Red Rock West (1992)

Director:

John Dahl

Writers (WGA):

John Dahl (written by) &
Rick Dahl (written by)

Release Date:

May 1994 (USA)

Genre:

Thriller

Tagline:

...All Roads Lead To Intrigue.

Plot:

When a promised job for Texan Michael fails to materialise in Wyoming, Mike is mistaken by Wayne to be the hitman he hired to kill his unfaithful wife...

Plot Keywords:

Ceiling Fan | Money | Neo Noir | Hitman | Sheriff

Awards:

3 nominations

Cast

Nicolas Cage	...	Michael Williams
Craig Reay	...	Jim
Vance Johnson	...	Mr. Johnson
Robert Apel	...	Howard
Bobby Joe McFadden	...	Old Man
J.T. Walsh	...	Wayne Brown / Kevin McCord
Lara Flynn Boyle	...	Suzanne Brown / Ann McCord
Dale Gibson	...	Kurt, Suzanne's Boyfriend
Ted Parks	...	Chevron Cashier
Babs Bram	...	Hospital Receptionist
Robert Guajardo	...	Doctor
Sarah Sullivan	...	Nurse
Timothy Carhart	...	Deputy Matt Greytack
Dan Shor	...	Deputy Russ Bowman
Dennis Hopper	...	Lyle from Dallas

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

South Korea:15 | Iceland:16 | Australia:M | Canada:14A | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Spain:T | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Montana, USA

Company:

PolyGram Filmed Entertainment

Trivia:

Nicolas Cage largely took the part due to the recommendation of his uncle, Francis Ford Coppola who is an outspoken fan of John Dahl's first film, Kill Me Again (1989).

Goofs:

Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): When Lyle and Michael are discussing both being in the Marine Corps; Lyle ends the conversation with "any time, soldier." It is unlikely that a marine would refer to another Marine as "soldier," but would call him or her "marine" instead.

Quotes:

Lyle: You must be Suzanne. You look pretty enough to eat.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Breakdown (1997/I)

Soundtrack:

ALONE IN SAN ANTONE

Here's your definition of modern film noir

In any number of films, you can find Nicholas Cage as a strong, silent hero, Dennis Hopper as a homicidal maniac, Lara Flynn Boyle as a vamp/tramp, and the late, lamented J.T. Walsh as the heavy. These are the types of roles these four can play in their sleep, and they have done so often enough that to see them playing them again borders on cliche. What a relief, therefore, that John Dahl, a master at getting a lot of mood out of a little action, directed this nuanced noirish thriller. Hopper manages to keep from going over the top, Cage shows a little more depth than his usually-superficial action heroes, Boyle is by turns sultry, innocent, and scheming, and one gets a sense of the hard iron of the soul that is central to his character, Wayne. Dahl's direction gives a sense of the emptiness of the Big Sky country where the story takes place while also being intimate enough to show how a wrinkled brow can indicate a radical change of plot in store. The plot twists are top-notch, and one of the other great twists in this movie is that some of the supporting characters actually act as if they have brains. It isn't often that minor characters like deputy sheriffs have more brains than their headlining superiors. But with a director as smart as Dahl, you shouldn't be surprised by the intelligence of anything connected with this film. An excellent movie.