Deadfall (1993)

User Rating:

3.8/10   

Director:

Christopher Coppola

Writers:

Christopher Coppola (writer) and
Nick Vallelonga (writer)

Release Date:

8 October 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

...The ultimate con

Plot:

After he accidentally kills his father, Mike, during a sting, Joe tries to carry out Mike's dying wish...

Plot Keywords:

Con Trick | Con Artist | Independent Film

Cast

Michael Biehn	...	Joe Donan
Sarah Trigger	...	Diane
Nicolas Cage	...	Eddie
James Coburn	...	Mike Donan / Lou Donan
Peter Fonda	...	Pete
Charlie Sheen	...	Morgan "Fats" Gripp
Talia Shire	...	Sam
J. Kenneth Campbell	...	Huey
Michael Constantine	...	Frank
Marc Coppola	...	Bob
Micky Dolenz	...	Bart
Brian Donovan	...	Mitch
Renée Estevez	...	Baby's Babe
Ted Fox	...	Zane
Clarence M. Landry	...	Larry (as Clarence Landry)

Runtime:

98 min | Argentina:99 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Argentina:16 | Germany:18 | Australia:MA | South Korea:18 | Spain:18 | UK:18 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Trimark Pictures

Trivia:

Nicolas Cage came onto the set dressed up with a wig, albino contact lenses and dark sunglasses because he thought this would add more authenticity to the character of two-bit hustler, Eddie. Cage was told that he could dress up however he wanted for his part.

Soundtrack:

Coyote Road

Simple, amateurish, yet charming piece of film noir.

I'm a movie fan. I know and love films. I used to work for Suncoast Motion Picture Company in Manhattan and one of the joys was after work, being able to see films that were only released in NYC (or Cali). So one Friday morning, there was an ad in The New York Times for "Deadfall," starring Michael Biehn, Sarah Trigger, Nicholas Cage, James Coburn, Talia Shire, Charlie Sheen...nice cast and directed by Christopher Coppola (of the Coppola family)! It was only playing in one theater in New York's Greenwich Village. Being extremely tired that week, I didn't see it, forgot about it, hence to say it only had a one week run.

About a year and a half later, my cousin calls me up and says "Jay, there's this movie with Nicholas Cage and Michael Biehn. I don't know the name of it, but Cage had me rolling." He saw it on HBO about 3am. I knew the film off hand. Two days later, I ordered the film through my company sat down and watched it myself.

This film is not as bad as people proclaim it to be. This was Chris Coppola's shot at film-noir. It was a low-budget film and the leads of the film really didn't have full acting potential. Michael Biehn is not a class A actor at all, he's good in action roles ("The Terminator", "Aliens", "The Abyss", "The Rock"). That was problem number one, casting an action oriented actor in a leading role that requires a respectable amount of acting. Same for Sarah Trigger, even though she looks great on screen, she really doesn't have the acting chops for this kind of film.

The supporting players however, are great. Nicholas Cage gives an over-the-top yet hysterical, crazy, great performance. In fact this movie would have not been anything without his presence. James Coburn gives a decent performance, however don't expect a performance like his Oscar winning "Affliction" role. Talia Shire, Charlie Sheen and Peter Fonda give us respectable cameos here and in a really nice surprise appearance, the Tall Man himself, Angus Scrimm makes a rare screen appearance as Dr. Lyme.

The story is okay, however it could've been written a bit better. Due to the lack of acting abilities from the leads, the movie loses it's credibility. They could have done so much more here, but they didn't. But it is worth a look, just for Cage's Eddie.

** Stars.