"The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" was supposed to be raunchy stand-up comic Andrew Dice Clay's launch pad into movie stardom, but unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your feelings about "Dice") by the time it was released his fifteen minutes of fame was about up, and the film crashed and burned. I will admit that I have never been a big "Dice-Man" fan, I've only ever been able to tolerate his stand-up routines in small doses, but oddly enough, I have always enjoyed this movie. It's big, loud, dumb, profane, and morally reprehensible -- so hey, what's not to like? Clay basically plays himself as the foul mouthed title character (leather jacket, cowboy boots, cigarettes and all), a Los Angeles based private detective who specializes in cases involving the music industry. As the movie opens a rock star by the name of "Johnny Black" (played by Vince Neil of Motley Crue) mysteriously dies onstage. In what he thinks is an unrelated case, Fairlane is hired by a local shock rock DJ (played by Gilbert Gottfried, channeling Howard Stern here) to locate a missing groupie named "Zuzu Petals," who as it turns out, knows more about the death of the rock singer than even she realizes. With his bubble-brained charge in tow, Fairlane spends the rest of the movie avoiding gunshots, explosions and a maniacal Australian hit man (played by Robert "Freddy Krueger" Englund of all people, with a horrible Aussie accent) before he stumbles upon a conspiracy that goes all the way to the top of the music industry. "The Adventures of Ford Fairlane" may not be a great movie, but it is a fun one. Some of Dice's one-liners are endlessly quotable ("Talking to Zuzu was like masturbating with a cheese grater - mildly entertaining but mostly painful." "So many a-holes, so few bullets!" "You're about ten seconds away from the most embarrassing moment of your life!"), and director Renny Harlin keeps the pace light and moving fast enough that you don't' have time to stop and think how ridiculous the whole thing is. Dice may not be much of an actor, but he gets fine support from Wayne Newton (!), Priscilla Presley, Lauren Holly, Ed O'Neill Jr., and a host of other background characters.
"Ford Fairlane" could become a cult classic if only enough people give it a chance. Even if you're not a fan of the "Dice-Man," this flick is a fast, funny way to kill 90 minutes. Do it for the Koala Bear.
"Ford Fairlane" could become a cult classic if only enough people give it a chance. Even if you're not a fan of the "Dice-Man," this flick is a fast, funny way to kill 90 minutes. Do it for the Koala Bear.