From rec.arts.sf.reviews Mon Sep 9 16:59:33 1996 Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews Path: news.ifm.liu.se!liuida!newsfeed.sunet.se!news01.sunet.se!sunic!02-newsfeed.univie.ac.at!01-newsfeed.univie.ac.at!swidir.switch.ch!in2p3.fr!oleane!jussieu.fr!math.ohio-state.edu!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.kei.com!uhog.mit.edu!news!news From: agapow@lx6.cs.latrobe.edu.au (p-m agapow) Subject: Review: "Wedlock" (SF video) Message-ID: Followup-To: rec.arts.movies Keywords: author=p-m agapow Lines: 33 Sender: wex@tinbergen.media.mit.edu (Graystreak) Organization: Calvin Coolidge Home for Dead Biologists X-Newsreader: (ding) Gnus v0.94 Date: Wed, 4 Sep 1996 20:37:04 GMT Approved: wex@media.mit.edu Lines: 33 [video] "Wedlock" (aka "Deadlock") A Postview, copyright 1996 p-m agapow In the near future an electronics wiz (Hauer, no really) is thrown into jail. The macguffin here is a collar fastened around the neck that contains a transmitter and explosive charge. Each prisoners collar is paired to another random prisoner. Should a collar get removed, tampered with or more than a set distance from its partner - both explode. Our anti-hero must contend with the usual prison motifs (aggressive prisoners, warden out to get him) while a follow inmate (Rogers) suggests escape, alleging she has his collar's partner. Meanwhile his ex-partner (Chen, oh yes) lurks around the corner ... "Wedlock" is a B-grader alright, but it's an unusually good one. The plot holds together and the action moves at a reasonable pace. What makes this film are the deliciously "out there" performances. Rutger, thankfully taking a break from psycho and tough guy roles, is a weedy neemish who stumbles from scene to scene getting beaten up and betrayed. The tragically under used Joan Chen vamps it up as a gleefully violent femme fatale. Stephen Tobolowsky is the shifty, devious prison warden out to get Hauer. You've seen this film before but who cares? The dialogue is snappy, the pace fast. Energetically silly without being stupid, this is a prototypical good B movie. [***/interesting] and beer on the Sid and Nancy scale. "Wedlock" Directed by Lewis Teague. Starring Rutger Hauer, Joan Chen, Mimi Rogers, James Remar, Stephen Tobolowsky. Released 1991. paul-michael agapow (agapow@latcs1.oz.au), La Trobe Uni, Infocalypse [archived at http://www.cs.latrobe.edu.au/~agapow/Postviews/]