Dead Broke (1998)

A detective investigates a murder that has taken place outside a debt collection agency in Brooklyn. A motley assortment of suspects includes the employees of the agency.

Director:

Edward Vilga

Writer:

Edward Vilga

Stars:

Jayne Deely, Kevin Dewey, John Glover

Cast

Credited cast:
Jayne Deely	...	Emily
Kevin Dewey	...	Steve
John Glover	...	Sam
Jill Hennessy	...	Kate
Arthur M. Jolly	...	Police Diver
Isabel Keating	...	Forensics Specialist
Christopher Lawford	...	Joshua
Danny Mastrogiorgio	...	Veduccio (as Daniel Mastrogiorgio)
Reginald Mervilus	...	Police Officer
Adam Seth Nelson
Tony Roberts	...	Walter
Cheryl Rogers	...	Luanne
Patricia Scanlon	...	Frankie
Paul Sorvino	...	Harvey
Leslie Lewis Sword	...	EMT Technician (as Leslie Lewis)

Storyline

A detective investigates a murder that has taken place outside a debt collection agency in Brooklyn. A motley assortment of suspects includes the employees of the agency.

---

Plot Keywords:

independent film

---

Genres:

Crime | Drama

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language, some violence and brief sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

February 1998 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ypoptoi martyres

Filming Locations:

Greenpoint, Brooklyn, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$800,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"No One's Listening Anyway-End Credit for Dead Broke"
Performed by 'Terry Radigon'

User Reviews

excellent acting redeems weak film-noir plot

If you can enjoy a prolonged visit with low-life employees of a seedy collection agency, then you are likely to enjoy this film. The performances are all good, and some are truly memorable. Paul Sorvino says "youze" a lot and is completely believable as the gangsterish owner of the "Polite Persistence" collection agency. John Glover's not-quite-handsome and unshaven police detective is just grungy enough to fit right in with the "losers" he must interrogate. Kevin Dewey's performance as "Steve" reminds one of Jim Carrey at his most manic. And, above all, Patricia Scanlon as the "Doberman of Debt," Frankie, pretty much steals the movie with her vicious performance as every debtor's worst nightmare. Her telephone diatribes against her poor "customers" are truly hilarious. She even gets a topless outdoor sex scene, which is more likely to inspire fear rather than to titillate. This is awesome acting.

The main weakness of the movie is the plot. At one point Sam the detective remarks something like "We have eight motives here." Actually, we don't have any motives--because the police do not have a corpse and we do not know who the victim is. If we do not have a victim, we cannot formulate a plausible motive, nor can we surmise why the police would waste so much time delving into the private lives of the agency employees.

But in spite of the obvious plot weaknesses, this film has a real sense of style, and the characters are really fun to watch. I will be spinning this DVD repeatedly for the genuine pleasure of watching Patricia Scanlon's rabid performance.