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List Price: $9.99 | | Label: Walt Disney Video
Salesrank: 16387
Released: June 29, 1999 |
| Our Price: $6.37 |
| Used Price: $6.35 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
Sexy Andy Garcia (WHEN A MAN LOVES A WOMAN) heads an outstanding all-star cast in this riveting and highly original thriller! When a powerful mob boss (Christopher Walken -- PULP FICTION) gives ex-gangster Jimmy the Saint (Garcia) one last job, it's an offer he can't refuse! But when someone gets killed, Jimmy and his partners are marked for death, leaving Jimmy just 48 hours to put things right for his buddies and the woman of his dreams (beautiful Gabrielle Anwar -- SCENT OF A WOMAN)! Acclaimed by critics nationwide, THINGS TO DO IN DENVER WHEN YOU'RE DEAD delivers sensational edge-of-your-seat entertainment!
Description of Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead:
After a foolproof scam turns sour, Jimmy the Saint (a soulful but miscast Andy Garcia, who mainly acts with his hair) and his hard-bitten crew must put their various sordid affairs in order before facing their final bloody curtain call. It's not nearly as clever as it thinks it is, but this terminally wise-ass (and extremely violent) caper flick is still one of the better post-Tarantino crime opuses, with some sharp dialogue, a scenery-chewing Christopher Walken (as a paraplegic archcriminal), and unhinged performances by Treat Williams and the obsequious Steve Buscemi that must be seen to be (dis)believed. Neophyte scripter Scott Rosenberg would later pen hipper-than-thou scripts for Beautiful Girls, Con Air, and Armageddon, while director Gary Fleder moved on to the somewhat more reputable Kiss the Girls. The tongue-twisting title is from a Warren Zevon song. --Andrew Wright
Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead Reviews:
Without over-analyzing... 
2008-03-02 - So it's a Tarantino knock-off. So it's too self-aware and big for its britches. For crysakes, just sit down, pop it in the DVD player and suspend your disbelief for 90 minutes or so. This movie is just plain fun to watch. It's on the very short list of movies I actually want to own.
Don't ask for the "buckwheat" pancakes...
2007-06-16 - See the movie, and you'll understand the reference. An often overlooked movie that has a lot of special acting roles. A MUST see for any one who likes crime/gang/ action/drama/love movies. Wonderful work by A Garcia, and Chris Walken is memorably evil as the "Man with the Plan". All around great flick - you'll be quoting lines from this one for a while, and Gabrielle Anwar - wow! "Boat Drinks" for all!
Love it, Love it, Love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 
2007-06-08 - Bought this movie after renting it. Can't say enough good things about it. My favorite actor (Andy Garcia) is in it. Highly recommend this movie to all the true Andy Garcia fans out there! Interesting language and twists during the entire movie. I watch it over and over again. Never get tired of it. Once you've seen it, you'll want to own it.
Below the Radar
2007-03-08 - Many people have never seen or heard of this movie, but it's great with a killer cast.
Give it a name...why doncha?
2006-10-02 - In spite of some flashy, occasionally overused language (e.g., "give it a name" meaning tell it like it is), this is a better than average crime film that manages to simultaneously make some fun of crime films. For example, the "mob boss" is called, I kid you not, The Man with the Plan. One character's monicker is, another real thing not made up (i.e., I myself am not making this up), Critical Bill. And like that.
So what we got here is a somewhat formulaic plot. OK, more than somewhat. The crime, the, you know, doesn't go as planned kinda thing, the repercussions, etc. But you also have something very unexpected and that is a romance that's not stupid or schlocky, but that actually makes you feel something. The main character, played by Andy Garcia--Jimmy the Saint--falls hard for the lead female (Gabrielle Anwar, she of "Scent of a Woman" fame) and the ensuing romance is truly heartfelt. Hmmmm.. a different spin on a crime film. Yes it is.
Even though the characters are kinda stock ones, it's still fun to watch them go through their paces 'cause they're good at it--Christopher Lloyd, Treat Williams (anybody ever figure out how he got that first name?), Christopher Walken, Jack Warden, William Forsythe, and to top it off, the great Steve Buscemi as contract killer (get this) "Mr. Shush". (Now that's what I call giving it a name).
So the quirkiness, the pure romance, and the acting chops all save this from being another completely humdrum entry in the post-Tarantino crime film glut. Much better than you might think...
