Nails (1992)

Cop breaks all the rules to go after a gang of drug dealers.

Director:

John Flynn

Writer:

Larry Ferguson

Stars:

Dennis Hopper, Anne Archer, Tomas Milian

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dennis Hopper	...	Harry 'Nails' Niles
Anne Archer	...	Mary Niles
Tomas Milian	...	Pedro Herrera
Keith David	...	Noah Owens
Carlos Carrasco	...	Jose Acosta
Charles Hallahan	...	Bud Taylor
Jay Acovone	...	Capt. Evan Graham
Earl Billings	...	Jack Willis
Cliff De Young	...	Stambusky
Luis Antonio Ramos	...	Ricardo Sanchez (as Luis Ramos)
Raymond Cruz	...	Paco Sanchez
Juan Fernández	...	Victor Menandez
Teresa Crespo	...	Elena Hernandez
Brian Markinson	...	Calley
John Hawkes	...	Harvey Cassler

Storyline

Streetwise, tough cop "Nails" Niles and his partner are lured into a deathtrap from which only Niles survives. Obsessed with finding his partner's murderer, Niles burrows deep into the underground of the L. A. crime scene to find the guilty parties at any cost.

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Plot Keywords:

neo noir | partner | tough cop | drugs | organized crime | 

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Taglines:

A Good Cop ... With a Few Bad Habits!

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Genres:

Action | Crime | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

25 July 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ein Cop sieht rot

Filming Locations:

646 S Main St, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Empress Productions Inc.,Viacom

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Dennis Hopper had karate training and did lots of weightlifting to get into serious shape for this physical challenging role.

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Connections

Featured in Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003)

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Soundtracks

If I Had Your Heart
Written by Martin Blasick
Performed by Martin Blasick

User Reviews

A reminder of how bad the 90's really were

In the post-The Wire world we now dwell in, we are forced to look upon the action/cop thrillers of the 1980's and early 1990's with somewhat fresh eyes. We now understand how a city is run, and how bureaucracy and politics can stand in the way of, say, the police force, getting their job done. No longer can a leather-jacketed, cocktail-stick chewing cop- on-the-edge cast aside the need of a search warrant and simply kick the door down. It used to be that as long as he drags out his man either in cuffs or in a body bag, and saves the girl, nobody will care about his disregard for the law, and if they don't, I quote Rambo, "f**k 'em!". But the enlightenment set by The Wire causes something like Nails, a made-for-TV, obscure little title probably forgotten by whoever has actually seen it, to fall from 'terrible' or 'run-of-the-mill', to 'outright laughable' due to it's complete lack of procedural logic and sense.

'Good cop with a bad attitude' Harry 'Nails' Niles (Dennis Hopper) and his partner Jack (Earl Billings) are lured into a trap by some gangsters, leaving Jack dead and Harry mourning. Getting no help from his police department, of which none attend Jack's funeral, Harry decides to use his street know-how to scour the criminal underworld of L.A. in search of vengeance. He discovers a dirty trail full of conspiracy and possible police cover-up that seems to lead all the way up to rich slumlord Noah Owens (Keith David), who is helping fund a Senator's campaign run. Battling alcoholism and a very bad temper, he must also try and win back his estranged ex-wife Mary (Anne Archer) before the gangsters get to her too.

I would probably have never even been aware of this film's existence had it not been for the poster in some cinema magazine or other back in 1992. My brother and I remembered it due to the hilarious title and equally hilarious tagline, so the temptation to actually go ahead and watch this proved too much. It's not quite as bad as I was expecting, given Hopper's energetic, but hardly convincing, performance at least managing to keep me half-interested. Common in early 90's movies, the technical aspects of the film are dreadful, and the action scenes are dull, with a few car chases and machine gun fights scattered throughout. It's so full of plot holes and weird narrative twists (Harry is paying his ex-wife, who is an important member of the Senator's campaign trail, for sex) that is best experienced on full mental shut-down, or else you're in danger of throwing things at the screen. Befitting of its obscurity, and a reminder of how bad the 90's really were.

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