Against the Law (1997)

Undescribable Perfection

Thanks for the memories!

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

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

A young man claims to be the fastest gun out there and he's headed to California in hopes of becoming famous. A city cop gets labeled a hero after gunning down a notorious drug dealer and he doesn't want the fame he's getting. A news reporter is caught in the middle and the gun slinger asks her to set up a standoff at high noon with the infamous cop.Very silly story. Poor Jim Wynorsky has made some bad films, but I think this is the worst non skin-flick type of his I have seen. Richard Grieco reminded me of a poor mans Michael Madsen. Billy Gallo did good on here, always liked him. Nancy Allen played the reporter here and did okay and Jamie Pressly did good in a small part, but Nick Mancuso was really truly amazing and the only reason to watch this movie.I wouldn't advise anyone to watch it. Its a pretty horrible movie. Lots of bad acting, stupid dialog by most and the worst case of blank bullets I have ever seen. It's very slow and painful to set through.One message I liked was that this cop killed a man and didn't want to be treated like a hero for it, cause taking another mans life doesn't make you a great person.2/10 stars

Don't even ask me why I watched this! The only excuse I can come up with that I was sick with Bronchitis and too weak to change the channel. :) It's too terrible for words, the movie that is, not the Bronchitis. The acting is deplorable, Richard Grieco hams it up as a trigger-happy, gun-slinging serial killer with a penchant for knocking off cops. Nick Mancuso phones in a performance as the cop on his trail and Nancy Allen manages to put in the only sympathetic role in the entire film. The script is dismal, peppered with clichéd lines, "Are you ready, Pardner?" purrs Richard Grieco to every single one of his victims. Dire. Avoid.

While surfing, I got hooked about mid-way thru the opening credits. Low-budget, yes -- but full of neat twists. Nick Mancuso is wonderful as a burnt-out cop, smoking, drinking, snarling at authority. Richard Geico looks like a beefy Mickey Rourke, spiky hair and all, and makes a good heavy. Both keep their characters and the story spinning.... One of the best things: no stopping action for sex (just watch Mancuso turn down a former lover).

An unusually straight-faced actioner played by a cast and filmed by a director who obviously took the material seriously. Imperfect, as is to be expected from a film clearly shot on a tight budget, but the drama is involving-- it's one of those films that when it gets repeated ad nauseum on Cinemax 2 or More Max or whatever they call it, you end up watching 40 minute blocks when you're supposed to be going to work. Along W/ "Deathstalker 2", "Chopping Mall", and "The Assault", a reminder that Wynorski is a much more talented director than many of his fellow low-budget brethern, who has a real ability to pace a genre film, when he actually's interested in the material (i.e., don't bother watching any of his Shannon Tweed flicks with a 3 or a 4 after the title!) Actors who've had too little to do recently (Mancuso, Ford, even Gary Sandy for chrissakes) really put their all into some of their best roles in years -- as for Grieco, he has the right look, although his acting is a bit one-note -- it's clear his character is supposed to be self-destructing throughout the film, but Grieco doesn't quite convey it. I checked IMDB and I see the writer also wrote "Sorority House Massacre 2" & "Dinosaur Island" for the director -- both minor classics in their own rights, but obviously "silly" Roger Cormon-like Cinema -- this one's more like some of the better Jonathan Demme and Jonathan Kaplan B-pictures of the 70's -- giving you the exploitation element but offering involving drama at the same time -- a real step forward. Not "Citizen Kane," and the comic final moments are a bit disruptive, but a well-written, character-driven above-average straight-to-video actioner. Small achievements like this should not be overlooked when they come along, which is rare enough (as I was reminded as I tried to sit through an Albert Pyun monstrosity called "Heatseeker" the other night -- this low-budget stuff isn't as easy as it looks -- but that's another story!)