Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man (1991)

Forced by the imminent foreclosure of their friend's bar, two lifelong buddies will decide to rob a bank's armoured car, not knowing that its cargo is not money but a new street drug.

Director:

Simon Wincer

Writer:

Don Michael Paul

Stars:

Mickey Rourke, Don Johnson, Chelsea Field

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Mickey Rourke	...	Harley Davidson
Don Johnson	...	Marlboro
Chelsea Field	...	Virginia Slim
Daniel Baldwin	...	Alexander
Giancarlo Esposito	...	Jimmy Jiles
Vanessa Williams	...	Lulu Daniels
Robert Ginty	...	Thom
Tia Carrere	...	Kimiko
Julius Harris	...	Old Man
Eloy Casados	...	Jose
Big John Studd	...	Jack Daniels
Tom Sizemore	...	Chance Wilder
Mitzi Martin	...	The Woman
Kelly Hu	...	Suzie
James Nardini	...	Punk with Gun

Storyline

Two lone riders and childhood friends, the rough and silent Harley Davidson and the ragged sun-baked cowboy Marlboro, assemble once more when they learn that their favourite hangout and the place where they grew up, the notorious Rock 'n' Roll Bar and Grill is facing imminent foreclosure. For this reason, against the preposterous demands for a new contract, the two lifelong buddies in unflinching determination to win back the bar, they will decide to hold up the corrupt bank's armoured car, unbeknownst to them that its cargo is not money but a new lethal and highly experimental street drug: the Crystal Dream. Now the bank wants it back and they are unstoppable. Is everything lost for Harley and Marlboro, the two well-meaning but amateurish thieves?

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Plot Keywords:

swimming pool | night club | voyeurism | marlboro | drugs | 

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Taglines:

Lots of Action, Lots of Bullets!

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller | Western

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language and sensuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

The helicopter used in the film is a Bell 222UB painted black. It is the same type of helicopter that was used in Airwolf (1984) and in the "Judgment Day" two-part episode of The A-Team (1983).

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Goofs

When the boys get caught behind the aircon unit on the roof, they would have been killed when Alexander and his goons opened fire. 5.56mm rounds would have penetrated the tin like it was cheese.

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Quotes

Marlboro: [Walking along brightly lit Las Vegas strip] I hate this fucking town.
Harley Davidson: Hey, man, you don't know anything about this city.
Marlboro: I grew up here, you dumb bastard.
Harley Davidson: I didn't know that.
Marlboro: Yeah, well, what you don't know is a lot.
Harley Davidson: You mean to tell me that real cowboys - I mean shit-kicking rodeo cowboys - come from Vegas?
Marlboro: Some of the best. Perhaps even ONE of the best.

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Alternate Versions

UK cinema and video versions were cut by 2 secs by the BBFC to remove shots of a butterfly knife. The cuts were waived for the 2003 MGM DVD release.

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Connections

Referenced in Mystery Science Theater 3000: City Limits (1992)

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Soundtracks

Wild Obsession
Performed by L.A. Guns
Written by Mick Cripps (as M. Cripps), Tracii Guns (as T. Guns), Phil Lewis (as P. Lewis),
Kelly Nickels (as K. Nickels) & Steve Riley (as S. Riley)

User Reviews

Rourke & Johnson at their coolest on-screen personas, an enjoyable ride about manly men & old fashioned camaraderie !!

A critical and financial failure when it was released in August, '91, but later a hit on video, "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man" was directed by the Aussie Simon Wincer, 1 year after his venture into westerns with "Quigley Down Under", written by Don Michael Paul (from the B-movies, "Dangerously Close" and "Cyborg") and starred by two of the macho icons from the 80's Era, Mickey Rourke & Don Johnson.

Set in the future of '96, with a large Bank corporation ruling Burbank, California at a same time that a new deadly drug hits the streets, it tells the story of a loner biker which calls himself Harley Davidson (Rourke), who travels to reconnect with his childhood friends, The Marlboro Man (Johnson); Jack Daniels (Big John Studd) & his now wife, Lulu (Vanessa Williams); José Cuervo (Eloy Casados); Jimmy Jiles (Giancarlo Esposito) & "The Old Man" Jiles (Julius Harris), owner of a Diner established 40 yrs ago, where all the boys met, and now in danger of being foreclosure by The Great Trust Bank. Harley convinces the rest of the gang to rob the same Bank to save the Diner, in which Marlboro, reluctantly, agrees, but things will not go as they thought...

Even if the plot sounds simplistic and formulaic, like dozens of buddy action movies seen before, the writing is very good for this kind of 'genre' film, especially the dialogue exchanges between Rourke & Johnson (some cleary improvised by the actors), that reminds a bit of an earlier Rourke's character, The Motorcycle Boy in Coppola's cult film, "Rumble Fish" ('83).

The well cast duo and their genuine chemistry on-screen it's one of the highlights in the movie, this two were made to ride along together. Rumours said that Rourke only accepted this role because he was payed like 1 million, but even if he acts here with his "i don't give a..." attitude, he was cleary having a blast with this tailormade role for his on-screen persona and, with the exception of "White Sands", it was the last time the classic, charming and cool Mickey from his hair to his extravagant clothes hit the screens... after that all went downhill. Don Johnson, makes the perfect transition from the stylished Miami Cop, Sonny Crockett, to a modern day cowboy and his taglines were the best in the movie.

The supporting cast is full of colorful characters from Harley's gang to the bad guys, played by a fresh faced Tom Sizemore and his first in command, Daniel Baldwin, plus appearances from the forever henchmen, Branscombe Richmond & Sven-Ole Thorsen, plus cameos from Robert Ginty ("The Exterminator") and the beautiful Tia Carrere ("True Lies"). Chelsea Field (in the same year she played Bruce Willis' wife in "The Last Boy Scout") plays here Johnson's mistress, Virginia Slim, a female cop fan of bikes...and bikers !!

The movie itself is loaded with good staged action scenes; tons of humour in the interaction between the two protagonists; nice photographed widescreen visuals, including aerial shots, and a great soundtrack, provided by the maestro Basil Poledouris, and featuring the Bon Jovi hit, "Wanted Dead or Alive", also such bands as Copperhead, AC/DC, Roadhouse, The Screaming Jets, Waylon Jennings, The Kentucky Headhunters & L.A. Guns to name a few.

In short, "Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man" is a truly watchable 'buddy flick', a modernization of the classic "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and a joy to watch with a pack of Marlboros and a sixpack.

Don't listen to the critics, i give it a 7.5 !!

Details

Official Sites:

MGM

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

23 August 1991 (USA)

Also Known As:

Harley Davidson and the Marlboro Man

Filming Locations:

Alamo Apartments - 738 S. Sixth Ave, Tucson, Arizona, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$23,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,200,549, 25 August 1991

Gross USA:

$7,434,726

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$7,434,726

Company Credits

Production Co:

Krisjair, Laredo, Laredo Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

98 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1