Tagarchief: Dungeon Classics

Dungeon Classics #43: Die Hard with a Vengeance

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon’s Chief Editor JK sorts through the Dungeon’s DVD-collection to look for old cult favorites….


Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995, USA)

Director: John McTiernan
Cast: Bruce Willis, Jeremy Irons, Samuel L. Jackson
Running Time: 128 mins.

The Die Hard franchise built its reputation on a simple yet gripping premise: a tough, resourceful cop trapped in a confined space under siege by terrorists. This formula worked brilliantly in Die Hard (1988) and Die Hard 2 (1990). For the third installment, however, the creators sought fresh ground. The script was originally titled ‘Simon Says’ and was considered by Joel Silver as the third sequel to Lethal Weapon (1987). When Twentieth Century Fox refused to sell the rights however, the script was reworked into Die Hard with a Vengeance, recasting the villain Simon as the vengeful brother of Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman’s iconic antagonist from the first film). The result is a high-energy, action-packed thriller, and the best sequel to the brilliant original. John McClane (Bruce Willis) and his reluctant sidekick, Zeus (Samuel L. Jackson), race across New York City, completing Simon’s deadly tasks to prevent a series of explosions. The film balances humor and spectacle better than its predecessors, delivering both sharp wit and explosive action. The chemistry between Willis and Jackson is electric, especially with Zeus’s fiery, anti-white rhetoric adding a provocative edge. Their dynamic is further enriched by a clever nod to their previous collaboration in Pulp Fiction (1994), with a humorous reference to “smoking cigarettes and watching Captain Kangaroo.” Die Hard with a Vengeance proves that even within a familiar franchise, innovation can keep the excitement alive.

Dungeon Classics #42: Sexy Beast

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon’s Chief Editor JK sorts through the Dungeon’s DVD-collection to look for old cult favorites….

Sexy Beast (2000, UK, Spain, USA)

Director: Jonathan Glazer
Cast: Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, Ian McShane
Running Time: 89 mins.

Retired British safecracker Gal (Ray Winstone) enjoys a tranquil life in Spain with his girlfriend, basking in the sun, lounging by his pool, and sharing dinners with a nearby British couple. His idyllic routine is shattered – first symbolically by a boulder crashing into his pool, then literally by the arrival of Don Logan (Ben Kingsley), an obnoxious gangster from London. Logan’s mission: to drag Gal into a heist masterminded by the eccentric Teddy Bass (Ian McShane). Like the boulder, Logan is an unstoppable force, disrupting Gal’s peace with relentless aggression. The film is best remembered for Kingsley’s unhinged performance – a whirlwind of rage, bluster, and toxic masculinity. His character’s relentless pressure on Gal creates an atmosphere of suffocating tension, embodied by the film’s tagline: Yes or yes? There’s no escaping Logan’s demands, and the audience is drawn into Gal’s impossible dilemma. The dialogue crackles with sharp, Cockney-flavored wit, delivering lines like: “Shut up, cunt-louse. Look at your fucking sun tan. You’re like fucking leather man, your skin. You can make a fucking suitcase out of you.” You get the picture. Glazer and his team subvert expectations with the film’s climax, offering a fresh twist on the British gangster genre. Sexy Beast is a stylish, unsettling ride – equal parts sun-soaked and sinister.

Dungeon Classics #41: L.A. Confidential

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon’s Chief Editor JK sorts through the Dungeon’s DVD-collection to look for old cult favorites….

L.A. Confidential (1997, USA)

Director: Curtis Hanson
Cast: Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce, Kim Basinger
Running Time: 138 mins.

Three L.A. cops in the 1950s – three different personalities – each dealing with corruption in their own way. Jack Vincennes (Kevin Spacey) is a celebrity cop, something like the influencer of his day, working closely with tabloid journalist Sid Hudgens (Danny DeVito) and frequently appearing on the TV cop show Badge of Honor. Bud White (Russell Crowe) is an explosive sledgehammer with a particular hatred for abusive men. He’s not afraid to bend the rules to punish the guilty. Ed Exley (Guy Pearce) is the son of a legendary cop who wants to advance his career strictly by the book, which is hard to do in a city with a massively corrupt police force. When organized crime boss Mickey Cohen goes to prison, he leaves a wide gap for new players to move in, and the three leads soon find themselves in the middle of the heat. L.A. Confidential is a true masterpiece: a fantastic recreation of 1950s Los Angeles and an exceptional character study. The three leads, young and fairly unknown at the time, are truly stellar in their roles. There’s also an excellent supporting cast, with Kim Basinger especially stealing the spotlight as high-class prostitute Lynn Bracken. A great movie from start to finish – on the QT and very hush-hush.

Dungeon Classics #40: Killing Zoe

Posted on by Jeppe Kleijngeld

FilmDungeon’s Chief Editor JK sorts through the Dungeon’s DVD-collection to look for old cult favorites….

Killing Zoe (1993, USA, France)

Director: Roger Avary
Cast: Eric Stoltz, Julie Delpy, Jean-Hugues Anglade
Running Time: 96 mins.

Before Tarantino and co-writer Roger Avary struck gold with Pulp Fiction in 1994, both had written and directed a feature. Tarantino made Reservoir Dogs in 1992. While searching for locations for that film, its producer Lawrence Bender found a great bank in downtown Los Angeles which, although not suitable for Reservoir Dogs, seemed perfect for a movie set in a bank. Bender called every screenwriter he knew, asking if they had a script set in a bank. Roger Avary lied and said he did, then furiously wrote the first draft in under two weeks. Although the film is supposed to be set in Paris, it was shot almost entirely in L.A., with only the opening and closing road sequences filmed in the actual city. The story follows a criminal named Zed (Eric Stoltz) – two links to Pulp Fiction right there – who joins his old friend Eric (Jean-Hugues Anglade) and his gang to pull off a robbery during Bastille Day. Beforehand, he orders a prostitute named Zoe (Julie Delpy), and the two immediately click. The night before the robbery, the crew goes out on a binge fueled by booze and heroin. This stretch of the movie drags, but once the robbery begins, the film shifts into the right gear. The heist goes spectacularly wrong, leading to a series of twisted and disturbing turns. Avary, whose filmmaking career never really went very far, proves himself a quite capable director here. Is this on the level of Tarantino? No, it’s too flawed for that, but this is still a memorable, exploitation movie known for its nihilistic tone and merciless violence.