RED HEAT (1988) 4K / CERT: 18 / DIRECTOR: WALTER HILL / SCREENPLAY: HARRY KLEINER, WALTER HILL, TROY KENNEDY-MARTIN / STARRING: ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER, JIM BELUSHI, PETER BOYLE, ED O’ROSS / RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Some directors almost belong to the era that hosted their greatest hits. Walter Hill is one of those guys. The veteran filmmaker has a host of cult favourites under his belt, making a name for himself with ‘80s underground hits like The Warriors and Streets of Fire. Recent Hill features have lacked the flare of his early hits though. 2015’s Tomboy, Hill’s straight to DVD exploitation hark-back, but its flippancy with transgender issues and blatant sexism dated it monstrously.
Flashback to the testosterone-fuelled ‘80s. Muscle men and Cold War-era tensions created a breeding ground for bombastic action thrillers. Its perfect territory for Hill, whose often sympathetic angles on the more disregarded parts of society lent his films more gravitas than many of his contemporaries. In Red Heat, a KGB agent (Schwarzenegger) is sent to Chicago in order to apprehend an escaped drug lord also being hunted by a local cop (Belushi).
Opening with a brawl in a Russian sauna crammed with sweaty muscle dudes pumping iron, Red Heat promises a lot and mostly delivers. The pop art of that opening doesn’t quite carry through the film though, sadly. Hill has other things on offer than sheer camp action, including his signature interest in the complex nature of ‘80s America.
Aside from the well-executed thrills of a decent ‘cops and robbers’ spectacle, Hill uses the buddy-cop structure to offer a layered look at the cultural tensions of the decade. Stacking the Russia/US political tensions on top of an endearing chemistry between two of the decades biggest stars was a great idea. Schwarzenegger is typically dedicated, superb in the action sequences, charming in the quieter moments. Belushi makes for a surprisingly convincing hard-boiled, if wise-cracking, cop, holding his own in shoot-outs Schwarzenegger could do in his sleep.
In other hands, Red Heat could have been skimpy fun, but Hill brings a consummate idea of place/politics and the film benefits for it, just like a disposable Scorsese/Ferrara feature. The mise en scène of downtown Chicago, the steamy underbelly of the city, and all the people who live there, Hill really captures a sense of life. James Horner’s score blends militaristic classic music with bluesy jazz, pulling the neo-noir undertones to the forefront. Characters who might have otherwise been skimmed over feel like a part of the story, if only captured for a brief scene.
As a buddy comedy Red Heat falls short against something like Lethal Weapon. But as a snapshot of the times and a cops and robbers thriller, the film proves far more able. Hill brings social awareness and a sympathetic angle to US/Russian relations, years before he would make films brazenly lacking in that awareness.
Expected Rating: 5 out of 10
