The Hot Spot (1990)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Dennis Hopper

Writers (WGA):

Charles Williams (book)
Nona Tyson (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

12 October 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Film Noir Like You've Never Seen.

Plot:

A loner (Johnson) drives into a small Texas town and gets himself a job at a used car dealership. He...

Plot Keywords:

Accountant | Skinny Dipping | Bank Robbery | Female Nudity | Swiming Naked

Cast

Don Johnson	...	Harry Madox
Virginia Madsen	...	Dolly Harshaw
Jennifer Connelly	...	Gloria Harper
Charles Martin Smith	...	Lon Gulick
William Sadler	...	Frank Sutton
Jerry Hardin	...	George Harshaw
Barry Corbin	...	Sheriff
Leon Rippy	...	Deputy Tate
Jack Nance	...	Julian Ward
Virgil Frye	...	Deputy Buck
John Hawker	...	Uncle Mort
Margaret Bowman	...	Woman at Gas Station
Debra Cole	...	Irene Davey
Karen Culley	...	Cowgirl
Cody Haynes	...	Cowboy

Runtime:

130 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Certification:

Iceland:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:18 | USA:R | Canada:R

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Company:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Mike Figgis was originally scheduled to direct with Elisabeth Shue in a lead role. The collaboration was not to be, however, but Figgis remembered Shue when casting for Leaving Las Vegas (1995)

Goofs:

Continuity: After Harry shoots Frank, the pistol's slider is seen stuck at the rear position indicating an empty magazine. Yet a second later when Harry gets off the floor, the slider is in the forward position and the hammer is cocked.

Quotes:

[after having sex in a car lot]
Dolly Harshaw: That was more fun than eating cotton-candy barefoot.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Easy Riders, Raging Bulls: How the Sex, Drugs and Rock 'N' Roll Generation Saved Hollywood (2003)

Soundtrack:

MY LITTLE GRASS SHACK IN KEALAKEKUA, HAWAII

An Absolute Gem

Shot in and around Austin, Texas, brilliantly written and directed by Dennis Hopper and adapted from Thompson's book, Hell Hath No Fury, this is a movie buff's movie. It is probably the best performance by Don Thompson he will ever give. It's one of those movies that put everything together to achieve a "harmonic" that is very very rare. Why it didn't achieve notice and a clutch of awards is one of the mysteries of the film industry. Everything in the movie meshed perfectly, including a great score.