Mad Dog Time (1996)

With his boss in the madhouse, a mobster is temporary boss of the criminal empire just as vicious rivals threaten the control of the empire.

Director:

Larry Bishop

Writer:

Larry Bishop

Stars:

Michael J. Pollard, Henry Silva, Gabriel Byrne

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Michael J. Pollard	...	Red Nash
Henry Silva	...	Sleepy Joe Carlisle
Gabriel Byrne	...	Ben London
Jeff Goldblum	...	Mickey Holliday
Ellen Barkin	...	Rita Everly
Gregory Hines	...	Jules Flamingo
Angie Everhart	...	Gabriella
Kyle MacLachlan	...	Jake Parker
Billy Idol	...	Lee Turner
Juan Fernández	...	Davis (as Juan Fernandez)
Billy Drago	...	Wells
Christopher Jones	...	Nicholas Falco
Richard Dreyfuss	...	Vic
Burt Reynolds	...	'Wacky' Jacky Jackson
Réal Andrews	...	Clarke

Storyline

Mob boss Vic returns to business from madhouse. Meanwhile his best and quickest assistant Mickey Holliday is having an affair with Vic's girl Grace Everly and, at the same time, with her sister Rita Everly. What will Vic do? Whom will he kill? Is he really insane and weak? Many other mobsters, including Jake Parker, WackyJacky Jackson and Ben London think he's not so powerful anymore and hope to take his place.

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Plot Keywords:

murder | femme fatale | black comedy | gangster | violence | 

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Taglines:

No Laws. No Meaning. No Exit.

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Genres:

Comedy | Crime | Drama

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, language and sexuality

Did You Know?

Trivia

Last film of Christopher Jones.

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Quotes

Vic: Ben, go home. Pack your bags, and leave town.
Ben London: Nobody tells Ben London what to do any more!
Vic: [shoots Ben in the leg] Ben, hop home, pack your bags, and leave town.
Ben London: I'll hop home whenever I fucking feel like it!
Vic: [shoots the other leg] Now, Ben, roll home, pack your bags, and leave town.

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Connections

Referenced in The Cinema Snob: Two of a Kind (2014)

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Soundtracks

C'est si bon
Music by Henri Betti
French lyrics by André Hornez
English lyrics by Jerry Seelen
Performed by Dean Martin

User Reviews

It's an Allegory.

This movie is an allegory. Formally, an allegory is a representation of abstract ideas by elements in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form; in this case, the screenplay, the set design, and especially the actors are the elements by which the abstract is portrayed.

If you look for cool narrative structure and are familiar with, well, the Bible, you'll probably enjoy this tongue-in-cheek view of why "heaven is such a mess."

I'll just describe the characters: have fun with the rest of the analysis.

Vic -> God

Grace ->The grace of God

Rita, Grace's sister -> Justice (akin to God's grace is God's justice, and Rita means right)

Nick Falco -> Lucifer (Old Nick is a synonym for the devil, and don't forget the imposter). His philosophy was "to hell with every God d*mn thing".

Mickey -> the archangel Michael (Nick sees him as weak)

Gabriella -> the archangel Gabriel (just hangin' out until it's time to blow the horn)

Wacky Jacky Jackson -> chaos, which seeks to dismantle God's world ("I don't give a f*ck")

Mr. Gottlieb -> When you die, you will be in the hands of Gott Lieb--God's Love-- represented by an undertaker.

Ben London -> Man (ballsy, but rather slow and full of himself)

Finally, the title itself is a play on words itself: Mad Dog Time -> God

D*mn time.

Don't be so hard on this movie until you watch it for what it really is.

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

8 November 1996 (USA)

Also Known As:

Trigger Happy

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$8,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$107,874

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$107,874

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bruin Grip Services, Dreyfuss / James Productions, Skylight Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min 85 min (cut)

Sound Mix:

DTS DTS-Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1