Crimewave (1986)

That was an excellent one.

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

A smash-and-grab cut-rate showpiece from green-yet-enthusiastic director and co-writer Sam Raimi and his writing partners, brothers Joel and Ethan Coen. Loosely-hinged tale concerns an inmate at Hudsucker Penitentiary who swears he is innocent of murder, telling his fateful story while strapped to the electric chair. Raimi and cinematographer Robert Primes treat the camera like a brand new toy, seeing its possibilities as endless. Their visual satirizing of cheap noirs and late-night thrillers is initially quite impressive; however, without a bigger budget and a sharper sense of narrative, the film simply can't sustain itself. "Crimewave" is full of whiz-bang effects, but the slapstick motifs and vignettes hold no weight--it's just a doodle. Paul L. Smith (who does a funny slow burn) and Louise Lasser have a wonderfully silly extended chase sequence, and there's a funny pay-off after the end-credits. *1/2 from ****

When people talk about movies "so bad they're good," they're not talking about movies like CRIMEWAVE. "Bad but good" would imply that there was something Good somewhere in the movie. Without reservation, I hereby proclaim CRIMEWAVE the succesor to Ed Wood's much-maligned (but suddenly not as bad as I'd originally thought) PLAN 9 FROM OUTER SPACE. Working with a lot less, Wood went down swinging; Raimi manages to just go down. Way down. Those cinescribes the Coen Bros. are culpable, as well. (It's a toss-up as to who deserves the lion's share of the blame for this one: the Coens are as inconsistent as Raimi himself.) I was hoping that my memories of this one had somehow become distorted over the years and that it wasn't as bad as I'd remembered; unfortunately, that's not the case: I remembered this one for the turkey it truly is. Raimi has done some great movies over the years, and he'll no doubt do many more, but CRIMEWAVE (no matter how you cut it) will never be one of them. It stinks- on ice.

This is a fabulously unique film and I guarantee you have never seen anything like it. It's virtually a live action cartoon which proceeds at breakneck speed and is hilarious to watch. It's one of the most 'cinematic' films you will ever see and every scene uses colour, imaginative camera work and scenic design to optimum effect. The only downsides are the casting of Reed Birney in the lead when the part really calls for someone with more charisma. The sense of period becomes very fuzzy and the music score is a little too overpowering and becomes quite wearing after a while. But don't let anything put you off seeing this film if you get the chance because there is so much to enjoy. You will gasp at the sheer inventiveness of it all and Bruce Campbell fans will lap up his appearance here which he plays to absolute perfection.

It is so strange how some films never seem to catch the attention of either the public or the critics. Most would rightly assume the reason being the lack of quality of the film in question, which is indeed often the case. But not so with 'Crimewave', at least not as far as I am concerned.This film is so far out that most people never ever venture there and never will. There is scarcely anything normal about this film: even other Coen products pale into normality compared to it. And this is precisely the film's attractiveness. The situations, characters, dialogues and overall cinematographic language is absolutely unique. I cannot compare Crimewave with any other film out there, and I've seen thousands. Cartoonesque, surreal, utterly stupid, screamingly funny because not trying to be, the film boasts attributes I have not really encountered anywhere else, at least not in just the one film. Tex Avery cartoons may at times spring to mind, as may some films by French director George Lautner, or Bogdanovich' screamingly funny 'What's Up, Doc?' ... oh, and of course the equally terrific over the top romp 'Raising Arizona'!Acting as well is so totally over the top that even just trying to take it serious, merely results in total incomprehension on the part of the utterly bewildered and bemused viewer. This film is totally about style inasmuch as even its substance is style.The incredibly unreal atmosphere the film exudes is - apart from the aspects already mentioned - also due to the lavish use of alienatingly oversaturated colours: they marvellously complement the overall strangeness of the film.I have seen this film dozens of times and have never had any cinematic blinkers on me and I still get warped and thrilled out of my human, mainly logical mind by everything this jewel of a film can and does throw at me, time and time again.Approach it for yourself without prejudice, constraint or any other preconceived notion of what a film can, must, could or should be and simply enjoy 80 minutes of marvel!