{"id":2216,"date":"2024-08-10T04:05:47","date_gmt":"2024-08-10T04:05:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/?p=2216"},"modified":"2024-10-14T14:28:34","modified_gmt":"2024-10-14T18:28:34","slug":"red-heat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/2024\/08\/10\/red-heat\/","title":{"rendered":"Red Heat"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Red Heat<\/strong> (1988)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 TriStar\/Action-Comedy\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 RT: 106 minutes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rated R (language, strong violence, nudity, drugs)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Director: Walter Hill\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Screenplay: Walter Hill, Harry Kleiner and Troy Kennedy Martin\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Music: James Horner\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cinematography: Matthew F. Leonetti\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Release date: June 17, 1988 (US)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Belushi, Peter Boyle, Ed O’Ross, Laurence Fishburne, Gina Gershon, Richard Bright, J.W. Smith, Brent Jennings, Gretchen Palmer, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Michael Hagerty, Brion James, Gloria Delaney, Peter Jason, Sven-Ole Thorsen.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Box Office: $34.9M (US)<\/p>\n

Rating<\/strong>: ***<\/p>\n

\u00a0Although it can be argued that Red Heat<\/strong> qualifies as an action-comedy, the emphasis is most definitely on the action is this mismatched partner movie that pairs a loudmouth Chicago cop with a serious-minded cop from Russia. They\u2019re played by James Belushi (The Principal) and Arnold Schwarzenegger (Predator) respectively. Movies like this either work or they don\u2019t. It\u2019s a tricky formula. Fortunately, the guy sitting in the director\u2019s chair is a pro at this type of material. It\u2019s Walter Hill who propelled Eddie Murphy to stardom when he paired him with Nick Nolte in 48 Hrs; undoubtedly, one of the finest action-comedies of the 80s. Red Heat<\/strong> doesn\u2019t quite reach the same level, but it\u2019s still damn good.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Schwarzenegger stars as Captain Ivan Danko of the Moscow Militia who’s looking to take down \u00a0the Georgian drug lord, Viktor Rosta (O’Ross, Lethal Weapon), who killed his partner and fled to the US. He\u2019s arrested on a minor charge in Chicago while making arrangements to buy a large quantity of heroin from a drug gang and ship it to the Soviet Union. Danko, under strict orders from his superiors not to reveal the details of Rosta\u2019s crimes in Russia to the Americans, is sent to bring him home.<\/p>\n

\u00a0He\u2019s met at the airport by Ridzik (Belushi) and it isn\u2019t exactly like at first sight. You know how it goes. Danko takes his job seriously (too seriously); Ridzik doesn\u2019t. Ridzik talks a lot while Danko prefers to remain silent. Ridzik makes snide remarks about Russians; Danko regards him with silent contempt. Friendships have been built on less in movies like this.<\/p>\n

\u00a0During the custody transfer, the gang shows up in disguise and helps Rosta escape, killing Ridzik\u2019s partner (Bright, The Godfather) in the process. Although it goes against police procedure, Ridzik\u2019s boss (Boyle, Young Frankenstein) allows him to work the case with Danko. Just because the two cops don\u2019t like each other doesn\u2019t mean they can\u2019t work together. They both want to find Rosta and make him pay for killing their partners.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Danko is not your typical Schwarzenegger role and I\u2019m not just talking about his questionable Russian accent. The Ah-nuld persona fans are used to seeing gives way to something more realistic. He doesn\u2019t overturn cars or throw people around in this one. He doesn\u2019t get off any of trademark lines (\u201cI\u2019ll be back.\u201d) either. He plays it completely straight as a loyal Soviet reacting to various aspects of life in the West. Therein lies the humor in Red Heat<\/strong>. When Ridzik explains Miranda rights to him, he doesn\u2019t get it. Why question a lying dirtbag when it\u2019s more expedient to beat information out of him? When Ridzik makes a reference to Dirty Harry, Danko has no idea who that is. When Danko accidentally turns on a porn channel in his hotel room, he looks at it for a moment and remarks \u201cCapitalism.\u201d Wearing a suit that should have \u201cUndercover Cop\u201d emblazoned on it in big flashing neon letters, nothing seems to faze him as he hunts for Rosta. If it does, he\u2019s not letting on.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Belushi is also good as the reluctant partner frequently frustrated and flabbergasted by Danko and his serious approach to police work. He\u2019s the kind of cop who takes time out from the investigation to harass his sister\u2019s ex-husband about late alimony payments. If Schwarzenegger is the straight man in this act, Belushi is the comic sidekick. He\u2019s that rare comic actor who can also do drama effectively. Check him out in Thief and Salvador. He\u2019s good when he\u2019s not pissing away his talent on dreck like Once Upon a Crime and Destiny Turns On the Radio.<\/p>\n

\u00a0What\u2019s even better about Red Heat<\/strong> is that the lead actors have real chemistry between them. They talk rather than exchange one-liners. Even so, their conversation crackles with humor over Ridzik\u2019s growing exasperation over Danko\u2019s failure to comprehend American ways. They might not have the magic of Murphy and Nolte, but they work very well together.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Boyle is very good in the thankless role of the ill-tempered chief trying to avoid bypass surgery with all sorts of stress-relieving techniques he knows are BS. It\u2019s the only thing about him that isn\u2019t a clich\u00e9. The rest of the time he does the usual things temperamental COs do like lecture Ridzik on following departmental procedure except when otherwise directed. Laurence Fishburne (Boyz n the Hood) plays an uptight, by-the-book lieutenant who clearly doesn\u2019t like Ridzik. Every renegade cop movie needs a character like that. Gina Gershon (Showgirls) shows up as a dance instructor who might be able to help the guys find Rosta. The beautiful witness, another piece of the puzzle.<\/p>\n

Hill has a gift for directing cool action sequences; he doesn\u2019t disappoint with Red Heat<\/strong>. The best is the climactic chase scene involving the partners, Rosta and two stolen buses. Although bigger isn\u2019t always better, it is in this case. It\u2019s an awesome sequence. Hill doesn\u2019t skimp on the violence either. There are shootings and beatings aplenty.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Obviously, Red Heat<\/strong> is totally dated. It was made while Russia was still a Communist country whose populace lived a separate life behind the Iron Curtain. It now feels like a relic from a time long ago. I could go on about politics then and now, glasnost and current relations between the US and Russia, but to what end? I\u2019m writing a movie review NOT an editorial. All political matters aside, Red Heat<\/strong> is an effective action movie with a fair dose of humor. It\u2019s routine and predictable, but it\u2019s also fun. Isn\u2019t that the only thing that matters in the end?\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Red Heat (1988)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 TriStar\/Action-Comedy\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 RT: 106 minutes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rated R (language, strong violence, nudity, drugs)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Director: Walter Hill\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Screenplay: Walter Hill, Harry Kleiner and Troy Kennedy Martin\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Music: James Horner\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cinematography: Matthew F. Leonetti\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Release date: June 17, 1988 (US)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, James Belushi, Peter Boyle, Ed O’Ross, Laurence Fishburne, Gina Gershon, Richard Bright, J.W. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2216","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kick-ass-actioners"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/Red-Heat-PIC.jpg?fit=620%2C348&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2216","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2216"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2216\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3131,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2216\/revisions\/3131"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3130"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2216"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2216"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2216"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}