Ragin' Cajun (1991)

User Rating:

1.4/10   

Director:

William Byron Hillman

Writer:

William Byron Hillman (writer)

Genre:

Action | Drama | Music

Tagline:

Southern justice has no rules.

Plot:

After his girlfriend is kidnapped by a vicious mobster, Cage rips into action with a vengeance. Retired...

Plot Keywords:

Mobster | Kickboxing | Agoraphobia | Country Western Music | Gangster

Cast

David Heavener	...	Cage Demanna
Charlene Tilton	...	Ali Webster
Allan Rich	...	Mr. Regetti
Sam Bottoms	...	Legs
Samantha Eggar	...	Dr. May
Hector Elias	...	Pedro
Rick Zumwalt	...	Lou
Harry Landers	...	Lacy
Nick Cinardo	...	Nick
Ally Walker	...	Kati (as Allene Walker)
Jesse Borja	...	Dr. Death
Benny Urquidez	...	Fighter (as Benny 'The Jet' Urquidez)
Rex Allen Jr.	...	Rif Harper
Atanas Ilitch	...	Atanas
Stella Parton	...	Tayna

Also Known As:

Loner (USA) (video title)

Runtime:

91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

USA:Not Rated

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Soundtrack:

I L.U.V.Y.O.U.

Holding Out For Heavener

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

On many of David Heavener's other films, he is also director and writer, in addition to being the star.

In this film, director and writer William Byron Hillman is in charge. In a helpful interview included on the DVD, Heavener states that he ran into Hillman at the AFM (film industry convention) and agreed to pitch a movie with the guy. They came up with a sketchy version of the concept over drinks in about three minutes, and almost immediately sold somebody on making this turkey for $2 million bucks. There's the film industry for you.

Never mind that they had no screenplay, soundtrack or actors (and claimed that they already did). They didn't even have the hilarious title, which is probably the most entertaining thing about this mess. The title came later.

Heavener plays Cajun (yes, that is actually supposed to be his first name), a kickboxer who keeps getting his butt kicked due to debilitating flashbacks to Vietnam (played by stock footage from a much more expensive movie). Let's forget that Heavener was born in 1958, making him too young to have fought in Vietnam. He gives up on the kickboxing, but a guy from "Da Mob" owns his ass and won't stand for this.

Cajun (or just "Cage" to his friends), moves to LA and checks into the VA Hospital, where he gets therapy and is released after a month. He has made friends in the hospital with "Legs", who hasn't left his room in five years due to even more debilitating agoraphobia than what Cage has.

He hooks up with a girlfriend (or was it a former girlfriend? It isn't too clear) who's also a country singer (played by Charlene Tilton, still looking nice). She gets him a job as a dishwasher at the club where she's singing (or maybe he worked there before?). He encourages her singing career, and, as it turns out, Cage is a bit of a musician as well (Heavener writes all the soundtrack songs here, like in some of his other films). How about a duet act?

Is their love doomed? Will Cage's 'Nam flashbacks continue to taunt him? WIll THE MOB finally catch up to him? Will Legs make it down the hall? Can someone be forced to kick box against their will? These and many more questions that nobody wanted the answers to are explored here.

I believe the problem here is that Heavener shines best as an action hero, and this is not an action movie. This is more of a wannabe drama with a few action scenes. Some of the actors even acquit themselves well; notably Samantha Eggar as the psychiatrist, and Sam Bottoms (who was in Apocalypse Now, for added Vietnam resonance), as the cloistered Legs.

Look out for unexpected musical performances from Tommy Roe, Billy Vera, and Stella Parton. That is, if you make it that far through this unenticing junk.

Look, I give Heavener a lot of credit. I don't think you've directed 14 movies, but Heavener has, thank you very much, even if they all did go straight to video. But this is not one of his "best". Check out KILL CRAZY for some insane, non-stop action. Perhaps it was using an outside director that was the problem. Perhaps, truly, only Heavener knows how to let Heavener be Heavener.