Johnny Handsome (1989)

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Director:

Walter Hill

Writers (WGA):

John Godey (novel)
Ken Friedman (screenplay)

Release Date:

29 September 1989 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

Revenge has a new face

Plot:

Johnny Handsome is a deformed gangster who plans a successful robbery with a friend of his, Mikey Chalmette...

Plot Keywords:

Prison | Revenge | Shipyard | Robbery | Detective

Cast

Mickey Rourke	...	John Sedley a.ka. Johnny Handsome / Johnny Mitchell
Ellen Barkin	...	Sunny Boyd
Elizabeth McGovern	...	Donna McCarty
Morgan Freeman	...	Lt. A.Z. Drones
Forest Whitaker	...	Dr. Steven Fisher
Lance Henriksen	...	Rafe Garrett
Scott Wilson	...	Mikey Chalmette
David Schramm	...	Vic Dumask
Yvonne Bryceland	...	Sister Luke
Peter Jason	...	Mr. Bonet
J.W. Smith	...	Larry
Jeffrey Meek	...	Earl (as Jeff Meek)
Allan Graf	...	Bob Lemoyne
Ed Zang	...	Prestige Manager
John P. Fertitta	...	Prestige Salesman (as John Fertitta)

Runtime:

94 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:16 | South Korea:15 | Finland:K-16 | Norway:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | West Germany:16 | Australia:M | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Avondale Shipyard - 5100 River Road, Avondale, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Trivia:

Al Pacino was initially interested in playing the title character and worked with the producers on developing the script, but ultimately dropped out of the project due to script problems; Pacino felt, despite numerous revisions, they had never been able to transcend the script's B-movie qualities.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: During the graveyard scene, Larry "pumps" the action on a double barreled shotgun.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Il solitario (2008)

Not a total waste...

This film centers around the title character, Johnny Handsome, a man with a deformed face and some sort of speech impediment (see, the name is ironic... hah, he's got a deformed face and they call him 'handsome', clever right?). Johnny is out to get revenge on a few other criminals who turned on him during a robbery, killing his friend and running with the money. Though the story idea is somewhat interesting, I don't think it was handled well by script-writer Ken Friedman.

What really makes this film worthwhile is the stellar cast and performances by most of them. The only person in the cast that seemed a bit drab would be Elizabeth McGovern, who put on an incredibly irritating accent. Otherwise, the support cast which includes Morgan Freeman, Lance Henriksen, Ellen Barkin, and wonderful Forest Whitaker are all really pleasant to watch. Rourke, of course, is fantastic as the title character, Johnny Handsome. The speech impediment that he had to provide for the character was not overdone or cheesy, I think he handled it well.

If you're wondering whether or not to check this movie out, I'd say check it out for Mickey's performance or perhaps if you're a fan of any of the other actors. The plot is a-OK, the way it's told in the film is so-so, but the performances are top notch.

6/10.