Customer Reviews

Hot Spot [VHS]

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I admit The Hot Spot (1990) popped up on my radar solely due to the fact Jennifer Connelly appears topless in one scene (How many people went to see the 2001 film Swordfish based solely on Halle Berry appearing topless?). I really didn't have much confidence in the film itself, as it stars Don Johnson, and while he may have been the flavor of the month in the 80's with his Miami Vice show, he really drove me away with his subsequent, and short lived, singing career (anyone remember the song Heartbeat? It was picked as one of the 50 worst songs ever by VH1). Also, the film was directed by 60's leftover Dennis Hopper, whom I like as an actor, but was unsure of his directing talents...let's look at his directing endeavors (the one's I've seen, at least)...there's the quintessential 60's counterculture film Easy Rider, the 1988 film Colors, which focused on the ever rising gangster/criminal mentality prevalent in LA at the time (still is, as far as I know) which was, and is, really good, and then there's the 1994 film Chasers...that last one is worth about two bad films it was so awful...so two great films, and one really bad film...alright, I'll swing with it...show me what you got...

Along with Don `Sonny Crockett' Johnson, the film also stars Jennifer Connelly (I know, I already mentioned her, but she's so nice, I had to do it twice), and Virginia Madsen, an actress known for her ability to adapt to just about any role she takes. Also appearing is Charles Martin Smith, a talented and prolific character actor most people would probably recognize as the nebbish/ nerdy character Terry `The Toad' Fields from George Lucas' American Graffiti (1973), and another popular character actor William Sadler, who has also appeared in films like The Shawshank Redemption (1994), Demon Knight (1995), and The Green Mile (1999), to name a few.

The film (`noir for the 90's', the trailer says) begins with a man, who name we learn later as Harry Madox (Johnson) drifting into a small Texas town much like a predator stalking a young, innocent, and unwary prey. He insinuates himself into a position of the local used car dealership, owned by George Harshaw, an older man, with a sexy young wife, Dolly (Madsen), and a heart condition (that seems like a bad combination). Also working at the lot are fellow salesman Lon (Smith), and Gloria Harper (Connelly), as a bookkeeper. It seems Harry's got more on his mind than selling used cars, as he begins formulating plans to rob the local bank, which would be no great task as the security is lax to the point of being a non-existent, virtually begging Harry to come and take its' goodies. To complicate matters, he engages in an affair with Dolly (well, more like she chooses to have relations with him, as I didn't feel Harry had much choice in the matter, as Dolly `always gets what she wants'). And on top of that, he quickly develops an interest in sweet, young, and seemingly innocent Gloria, to which she seems responsive to Harry's attentions. And don't forget the town sleaze ball Frank Sutton (Sadler), who seems to be into everyone's business (especially with his camera with the monster telephoto lens), choosing blackmail as his trade of choice. The robbery goes off as planned with little problems, but even the best laid plans can suffer complications, and that's the case here as Harry, who the police see as the number one suspect, finds that Dolly has provided him an alibi, but for a price (it ain't money, Bubba). Things really get messy as the plot thickens, as others become involved.

I'd have to say Madsen was probably the best element in this entire movie. She's very easy on the eyes, and creates a very sexy, manipulative, vindictive, self-centered character people love to hate. When we first meet her, she seems like your classic gold-digging character interested in a dalliance (or two, or three) due to her much older husband's inability to perform certain martial responsibilities, but we learn she has plans and ambitions, much like Harry, for more than what she currently has...Madsen also appears to have the most nekkid time, flashing the audience a great number of times, completely within character, of course. Johnson did well, better than I would have thought, as the predator who soon finds himself prey, and realizing it much too late to effectively defend himself. I did feel his character, who I felt was supposed to be savvy and streetwise, fell into some easily avoidable and obvious traps, traps his character should have seen and been able to side-step, but whatever...oh yeah, for all you ladies out there, never fear, as Donnie has a few non-clothed scenes (mostly tushie shots), coming in a distant second in on screen nekkid time, far behind Madsen. Connelly's role as the sweet, young, and innocent Gloria was the weakest, presented as juxtaposition to Madsen's polar opposite characterization of Dolly. Connelly comes in third place in the nekkid on-screen challenge, but sometime a little is a lot...I thought Hopper did a great job with his direction providing the proper atmosphere and setting, and all the plot twists kept me in the dark about who was pulling who's strings. My only real problem with the film was it was just too damn long, with a running time of 2 hours and 10 minutes. I think Hopper could have lopped 20 or 30 minutes off and still had a great film, but I think he deliberately kept the pacing as slow as it was to really allow for all of the elements to come together and also opportunity for the audience to take it all in...

MGM provides a really nice, clean looking widescreen transfer here, and included is the original theatrical trailer. All in all, a good nod to noir films of the past, updated for the present.

Cookieman108

Having recently seen Sideways, and captivated by Virginia Madsen's Oscar-nominated/career revival performance, it was my absolute curiosity to see what she was like more than ten years ago in this steamy sexual/bank robbery thriller. She was actually very good in this B-movie, and her role is similar to Sharon Stone's role in Basic Instinct. Gotta love her authentic Texas accent here!

