The Big Easy
2.5/4
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Ellen Barkin, Ned Beatty, Ebbe Roe Smith, Lisa Jane Persky, John Goodman, Tom O'Brien
Rated R (probably for Violence/Grisly Images, Language, Sexuality/Nudity and Drug Content)
Remy McSwain (Quaid) is the youngest lieutenant in the history of the New Orleans Police Department. When the film opens, he's investigating the murder of a mafia flunkie ("Down here we call 'em 'wise guys,' Remy explains at one point). Neither Remy nor his fellow officers are in any hurry to catch the guy, seeing as these things are rarely solved and almost never result in a conviction. Besides, it's one less creep on the streets. But there's a problem: a pretty lawyer named Anne Osborne (Barkin) shows up in his office the next morning. She works with Internal Affairs and she won't tolerate any laziness. Not even after Remy swoons her with his charm, dinner and dancing. Soon though, they fall for each other, and that's when things get really complicated.
Director Jim McBride wants his film to embody the mystery and culture of New Orleans. The film is filled with local color and quirky characters to provide flavor and atmosphere. In other words, he wants to do for The Big Easy what Clint Eastwood did for Savannah in "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." But trying is different from succeeding. Eastwood's 1997 film wasn't perfect, but it created an all-consuming Southern Gothic atmosphere that really enveloped me. McBride doesn't get there, mainly because he pushes too hard. These characters are so over-the-top, so traditionally "Southern" that they become caricatures. He is not working with the best screenplay and the actors are given rather thin characters, but much of the film's failures are at McBride's feet. He hammers in the quirkiness so hard that it feels like he's shoving a square peg in a round hole.
Although both Dennis Quaid and Ellen Barkin list "The Big Easy" as their favorite film in their respective filmographies, it's not their best in my book. Nor does it contain their best performances. It's hard to decide whether Quaid is forced to go over-the-top or merely miscast, but it takes a long time before we get on Remy's side. And for a ladykiller, he is aggressive enough to raise alarm bells. Ellen Barkin is better, mainly because Anne isn't so ridiculously colorful. She is more down-to-Earth as the dowdy but intelligent lawyer. As such, she feels more real. Reliable character actors Ned Beatty, John Goodman and Grace Zabriskie provide support. And "color."
The film is divided into two acts. The first is the romance between Remy and Anne, which doesn't really work because the two actors have very little chemistry together. They don't really "click." That got me thinking about the plot deficiencies, of which there are a few (has no one in this film heard of the term "conflict of interest"?). Most egregious of which is the court scene. To avoid spoilers, I won't say why it's not credible, but if you see the film, you'll know what I mean. The second act, which concentrates more on the mystery of who is behind the murder (and the subsequent ones), is stronger. The quirkiness is toned down, there is less reliance on the DOA chemistry between the stars, and the narrative is less predictable than you might think.
"The Big Easy" is difficult to review. It's too problematic to recommend, but at the same time, it's rarely boring and there are more than a few scenes that do work as intended. It's not a great movie, but it's certainly watchable. And, at least on some level, entertaining.
Starring: Dennis Quaid, Ellen Barkin, Ned Beatty, Ebbe Roe Smith, Lisa Jane Persky, John Goodman, Tom O'Brien
Rated R (probably for Violence/Grisly Images, Language, Sexuality/Nudity and Drug Content)
Just relax, darlin'. This is the Big Easy. Folks have a certain way o' doin' things down here.Indeed, "The Big Easy" not a conventional film. It mixes love, sex, murder, police corruption and drug dealers in a movie that definitely takes a lot of chances. Alas, it doesn't really come together. I'll give them points for the attempt, though.
Remy McSwain (Quaid) is the youngest lieutenant in the history of the New Orleans Police Department. When the film opens, he's investigating the murder of a mafia flunkie ("Down here we call 'em 'wise guys,' Remy explains at one point). Neither Remy nor his fellow officers are in any hurry to catch the guy, seeing as these things are rarely solved and almost never result in a conviction. Besides, it's one less creep on the streets. But there's a problem: a pretty lawyer named Anne Osborne (Barkin) shows up in his office the next morning. She works with Internal Affairs and she won't tolerate any laziness. Not even after Remy swoons her with his charm, dinner and dancing. Soon though, they fall for each other, and that's when things get really complicated.
Director Jim McBride wants his film to embody the mystery and culture of New Orleans. The film is filled with local color and quirky characters to provide flavor and atmosphere. In other words, he wants to do for The Big Easy what Clint Eastwood did for Savannah in "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." But trying is different from succeeding. Eastwood's 1997 film wasn't perfect, but it created an all-consuming Southern Gothic atmosphere that really enveloped me. McBride doesn't get there, mainly because he pushes too hard. These characters are so over-the-top, so traditionally "Southern" that they become caricatures. He is not working with the best screenplay and the actors are given rather thin characters, but much of the film's failures are at McBride's feet. He hammers in the quirkiness so hard that it feels like he's shoving a square peg in a round hole.
Although both Dennis Quaid and Ellen Barkin list "The Big Easy" as their favorite film in their respective filmographies, it's not their best in my book. Nor does it contain their best performances. It's hard to decide whether Quaid is forced to go over-the-top or merely miscast, but it takes a long time before we get on Remy's side. And for a ladykiller, he is aggressive enough to raise alarm bells. Ellen Barkin is better, mainly because Anne isn't so ridiculously colorful. She is more down-to-Earth as the dowdy but intelligent lawyer. As such, she feels more real. Reliable character actors Ned Beatty, John Goodman and Grace Zabriskie provide support. And "color."
The film is divided into two acts. The first is the romance between Remy and Anne, which doesn't really work because the two actors have very little chemistry together. They don't really "click." That got me thinking about the plot deficiencies, of which there are a few (has no one in this film heard of the term "conflict of interest"?). Most egregious of which is the court scene. To avoid spoilers, I won't say why it's not credible, but if you see the film, you'll know what I mean. The second act, which concentrates more on the mystery of who is behind the murder (and the subsequent ones), is stronger. The quirkiness is toned down, there is less reliance on the DOA chemistry between the stars, and the narrative is less predictable than you might think.
"The Big Easy" is difficult to review. It's too problematic to recommend, but at the same time, it's rarely boring and there are more than a few scenes that do work as intended. It's not a great movie, but it's certainly watchable. And, at least on some level, entertaining.
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