Boiling Point (1993/I)

Director:

James B. Harris

Writers (WGA):

Gerald Petievich (novel)
James B. Harris (screenplay)

Release Date:

16 April 1993 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama

Tagline:

He's a cop who reached the Boiling Point

Plot:

Red is an aging scam-artist who's just been released from prison together with Ronnie, a young and not-so-bright hoodlum who is easily manipulated...

Plot Keywords:

Interracial Relationship | Counterfeit | Police | Street Life | Based On Novel

Cast

Wesley Snipes	...	Jimmy Mercer
Dennis Hopper	...	Rudolph 'Red' Diamond
Lolita Davidovich	...	Vikki Dunbar
Viggo Mortensen	...	Ronnie
Seymour Cassel	...	Virgil Leach
Jonathan Banks	...	Max Waxman
Christine Elise	...	Carol
Tony Lo Bianco	...	Tony Dio
Valerie Perrine	...	Mona
James Tolkan	...	Levitt
Paul Gleason	...	Transaction Man
Lorraine Evanoff	...	Connie
Stephanie Williams	...	Sally Mercer (as Stephanie E. Williams)
Tobin Bell	...	Roth
Bobby Hosea	...	Steve

Also Known As:

Extrême limite, L' (France)
Money Men (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

92 min

Country:

USA | France | Japan

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Norway:15 | Spain:18 | UK:15 | USA:R | Australia:M | Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Hexagon Productions

Trivia:

The finished film was primarily centered around Dennis Hopper's character, but due to Wesley Snipes's popularity at the time, Warner Bros. who bought the film in the US, decided to shorten most of his scenes, to strengthen Snipes's role. Other cuts were made to beef up the pacing. The cuts included the loss of several scenes between Mortensen and his girlfriend. In an interview director James B. Harris stated that he did not have final cut and that Warner Bros. removed ten minutes from the pic in attempt to make it more commercial. He noted that they also changed the title from Money Men, to Boiling Point, in a bid to sell it as an action picture, similar to Passenger 57. Dennis Hopper, who felt he delivered his best performance, did not like the version that was ultimately released.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Saturday Night Live: The Best of David Spade (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Jersey Bounce

So-so crime thriller is not memorable at all.

Based on the novel "Money Men" by Gerald Petievich, this movie tells the story of Treasury agent Jimmy Mercer (Wesley Snipes) who is determined to find the criminals who murdered a fellow agent in a sting gone bad. The mastermind is "Red" Diamond (Dennis Hopper), a pathetic, aging con artist, with a trigger-happy, simple-minded accomplice (Viggo Mortensen).

The one thing these two men have in common is their interest in stereotypically good-hearted, high-class call girl Vikki Dunbar (a very sexy Lolita Davidovich).

Overall, this crime thriller falls below average because it tries too hard to be a subtle character study as well as a crime thriller. It's too quiet, and there's no real sense of urgency. It's not a very lively film, either - even the final showdown is rather lackluster. The movie is filled with familiar character actors, and it does maintain some interest. Snipes is good but unfortunately his character is pretty one-note in his solemnity. Hopper is actually well cast not in one of his typical mad-dog roles but a character I almost felt sorry for because he was so pathetic. The movie is also populated with attractive women who unfortunately don't do much - the meatier roles here go to the guys.

One good thing: it's a reasonably short movie.

4/10