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List Price: $14.99 | | Label: Image Entertainment
Salesrank: 100591
Released: June 17, 1998 |
| Our Price: $2.84 |
| Used Price: $2.27 |
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MPAA Rating: R (Restricted)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
When a soft-spoken detective saves the life of a local gangster, he receives an unusual thank-you present: a week with a beautiful young bartender. They fall in love, however and a murderous showdown looms!
Description of Mad Dog and Glory:
Now here's a switcheroo: In a movie about a mild-mannered police photographer who is befriended by a swaggering gangster, Bill Murray plays the gangster and Robert De Niro plays the photographer. Directed by John McNaughton from a script by Richard Price, this comedy-drama has its moments but never quite lifts off. De Niro plays a shy type nicknamed Mad Dog who accidentally saves Murray's life. In gratitude, Murray "gives" him a girl, Glory (Uma Thurman), who is supposed to satisfy his needs and make him feel good. Instead, the photographer falls in love with her. When the gangster wants her back, the photographer says no, triggering an unlikely showdown. Murray is scarily funny as a mobster who wants to be a standup comic, but De Niro plays this nonentity as, well, a nonentity. Thurman is luminous; who wouldn't want to fight over her? --Marshall Fine
Mad Dog and Glory Reviews:
Yukk! 
2006-10-15 - I could not believe that a talent of the caliber of Robert De Niro could make a bad movie, but he's proved it can be done with this one. This thing is so bad it even makes Bill Murray look good, and that takes something on the order of a miracle.
I am still a big De Niro film, but I am giving this one a pass over.
De Niro Yes, Mad Dog No.
no title 
2006-02-15 - Written by the same guy who wrote "Sea of Love", with Al Pacino, this somewhat remeinded me of that movie, even before I knew the connection. Stranger, but good. Bill Murray is a marvel; you can't take your eyes off him, and that is saying something in a movie that also has Robert DeNiro, who plays a real mouse. Murray is indeed the "Expediter of his dreams".
Unique, funny and refreshingly low-key.
2005-11-03 - The opening scene of director John McNaughton's 1993 low-key-comedy Mad Dog and Glory is quite deceiving. We witness some kind of a drug deal happening in a car, followed by one of the guys getting a bullet in the head spraying his brains all over the passenger side window.
I immediately double-checked the DVD box to make sure this was listed as a comedy. But I stuck with the movie and that opening scene really doesn't have much to do with the overall plot and instead serves as an introduction to the main character, a police photographer named Wayne "Mad Dog" Dobie (played in brilliantly understated fashion by Robert DeNiro).
The movie is quite funny at times, and is very low key and relaxed in its pacing. The film doesn't boast what I would call a ton of laugh-out loud moments, but it has a gentle and relaxed sense of humor that is natural and quite refreshing in this day and age of in-your-face gross out comedies.
The film involves Wayne (or Mad Dog as he's called by his friends/co-workers), who is a police photographer who really would like to be a true artist someday instead of a policeman. While in a seedy convenience store one night, he ends up saving mob boss Frank Milo's (Bill Murray) life when a thug holds up the store and almost shoots Frank.
Frank says that he will show his appreciation for what Mad Dog did for him, and ends up inviting him to Frank's club that he runs as sort of a cover for his mob organization. While in the club, Mad Dog meets the beautiful waitress Glory (a radiant Uma Thurman), who accidentally spills scalding hot coffee on Mad Dog's hand. Disgusted by her clumsiness, Frank scolds her in front of Mad Dog and says that he'll make it up to him in the near future. His way of doing that is by sending Glory to stay with Mad Dog for a week as sort of a present (since Mad Dog is a pretty lonely guy). Glory is a naive woman who has ended up being in some sort of debt to Frank, as he sort of "owns" her. She immediately makes it known to Mad Dog that she's not a prostitute, but instead wants to just be good company for him. Mad Dog ends up falling madly in love with her, as she does with him, and when the week is up he refuses to let Glory go back to Frank. Things get interesting when Frank comes looking to get her back in a most laid back and hilarious fashion. (Bill Murray is brilliant.)
