#8: JUDGMENT NIGHT (1993)

Format watched on: Cable
Time watched: 20:35 CST
New or Rewatch: Rewatch
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Synopsis: When they took the wrong turn, it lead them to witnessing a murder, which left them running for their lives from the perpetrators.

Of note, these synopsis that I am pulling are straight from IMDB.

I remember watching this a few times off a VHS dub as a teen and really enjoying the flick. I haven't seen this flick for at least a good 10 years. I still remember the opening and closing song "Fallin'" by Teenage Fanclub & De La Soul like it was yesterday (now that I type this, I fired it up on Grooveshark).

You have Emilio Estevez, Cuba Gooding, Jr. , Stephen Dorff & Jeremy Piven (who isn't pictured on the poster - more proof that the 90's hate fatties) all gathering up in a borrowed RV to go to a Chicago fight. To avoid traffic, they try and do a cut through in a bad neighborhood and come upon a kid who has been shot. In trying to help this kid, the dudes get entangled with a group of drug dealers & thugs lead by Denis Leary.

Featuring a semi lazy score from Alan Silvestri who seems to recycle some of his PREDATOR score in here, JUDGMENT NIGHT suffers from a lot of mediocrity. Cuba has his moments, but then he usually fucks it up with overacting. On the opposite spectrum, Estevez is really phoning it in. His eyes and actions are empty and emotionless - too bad he is the main character. It's great to see Dorff in this and even more memorable is Piven's character who has echoes of a later character by the name of Ari. Leary, while somewhat intimidating in some scenes, is really here to cash in on his heyday. It's like you can hear the Universal reps saying "Let's get that Leary guy - his fast talking foulmouthed dialog will seem like 'project speak'." That last thought seems to be the whole problem with the film. The projects portrayed in the film seem like a safe version of the projects. The only threat is that these boys are out of suburbia, out of a vehicle and communication, lost and have a group of 4 dudes chasing after them. The projects aren't the threat, if it were - I think it would have made more of an interesting flick.

However, Stephen Hopkins does his best with a crappy script and actors that really don't fit. The lighting in this film is also something to take note. Technically, the film is very well done. Peter Greene also turns out a forgettable character into a memorable one. I actually think that Greene would have been a bit better for Leary's role as far as intimidation. Also, Everlast from House of Pain is in the thug group with Green & Leary.

I didn't mind watching this one, but it really makes me want to have someone with Hopkins' technical precision meet up with a good cast and try this story again.

This film's biggest notoriety is probably the soundtrack where they mixed hip hop/rap artists with metal and alternative rock.

Grade: C