Our Price: $5.99 |
| Used Price: $3.49 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Studio: Lions Gate Home Ent. Release Date: 03/03/2009 Run time: 96 minutes Rating: R
Johnny Handsome Reviews:
Good 80s Film-Noir 
2009-11-03 - Based on The Three Worlds of Johnny Handsome by John Godey, this 1989 film stars 2008's comeback kid Mickey Rourke as a disfigured crook given a chance get revenge on the people who killed his friend.
Rourke plays John Sedley, who looks not unlike Rocky Dennis from Mask and Rourke's Sin City character Marv. Disfigured and with a speech impediment, Johnny helps his friend Mikey (Scott Wilson) with a heist. Soon, Mikey is dead and Johnny's in jail, while killers Rafe (Lance Henriksen) and Sunny (Ellen Barkin) get away with the money. Sentenced to 5 years in prison, Johnny is offered a new face and a new identity by Dr. Steven Resher (Oscar-winner Forest Whitaker). When his surgery is complete, Johnny gets a job at a shipyard and begins planning a new heist...And his revenge.
Morgan Freeman co-stars as Lieutenant Drones, a hardboiled cop waiting for Johnny to slip up.
This is a fine piece of 80s film-noir with a terrific performance courtesy of the films leading man. Rourke hits all the right notes with this character; tough, angry, troubled. He even brings some pathos to his role and plays the part with a speech impediment that never seems forced. One particular scene featuring a fine piece of acting is when Johnny tells Dr. Resher his "Halloween" story. The acting bit was surprisingly affecting.
Whitaker is also very good in his small role and Barkin plays the skanky, double-crossing Sunny very well. Freeman, so good at playing the nice guy, steps out of type to play the untrusting Lt. Drones. Freeman gives his character a pulp feel (note: may have more to do with the writing) that compliments the rest of the film nicely. Henriksen's Rafe is a Billy Idol-lookalike and really isn't anything new as far as 80s tough-guy villains go.
The biggest problem with Johnny Handsome has is the 80s feel; its sort of cheap, shoddy look. It's not a timeless movie, but the 80s look DOES give it a more noir-ish feel. Johnny Handsome is film noir, make no mistake about it. Director of photography, Matthew F. Leonetti likes smoky nightclubs and motel rooms and the score alternates between jazzy and noir-esque to (unfortunately) synthesized and 80s. It doesn't hold up next to an 80s-noir like Body Heat, but it's certainly better than recent retro-noir like The Black Dahlia.
It's worth noting to keep people from being mislead; this is not an action-packed film rather, it's a film that concentrates more on characters, dialogue, and plot. Some may find it dull in spots and I certainly did. It's a slow build-up, but one that passes the time.
GRADE: B
Great Movie; Lousy DVD
2009-02-20 - Ahh, here we go, capitalizing on Mickey Rourke's "comeback" via "The Wrestler," with the first of (probably) several old Rourke films. I loved this film when I saw it in theaters, bought a copy of the Laser Disc (which is in the correct widescreen ratio), and was looking forward to upgrading to DVD when this title was released several years ago by, I think, Artisan. Finding out it was full screen, I passed. I was hoping for a DVD upgrade to widescreen, but to no avail.
Anyway, directed by Walter Hill with his usual action-packed style, and acted superbly by Rourke, Lance Henrikson and Ellen Barker, this is a great movie that demands to be seen in its widescreen glory. Come on, guys, let's get it right this time around!
How much are we seeing?
2009-01-31 - I always thought that this film, and Angel Heart, were Mickey Rourke's masterpieces. And he had to rise above a formidable cast in this one: M. Freeman, F. Whitaker, E. McGovern, and, especially, E. Barkin/L. Hendriksen as a team of sleazy New Orleans low-life (and Lance really outdoes himself here). It's about a horribly disfigured thief who gets a surgically reconstructed face, and a relentless detective (Freeman) who refuses to believe that it changes his nature. It's a great film, and it's also hard to believe that a movie made in 1989 would be full screen. I've come to distrust Lion's Gate over the years, so I will pass on this (although I desperately want it!) in hopes that we get an explanation for the aspect ratio.
