Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995)

User Rating:

6.6/10   

Director:

Gary Fleder

Writer (WGA):

Scott Rosenberg (written by)

Release Date:

1 December 1995 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Romance

Tagline:

They can die quickly. They can die slowly. But they must die!

Plot:

Five different criminals face imminent death after botching a job quite badly.

Plot Keywords:

Death | City Name In Title | Corpse | Tattoo | Sex In Car

Awards:

2 wins

Cast

Andy Garcia	...	Jimmy 'The Saint' Tosnia
Christopher Lloyd	...	Pieces
William Forsythe	...	Franchise
Bill Nunn	...	Easy Wind
Treat Williams	...	Critical Bill
Jack Warden	...	Joe Heff
Steve Buscemi	...	Mister Shhh
Fairuza Balk	...	Lucinda
Gabrielle Anwar	...	Dagney
Christopher Walken	...	The Man with the Plan
Michael Nicolosi	...	Bernard
Bill Cobbs	...	Malt
Marshall Bell	...	Lt. Atwater
Glenn Plummer	...	Baby Sinister
Don Stark	...	Gus

MPAA:

Rated R for strong graphic violence and language, and for brief images of a sex film.

Runtime:

115 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:16 | New Zealand:R16 | South Korea:18 | Philippines:R-18 | Portugal:M/16 | Australia:MA | Germany:16 | Norway:18 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | USA:R | France:-16 | UK:18 | Argentina:16

Filming Locations:

Denver, Colorado, USA

Company:

Miramax Films

Trivia:

Film title is taken from a Warren Zevon song of the same name, from his 1991 release "Mr. Bad Example".

Goofs:

Continuity: When Jimmy The Saint is threatening Lt. Atwater with a baseball bat he's holding it against Atwater's chest and lowers the bat to the ground to lean on it, but in the next shot the bat is back against Lt. Atwater's chest.

Quotes:

[last lines]
Franchise: Gentlemen, we have boat drinks.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Me, Myself & Irene (2000)

Soundtrack:

A Gozar Con Mi Combo

Overlooked crime flick

"Things to Do in Denver... When You're Dead" is a smart little crime flick that may not add anything to the genre but is an enjoyable ride. Andy Garcia is thoroughly charming as the honourable Jimmy the Saint who is under increasing time pressure to fix things before his crew get killed for a botched job. Other cast members also put in good performances, while if you are a fan of Steve Buscemi this film probably contains his "coolest" work to date.

"Things to Do..."'s greatest flaw is its slow exposition. It takes a while for things to get moving, by which time you may be questioning why you are watching this movie. Stick with it - "Things to Do in Denver... When You're Dead" is a crime film worth watching.