What I found most interesting about this movie is that it's a unique mixture of styles. While there are some elements of a love story, the romantic aspect isn't played up nearly as much as it could have been. The movie also has some surprising outbursts of violence that strike a perfect balance between being intense and extremely funny. One interesting thing, is that other than Frank's club, we don't see him in action that much, but instead we hear about stuff that he's doing and/or done in the past. The story about why Glory is in debt to him is actually quite chilling. The movie has a quirky feel to it that was refreshing and genuinely entertaining. I was constantly not sure about what was going to happen next. There is one fairly strong sex scene between Uma and DeNiro, but it fits in with the story and actually has a point in the overall proceedings.
I particularly liked the scenes in which Mad Dog is trying to keep secret from his co-workers the fact that he's accidentally befriended a mob boss and was given Glory as a "present" from Frank.
The whole cast does superb work. Robert DeNiro and Bill Murray play their characters in hilarious understated fashion. Uma Thurman manages to come across as naive, sexy and extremely sweet and really gives the character of Glory a lot of depth and substance. People who seem to always unjustly write Uma off as not being able to act would do well to check out her nuanced performance in this film. One of the funniest characters in the movie though is David Caruso (ex. NYPD Blue) as Mad Dog's best friend and overzealous co-worker. His fist fight with one of Frank's goons in Mad Dog's apartment near the end of the movie is one of the comic highlights of the film.
The film has a very laid back feel to it. Nothing is rushed and scenes are given as much time as they need to expand. There were a few instances near the beginning where I thought that the film felt just a tiny bit lethargic, but it wasn't nothing that greatly diminished my enjoyment of the movie.
Director John McNaughton brings a light, but gritty touch to the proceedings and manages to make a couple of shifts in tone smooth and not jarring. Compare this movie to some of his other films like underrated Wild Things and the infamous Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and it's really quite striking how he managed to bring a proper light touch to the script. He really shows how deep his directorial talents can go.
This is one of those little, unheard-of films that entered and exited theaters without hardly a sound back in 1993. It's truly an underrated gem that is worth checking out especially to see the wonderful ensemble acting by the entire cast. If it's a really quick, snappy in-your-face comedy that you're wanting to see, Mad Dog and Glory will disappoint. But if you're wanting to check out a realistic, refreshingly low-key and original comedy that will keep a steady smile on your face throughout (after you get through the violent beginning), than I highly recommend this film.
Mad Dog and Glory is rated R and contains sexual content, nudity, violence and strong language.
Mad Dog and Glory 
2005-10-11 - If this movie did not have Robert DeNiro and Bill Murray in it, you probably wouldn't finish watching it. It's hard to understand how someone would have read the script or seen the rough cut and said "people are going to come see this." The plot is standard-issue "man falls in love with hooker with heart of gold and has to save her from the mafia" stuff. DeNiro's character is not really likeable and Murray's is overplayed a little, though still fun to watch. If you don't love either of these two actors, skip it.
Mad Dog and Glory
2004-10-17 - Dont let the catchy title and blockbuster cast of robert deniro, uma thurman, and bill murray fool you, this is a bad movie from 1993. yes despite this talent of stars, the movie is a big let down for fans of deniro's and thurmans. however bill murray gives perhaps one of his comedic/dramatic performances ever. in fact not surprising as far deniro goes though, his performance is bloody awful. some people say an actor acts "effortlessly" when he gives a good performance, however in deniro's case that seems to be opposite as their is hardly any acting all. however, this stems from the fact that most of the characters in mad dog and glory are utterly weak and pathetic, with the exception of murray.
