Q & A (1990)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Sidney Lumet

Writers (WGA):

Edwin Torres (book)
Sidney Lumet (screenplay)

Release Date:

27 April 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

When the questions are dangerous, the answers can be deadly.

Plot:

A young district attorney seeking to prove a case against a corrupt police detective encounters a former lover and her new protector...

Plot Keywords:

Racial Slur | Gay Slur | Vulgarity | Neo Noir | Racism

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

Nick Nolte	...	Captain Michael Brennan
Timothy Hutton	...	Asst. Dist. Atty. Aloysius 'Al' Francis Reilly
Armand Assante	...	Roberto 'Bobby Tex' Texador
Patrick O'Neal	...	Kevin Quinn (Chief of Homicide)
Lee Richardson	...	Leo Bloomenfeld
Luis Guzmán	...	Det. Luis Valentin (as Luis Guzman)
Charles S. Dutton	...	Det. Sam 'Chappie' Chapman (Homicide) (as Charles Dutton)
Jenny Lumet	...	Nancy Bosch / Mrs. Bobby Texador
Paul Calderon	...	Roger Montalvo
International Chrysis	...	José Malpica
Dominic Chianese	...	Larry Pesch / Vito / Lorenzo Franconi (as Dominick Chianese)
Leonardo Cimino	...	Nick Petrone (mob boss)
Fyvush Finkel	...	Preston Pearlstein
Gustavo Brens	...	Alfonse Segal
Martin E. Brens	...	Armand Segal

Runtime:

132 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:18 | Brazil:16 | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | West Germany:16

Filming Locations:

New York, USA

Company:

Odyssey Distributors

Trivia:

In the gay club dressing room where Bobby Texador, his wife and bodyguards are meeting Roger Montalvo, "I Love Paul C." is written and circled on the message board directly behind Montalvo, played by 'Paul Calderon'.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Chief Quinn asks ADA Reilly why he did not attend St. John's Law School. Hutton says his father didn't like the Jesuits. St. John's University is not a Jesuit institution. It is conducted by the Vincentians.

Quotes:

Preston Pearlstein: [getting introduced with Bloomenfeld's friend] How do you do? I'm delighted!
Leo Bloomenfeld: That's it Perlstein! Don't spoil my appetite, we haven't eaten yet.
Preston Pearlstein: [laughing] what a character!
[laughing again, louder]
Leo Bloomenfeld: Look at that son of a bitch.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Finding Forrester (2000)

Soundtrack:

Don't Double-Cross the Ones You Love

Got a few "questions" of my own...

Messily written film about an internal investigation of a murder by a star police officer. The film takes it's point-of-view from the investigator, and creates it's drama by following him deeper into the case.

The poor screenplay and over-complication lets this film down. Nick Nolte's character is pretty much the only thing that will you keep you interested, as unlikable as he is.

The side-line love story adds nothing to the film, apart from adding to any impatience you may be experiencing about the conclusion of what should be a very simple story.

Armand Assante is very good in this also, and you can't help but wonder why they didn't exploit his talents a little more, and the lead character's a little less.