It's a movie about love, sex, and money. Don Johnson plays an out of towner con artist working undercover as a car salesman in a dealership owned by Virginia Madsen's hubby. She's an over-sexed bombshell and naturally she would hit on Johnson, but his true love interest is Jennifer Connelly, a secretary at the dealership. Johnson had masterminded a scheme to rob the local bank, and during his stay in town, he became involved sexually and romantically with the two ladies. It's a smart idea on how he managed to steal the big bundles of cash from the bank and then he had to figure out which woman should leave town with him.

This is pretty sexy movie, and the viewers do get to see enough nudity of the three leads. Jennifer Connelly was very young, and her affair with the sexy Don Johnson seemed like a variation of Lolita. Virginia Madsen is very striking, and so different from her Sideways role, because she's so wild, raunchy, and insatiable.

Well, my first review and my favourite film to boot. Having read the book by Charles Williams- a gift from a friend who is big into literature and the classics, therefore I felt it might be good - I thoroughly enjoyed conjouring up the images of dusty hot Texas whilst trying to keep cool with the steamy sultry shenanigans between the two diverse female leads and Harry Madox, the main character. Watching the movie for the first time a year or so later, it struck me how rarely when one reads a book does the film match up to the imagined filmscape. In this instance it exceeded my expectations like no other film had done or has done since. With the wonderful music, evoking the atmoshpere in spades and the masterful performance by Don Johnson - hitherto remebered by most for his role in Miami vice and its lack of real depth - the movie comes alive to me as a romantic representation of what I imagine a small Texan town and its bizarre characters may be like. Jennifer Connely is indeed one of the most beatiful women on screen, a shame that many seem to have just focused on her nudity as a reason to watch (or fast forward) the movie, I guess it must tell you a thing or two about them..

You will either love or hate this movie for many reasons. I make no apologies for liking this and if you want a slick, stylish movie with great music, a hot steamy atmosphere and the opportunity to watch Don Johnson perform in the movie of his career (if only for posterity) then you will do worse than spend a couple of hours watching this.

Do you like noir? Then you'll absolutely adore Dennis Hopper's 1990 film "The Hot Spot." It's a rare film these days that can capture the essence of the noir style, a style that seemed to disappear for good nearly five decades ago. You would have to go back to a film like "Double Indemnity" to find something comparable to "The Hot Spot." Perhaps only a long time denizen of Hollywood like Hopper could successfully make a movie like this one--after all, his career extends back to the grand days of noir filmmaking. If I remember correctly, he actually made films with central figures of the genre. Still, it's tough to reconcile Hopper the actor with his the idea of him directing this picture. Remember him as the wacked out journalist in the epic "Apocalypse Now" and the wacked out biker in "Easy Rider," two films that are as far from noir as you can get? His manic, and often maniacal, performances onscreen just don't lend themselves to this film's style. Nor, for that matter, does the idea of television staple Don Johnson in the lead role. Yet it all comes together in a masterful movie that I'm ashamed to say I hadn't seen until recently.

One day, a drifter with a past he's not willing to talk about named Harry Madox (Don Johnson) ambles into a small Texas town looking for work. He finds a job immediately at a used car dealership run by George Harshaw (Jerry Hardin), a man plagued by a bad attitude and a bad heart. Madox, however, doesn't seem like the sort of fellow who will put up with a lot of lip. While he gets along with fellow salesman Lon Gulick (Charles Martin Smith), his battles with Harshaw are constant. He also forms a fast connection with another employee, Gloria Harper (Jennifer Connolly), a gorgeous young girl who seems a bit on the shy side. Since the town is so small it comes as no surprise that George's wife Dolly (Virginia Madsen) soon learns about the new face and makes sure to put in an appearance. This woman is everything Gloria Harper isn't, i.e. extroverted, highly charged, extravagant, and never one to mince words. She makes clear in no uncertain terms that she's extremely interested in Harry Madox, a feeling initially reciprocated by Harry since he's the sort of guy who never turns down an opportunity. All of the attention Madox receives from the ladies is sure to lead to great torment down the road.

Opportunities for Harry don't stop with women. He notices that this town has a bank, and that the employees of said bank are volunteer firemen who leave the building unattended whenever a fire breaks out. What's a fellow to do? Why, rig up a device to start a fire and then rob the bank after everyone in town runs down to watch the blaze. There are several problems with the heist: the sheriff (Barry Corbin) immediately suspects the newcomer of the crime, a man nearly dies in the fire, and Dolly Harshaw removes the cloud of suspicion hanging over Madox by providing an alibi for him. This last difficulty puts our man in a bad position. While he wants his relationship with Gloria Harper to proceed, Dolly's actions require Harry to wait at her beck and call. If he doesn't, all Dolly has to do is go to the police and retract her alibi and it's off to jail for Madox. Thrown into all of this is an unsavory character by the name of Frank Sutton (William Sadler). This chap is blackmailing Gloria Harper over some enigmatic past incident, and it's not too long before Madox feels he must take violent action in that direction. What a mess! Before it's all hashed out, a few dead bodies turn up and a few betrayals take place.

