This is a latter-day noir masterpiece, far too low-key, grimy, and pessimistic to get the respect it deserved the first time around, but thanks to Amazon, maybe it is now getting the reappraisal it richly deserves. If memory serves correctly, Roger Ebert was one of the few critics to understand how good this thing was during its initial run. A moody, somber revenge films that recalls the film noir of the 40's. Great cast led by Rourke as the disfigured ironically named "cheap crook" of the title. A crook who is wronged and uses a controversial facial surgery to seek revenge against the scumbags that killed Johnny's friend, framed him and tried to kill him twice.
Director Walter Hill was on a tear in the late 70's until the mid 80's (with a certain revival period in the 90's, when he dipped his toe into the Western Genre). This movie features several actors at the peak of their powers, including Morgan Freeman (before he was typecast as a good-natured, paternalistic friend (i.e. in "The Bucket List" or "Shawshank Redemption"). Ellen Barkin and Lance Henriksen are suitably over the top, and Forrest Whitaker inhabits his character with compassion and sensitivity. The only possible weak link is a miscast Elizabeth McGovern doing a painfully bad Cajun/Creole accent. The city of New Orleans (previously featured in Hill's "Hard Times" with Charles Bronson) is also a strong presence throughout.
Overall rating: 8 out of 10.
Director Walter Hill was on a tear in the late 70's until the mid 80's (with a certain revival period in the 90's, when he dipped his toe into the Western Genre). This movie features several actors at the peak of their powers, including Morgan Freeman (before he was typecast as a good-natured, paternalistic friend (i.e. in "The Bucket List" or "Shawshank Redemption"). Ellen Barkin and Lance Henriksen are suitably over the top, and Forrest Whitaker inhabits his character with compassion and sensitivity. The only possible weak link is a miscast Elizabeth McGovern doing a painfully bad Cajun/Creole accent. The city of New Orleans (previously featured in Hill's "Hard Times" with Charles Bronson) is also a strong presence throughout.
Overall rating: 8 out of 10.