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Show Unusual Suspects | Christopher McQua rrie twists the crime caper _ genre—mostly for th je better—in The Way of the Gun» By Scott Renshaw ~ he Way of the Gun—the dire cting debut by Oscar-winning sct eenwriter Christopher McQuarrie (The Us al Suspects)—opens the way you al} Ways hope a film will open: with so n huch energy and potential that the w! hole theater seems electrified. In that op ening,.a pair of career criminals identifies H simply as “Parker” (Ryan Phillippe) and “Longbaugh” (Benicio Del Toro) perch on the hood of a car in a nightclub parking lot, drawing the ire of the car’s ¢ bwner aad his loud-mouthed female cc pmpanion. The scene is violent, profan e, surprising and hilarious. As a tone-sett Ar, it’s marvelous; as a stand-alone piec e of writing and directing, it’s hella-fun. dubious honor). The only reason it’s not is a fundamental narrative miscalculation on McQuarrie’s part: There’s no good reason for Parker and Longbaugh to be the film’s ostensible protagonists. The story follows the pair as they launch their latest scheme, which involves kidnapping a nine-month-pregnant surrogate mother named Robin (Juliette Lewis). They know the baby’s biological parents are paying Robin $1 million for the child, so they know there’s money to be had. What they don’t know is that the father, Hale Chidduck (Scott Wilson), launders money for organized crime. They also don’t know that Chidduck can call on associates like Joe Sarno (James Caan), Del Toro and Caan trade notes in The Way of the Gun sperm bank, to the unconventional staging of the kidnapping itself, to the splendid slow-speed chase that follows, McQuarrie twists the crime caper genre 90 degrees at virtually every opportunity. Even playing the Tarantino compari- son card doesn’t entirely do justice to McQuarrie’s ability to throw a wrench into expectations. The connections between the characters become evident only after a bit of reflection; there’s no - guarantee that bad-asses still won’t get . their bad asses kicked, or that those who “From Parker and Longbaugh’s torment of a clerk at a sperm k yank, to the unconventional staging of the kid napping itself, to the splendid slow-speed chase that follows, McQuarrie twists the crime caper g: enre 9 O degrees at virtually every opportunity, yy appear likely to take the most punish- ment might not end up dishing it out. It’s almost never exactly what you expect it to be. And, in at least one case, that’s not exactly a compliment. As The Way of the Gun unfolds, it gradually becomes evident that the true protagonist of the story is not Parker and Longbaugh. That distinction goes to Caan’s Sarno, a veter- an tough guy with his own priorities in Filled with individual momet hts of loopy Creativity, genuinely unsettling violence and wicked dialogue, The Way of the Gun should have been one a { the best films of the year (though in a painfully lackluster 2000, it still has a shot at that who has a knack for dealing with prob- lems like Parker and Longbaugh. For at least the first half-hour, The Way of the Gun is so skillfully rendered that it seems destined for glory. From Parker and Longbaugh’s torment of a clerk at a the whole kidnapping episode. Whilea flurry of sub-plots spin through the film—attempts by Chidduck’s two chief bodyguards (Taye Diggs and Nicky Katt) to double-cross their boss; the manipulations of Chidduck’s voung wife (Kristin Lehman); the obstetrician (Dylan Kussman) with a tragic past—it’s ulti- mately Sarno’s story. McQuarrie, however, never seems aware of that fact. He lingers on Parker and Longbaugh as though they were the modern-day Butch and Sundance suggested by their names, despite the fact that we’re almost never allowed inside the criminals’ heads. ‘ Telling the story largely from their perspective isn’t a celebration of the antihero; it’s a narrative blunder. Is that blunder enough to throw TTie Way of the Gun entirely off course? Fortunately not. The climax at a Mexican brothel showcases both a nerve-wracking episode of impromptu surgery anda __ good old-fashioned shoot-out (with a couple of new-fashioned variations). McQuarrie’s compositions are unusually rich for a writer-turned-director—watch for Mrs. Chidduck appearing in the background and at the edge of the frame—vet he still ends on a kicker of a line of dialogue. The only thing missing from The Way of the Gun is soul, the soul that would have been provided by Sarno as its center. It’s a good film that’s a 90 degree twist away from greatness — the one 90 degree twist McQuarrie didn’t take. 4d er presents... STARE PG) K CI aT USSU OAS ta Hat yrnwm/suriea Rewer TC LENE Ae MeL NCe rien att PARK CITY FILM SERIES 32 |SEPTEMBER 14, 2000]&4 Judith Edelman Friday, September 222000 Fine Arts Auditorium ; Maggie of vendors Saaaiin University of Utah FRIDAY & SATURDAY SEPT 15 & 16 - 8:00pm Jim Santy Auditorium 1255 Park Avenue, Park City Tickets $14 ADV, $17 DOS Tickets available at: Acoustic Music, Local Music, Funded by Summit County Restaurant Tax Intermountain Guitar & Banjo, Salt City CD's ; Ae ee ira MOUNTAIN Meese Orions Music Park Gity; All Graywhale CD’s Locations Sevarice atte Wes Clits ~ at (801) 339-7664 or HOT-SONG. TIMES pore www.mountain-times.com. |