"The Hot Spot" is a film that stands up well next to the old noir classics. There's not a bad performance anywhere in the picture. Don Johnson, arguably the biggest question mark in any big screen film, delivers an incredibly nuanced performance as a man with a penchant for getting into trouble no matter where he goes. Virginia Madsen, whose career is littered with B-movies and television films, quickly makes you wonder why she isn't a bigger star after taking the role of Dolly. Hopper seems to know he captured lightening in a bottle by casting her and thus keeps the camera on her for significant periods of time. Jennifer Connolly, well, is Jennifer Connolly. So gorgeous that it hurts your eyes to look at her, it's completely believable that Johnson's character would choose her over Dolly Harshaw any day. Put these memorable characters in the middle of a hot Texas town where sweat seems to fuel hormone swings, and you've got yourself a cracking good movie. The pacing of the film--slow and purposeful--mirrors the currents of life in a small town. And the music! Ultra cool jazz and blues music is the name of the game here. Every element of the film fits together so smoothly that it's stunning this wasn't a big hit at the box office. Perhaps those unfortunate wretches with tiny attention spans couldn't take the languid pace.

Regrettably, perpetual scrooge MGM released this with only a trailer as an extra. I've discovered that MGM discs are a hit or miss proposition. On the one hand, newer films like "Jeepers Creepers 2" contain so many supplements that it takes hours to watch them. On the other hand, great older films like this one often show up in fullscreen ("The Hot Spot" is widescreen, thank goodness) with no commentary tracks or behind the scenes stuff. I can forego a lot of extras, but wouldn't a commentary track with Dennis Hopper fit well with this picture? Sure it would. Anyway, the movie is a winner and is definitely worth watching

Don Johnson is perfect in this very sexy film noir. The two women are both just right for their bad girl / good girl roles. The ending is a shocker as it should be in this type of movie. But the standout is the inspired soundtrack. Most of the score is by Miles Davis and John Lee Hooker together. Miles' cool muted trumpet over the rough guitar of Hooker compliment each other perfectly, an audio reflection of the opposites in the two women characters and in the makeup of Johnson's character. This movie rates up there with Body Heat for modern noir.

I actually bought this DVD because of Virginia Madsen having just seen "Sideways". I won't re-hash the plot as Amazon has already provided potential buyers with the outline. However, while Madsen and all members of the cast were great Don Johnson was the real revelation here. His acting was nothing short of superb in a complex part that required him to demonstrate wide emotional range from slick cynicism to tenderness, to the homicidal rage/grief and abject confusion of a smart operator who's been thoroughly out played. Looks plus smarts plus intention equal sex appeal. No wonder the women fought over him.

Having bought "The Hot Spot" almost exclusively on the reviews of Jennifer Connelly's topless "scene" here on Amazon, I was disappointed in that respect. This scene is outstanding but not worthy of the hyped-up reviews.

In general, the nudity is less than I expected. But it's hard to complain about any nudity involving Virginia Madsen and Connelly. Both are as hot as I've seen them in our out of clothing in any project.

In his own right, Don Johnson does an excellent job in this movie as he still has some of his "Miami Vice" prime left. Surprisingly, the script and plot are excellent as well.

I used to dismiss Don Johnson as a pretty boy who couldn't act. The Hot Spot proved me wrong. Virginia Madsen (Whatever happened to her?) is also great. Barry Corbin plays a Texas sheriff as only he and the late Ben Johnson could. Half thriller/ half Tennessee Williams, this movie is clever, funny and has an ending that actually surprised me -a rarity.

And if that doesn't do it for you, Jennifer Connelly (who is so sweet in this movie, you actually cheer on Johnson when he... No, I won't spoil it.) does have a jaw-dropping topless scene on the beach. I recommend watching the WHOLE movie though.

This is an interesting, if not sleazy portrait of Don Johnson as a small time hustler and literal "used car" salesman out for the BBD(Bigger,Better,Deal)Simultaneously waltzing the town pump,town bank,town virgin, and town porn king, Don goes from one bad thing to another. I have to say that Jennifer Connnelly-although in a limited role, is breathtaking as the town ingenue. There is just the right touch of confusion and mytery here to make this an enjoyable and provocotive movie.

Oh, yeah, she's in this too, isn't she? Let's see... The brunette, yeah.

Good. Now that we've got that out of the way, let's get serious and admit that Virginia Madsen is this film's proper eye candy. Yes, my enduring weakness for brassy blondes makes my opinion biased, but can anyone deny that Madsen dominates the rectangle whenever she's in view? Yes, yes, I know, the performance is cartoonish, camp, comical--I'm pretty sure that's what the role calls for--Barbara Stanwick on steroids--but she slides into the femme fatale with ease, has fun with it, and even gives it some depth, some mystery, a hint of pathos.

Have fun counting the number of times she uses a body double for the nude scenes. (Hint: The camera follows her as she runs behind a tree beside the old mill, late at night. Is that really Virginia running out the other side?)

Have fun with the her bizarre lines: ("I'm f---ing you to death, George!")

Truly a great, ham-it-up performance by a versatile actress who never really got her due.

Not to detract from Don Johnson's performance. He's almost perfectly cast here.