Tango & Cash (1989)

Framed by their ruthless arch-nemesis, a mismatched LAPD crime-fighting duo has to put its differences aside to even the score with the evil kingpin who put them behind bars once and for all.

Directors:

Andrey Konchalovskiy (as Andrei Konchalovsky), Albert Magnoli (uncredited)

Writer:

Randy Feldman

Stars:

Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Teri Hatcher

3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sylvester Stallone	...	Lt. Raymond Tango
Kurt Russell	...	Lt. Gabriel Cash
Teri Hatcher	...	Katherine 'Kiki' Tango
Jack Palance	...	Yves Perret
Brion James	...	Requin
James Hong	...	Quan
Marc Alaimo	...	Lopez
Philip Tan	...	Chinese Gunman (as Phillip Tan)
Michael J. Pollard	...	Owen
Robert Z'Dar	...	Face
Lewis Arquette	...	Wyler
Edward Bunker	...	Capt. Holmes (as Eddie Bunker)
Leslie Morris	...	Hendricks
Roy Brocksmith	...	Fed. Agent Davis
Susan Krebs	...	Prosecutor

Storyline

The polar opposites, Ray Tango, a suave and sophisticated police officer, and Gabe Cash, his overzealous long-haired partner, are a mismatched LAPD crime-fighting duo who work tirelessly to bring down their arch-nemesis, the ruthless drug lord, Yves Perret. However, when Perret manages to incriminate the pesty team with falsified evidence, Ray and Gabe will soon end up in a maximum-security prison, where an almost endless parade of inmates previously incarcerated by them, are waiting for their captors impatiently. Now, more than ever, Tango and Cash need to put their differences aside to come up quickly with a good plan, not only to escape the jail's walls but also to even the score with the evil kingpin who put them behind bars once and for all. Of course, that's easier said than done.

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Plot Keywords:

1980s | 80s action | time bomb | frame up | bound and gagged | 

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Taglines:

Two of L.A.'s top rival cops are going to have to work together... Even if it kills them.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy | Crime | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 December 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Set Up

Filming Locations:

117 N Toluca St, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$63,408,614

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., The Guber-Peters Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min 97 min (heavily cut)

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby Stereo (35 mm prints) (4 channels)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The film's title during production was "The Set Up".

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Goofs

The first newspaper shot of Tango and Cash shows them being arrested with their hands up. There were clearly no flashes or cameras when the cops busted in on them at the set up.

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Quotes

Gabriel Cash: You want my vote for the Psycho Hall of Fame, asshole? You got it!

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Alternate Versions

For its original UK cinema release, the BBFC cut 43 seconds from a pre-cut American version of the film so that it would receive a 15, rather than an 18 certificate. The cuts included the removal of a head-butt, a toning down of the strangling of the Chinese suspect, edits to Cash swinging a baseball bat during the prison fight, Tango hitting the fellow inmate's head against the prison cell bars, shots of both men being dipped into water containing live electricity cables, Cash's outburst in the prison where he refers to Requin as a "Limey Immigrant jerk-off", and Requin's response where he calls Cash a "fucking wanker". The full version was released on VHS, DVD and Blu-ray with an 18 certificate.

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Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Kurt Russell Performances (2016)

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Soundtracks

Best Of What I Got
Performed by Bad English
Courtesy of CBS Records, Music Licensing Department
Produced by Richie Zito
Written by John Waite, Jonathan Cain and Neal Schon

User Reviews

I'd pay Cash to see this Tango

Kurt Russell and Sylvester Stallone are the reason why this run-of-the-mill action flick actually works. There's nothing innovative or special about the film, it's nothing we haven't seen before (maybe just Russell in drag) but the film is entertaining as hell thanks to it's two stars.

Stallone is Tango and Russell is Cash, two cops who get set up and sent to jail. They break out and go after the bad guys to clear their names.

The film has got some excellent action scenes, particularly inside the prison and during the break out. It's got some nice eye candy courtesy of one Teri Hatcher. The script also delivers some very funny lines now and then. Couple that with the fact that I actually do like Stallone do comedy and Russell has always been somewhat of a mini favourite; Tango and Cash is very worthy of my time every once in a while.

Downsides; Excellent actor Jack Palance is horrible in the cliché ridden bad guy role (I can't figure out if he's trying too hard or not at all) and the film has a really silly final 10 minutes where the action goes from cool to basically slapstick. Still, early 90's action fans should enjoy this flick.