In fact i still found the movie hard to watch despite murray's performance. the plot of the movie is that bumbling cop (deniro) name mad dog doobie stumbles onto a robbery in progress. he sees a man holding up a liquor store with a tall man (murray) as the hostage. murray's character is a riot, telling mad dog to blow away the sucker like dirty harry.
Mad dog doesn't and the assailant escapes, though i believe he is captured later on though that isn't relevant here.
Murray's character as we learn is a top and tough mafia boss named frank milo. milo is quite a character almost larger than life, he demands respect and if you cross him your dead.
milo though loves mad dog as he has just saved his life in this holdup. milo knowing that mad dog is a cop (although not a good one) offers his services as a mafia boss to mad dog.
Dobie refuses using one of the few morals he has, however milo comes up with another proposition, he wants to be dobie's "friend". lol in fact he wont take no for an answer.
dobie accepts for the mean time, not seeing any harm in that.
Milo eventually introduces the lame brain cop to his new girl "Glory" (Uma Thurman) an attractive woman who we learn is Milo's main squeeze, however better put, she is a prostitute, she is one of many objects that Milo owns".
When Dobie sees Glory and Milo offers "Glory's" services (i.e sex). Dobie refuses. It seems this cop actually lives up to his mom of being clean unlike other corrupt cops or is he?
(Some possible spoilers)
Well not exactly, despite Dobie's claim that he is a good cop and he is sworn to upload the law, he breaks his own rules and laws and decides to "borrow" Glory. When he is through with the companionship, he agrees to give her up.
Trouble is he doesn't. When Milo comes looking for Glory an altercation erupts that basically sets up the conflict and what happens in the rest of the movie. Milo wants Glory back at any price. He is willing do anything including messing up Dobie's life to do it.
I actually made that sound more interesting that it really is. "Mad Dog and Glory" is essentially a part black comedy and part dramatic film. Problem is I wasn't really in the areas I should of probably because of the set of repugnant characters on screen no matter how dysfunctional and stupid they are.
A cop who despite his own morals decides to break them when it suits em, doesnt obviously appeal to me or audience. Glorys character despite being the "victim" of sorts doesn't always come out. In a couple of scenarios her reactions dont have the reactions that a victim would have.
However as far as performances go I definitely think Uma Thurman did a much better job and any good critic could see that as her character is much more complex that Deniro's.
A woman whose caught in the middle of the bad situation and whose life depends on what she'll do next is pretty interesting. However the Glory character despite isn't as well developed as that. She gives in too easily to intimidation and greed instead of firmly making a decision one way or other.
Now the Milo character (Bill Murray) is great, in fact this character is hilarious as hell, despite his presence of being a Mafia boss, who can kill anyone at will and get away with it, hes extremely funny and clever. During one point, he fools the donut eating precint where Dobie works into thinking that he is a "baker" and that he is an old friend of Dobie's. LOL During other instances, he sends it goons to do his dirty work against Mad Dog in such a vile pathetic way that it's almost a joke. Murray is great as this character, for his performance the movie is worth watching.
However again, "Mad Dog and Glory:" is still a heavily flawed film, you kinda what your gonna get in the film and Deniro's utterly, weak, spineless and hypocritical character almost leave you feeling dry and bitter by the end of the film. Hell you want this character to die by the end of the film. It's awful, one of a long string of weak characters that Deniro would play in the 1990's up until "Analyze This".
The movie was directed by John McNaugton if you never of him that's because he's not that good. Hes made a dozen or so films however only really two stand out in my mind "Wild Things" (1998) and "Henry Portrait of A Serial Killer" (1986) with Michael Rooker which is by far the scariest and best movie about serial killers in general (forget about that trash called "Monster" with Charlize Theron) this movie is the real thing.
Uma Thurman of course is hot , she's sizzling ever since she and Quentin Tarantino, did "Kill Bill" everyone seems to be hopping on the Uma Thurman bandwagon, yet a couple of years they were writing her of after she a couple of flops like "The Avengers". Hilarious
