Romeo Is Bleeding
One of the first and maybe the best of the wild and crazy so called âTarantino styleâ crime movies was this 1993 release that actually came out BEFORE Pulp Fiction but after Reservoir Dogs, and like Dogs, shared the same propensity for over the top violence and bodily mutilation (i.e. the infamous scene with the copâs ear). It also has elements that Dogs didnât quite have, including a heavy touch of Film Noir up to and including the idea that the main character was essentially doomed (if not physically then spiritually and mentally) and features arguably the greatest example of a âfemme fataleâ in the history of cinema who also qualifies as being one of the most tremendous female villains EVER. The film also draws comparisons to Tarantinoâs work in having a top notch supporting cast (with many of the actors deliberately and successfully playing against type) and in its lead role we have Gary Oldman as a hopelessly corrupt cop who performs a special service for the mafia bosses he serves. Since he and his fellow cops whom he rolls with specialize in surveillance, his servitude consists of tailing federal witnesses under protection and receiving immunity in exchange for their testimony against any number of mafia bosses. After following the witness and his bodyguards to their destination (usually a random hotel room or a safehouse) he then runs to a phone to call his mafia go between with the information on the presumption that a hitman will be dispatched shortly to take care of the actual job, nice and clean and with no more participation on Oldmanâs part since the surveillance and collecting of intel on his watch is about the most involvement he has on the job anyway, rarely if ever having to worry about getting his hands dirty by engaging in any kinds of violence. Moreso, the money he makes from each successful tipoff results in another stash of cash that he can put towards his retirement with his wife (Annabella Sciorra). In addition to his semi happy marriage (his wife has a habit of occasionally pulling a gun on him just so she can see his reaction and wonder why sheâs doing it), Oldman is also having an affair with an airheaded teenage cocktail waitress (Juliette Lewis with blonde hair and surprisingly coming off as being less appealing because of it) in what appears to be the latest in a long line of side affairs that heâs been having. Meanwhile, the last tipoff that heâs called in on an old time mob witness (Dennis Farina) has ended not only with the witness dead but also all of the FBI agents guarding him dead as well, a bloody massacre that has turned out to be quite a big mess. Oldman is approached by his Mafia contact (Michael Wincott) and told that this contract killer has now been apprehended and has also apparently cut a deal to be a federal witness, so when Oldman is given the job of transporting this person to the hotel where theyâre being kept at, naturally heâs expected to call it in again so that itâs business as usual. However, when this âmad dog killerâ (who wasnât really supposed to kill the FBI guys since thatâs something which Oldman insists upon in exchange for his help) is brought in and handed to Oldman, it turns out that this person is an extremely beautiful and sultry Russian woman (and ex KGB operative to boot) named Mona Demarkov (Lena Olin in a performance that deserved serious awards consideration if the character hadnât turned out to be so utterly twisted). Oldman takes one look at her and immediately falls in love or at least, into immediate obsession which is not surprising considering that we find out that she has corrupted at least one FBI agent in the past, an ordeal that literally drove the man crazy and caused him to commit suicide. Nonetheless, one look at her smoldering beauty and even we must wonder just exactly how sheâs managed to rack up such a high body count through more conventional means as well. As soon as Oldman is alone with her in the hotel room, she wastes no time using her beauty to claim his soul, nearly seducing him before the FBI agents walk in and take over at that point. Oldman goes to a phone, calls in the location and figures that this is the last time that he will ever have to deal with her. Problem is, she escapes shortly thereafter and Oldman is soon brought before the big boss to answer questions as to why (Roy Scheider, certainly an unusual choice to play a âgodfatherâ style mafia don who nonetheless makes it completely and entirely his own). Scheider is pretty suspicious of Oldman and for good reason since he too had been screwing Olin and is well aware of her ability to cloud menâs minds as well as her surprising adeptness at killing. At this point, Oldman is directly given the assignment to kill Olin using any means necessary and if not, both he and his loved ones may wind up having a few âaccidentsâ. Of course, since killing is not really his forte but seeing his wife and girlfriend (and himself) being hurt is even less appealing, Oldman agrees and doesnât have to wait long before Olin herself contacts him all while knowing full well that heâs been ordered to kill her. It doesnât matter though because sheâs got his number and she knows it, eventually involving him in a plan to fake her own death while she gets away. So many elements and metaphors are at play here that itâs almost mindboggling especially the idea that Olin has essentially turned Oldman into her BFF âpetâ, barely giving him anything in the way of actual sex but still teasing and tantalizing him just enough that heâs willing to go along with almost anything she asks while Olin herself neatly fills in the metaphor of being THE wrong woman whom one finds themselves in a relationship with (as Oldman certainly finds himself in here at least up to a point) who winds up destroying that unlucky manâs life and spirit and leaves him as a hollow shell of a human being. Those qualities along with the often seen fact that Olin is also a ruthless and efficient killing machine in the very real sense pretty much makes her the most fatal femme fatale ever seen in a subgenre where most women of this type merely use their looks and charisma to lure men to their doom while rarely doing the violent dirty work themselves. But Olinâs Demarkov is the real deal, equally capable of seducing and / or killing any man she so desires with the strong implication being that she is actually rising up in the mob ranks to become a boss herself which is why even Scheider seems to fear her. Meanwhile, Oldmanâs own world is coming completely unglued, practically living like a vagrant because that way it becomes harder for anybody to actually find him. One thing that makes Olin so unnerving here is that when any unlucky male character finds themselves in her deadly grasp, she unleashes a wickedly maniacal laugh, one which gives the impression that she gets off more sexually on killing than anything else, a laughter that continues even when her victim would seem to get the upper hand, but as scary as Olinâs laughter is when sheâs got someone right where she wants them, in addition it serves her well to show off her beautiful smile also. The whole âsheâs too beautiful to be a stone cold killerâ clichĂ© goes right out the window with this performance, thatâs for sure. The film successfully maintains a bleak, nilhilistic tone throughout with the afterthought that Olinâs Demarkov was not only one of many girlfriends for Oldman but also the one who ultimately destroyed what he once was, a guy who in his role of a cop was successfully playing both sides of the law for a nice chunk of change while having to do very little on his part to actually earn it. It even manages to come up with an ending that is just as ambiguous as it is sad to witness (even the question of whether or not Oldman âwinsâ in the end is left open to speculation although what it is that weâre directly shown is actually pretty amusing). Even as we ponder certain issues of just exactly why Scheider assigned this all important hit to a two bit cop whose specialty was in surveillance instead of one of his own best and brightest hitmen or in how Juliette Lewis has arguably succeeded in playing her most shallow and vacuous character ever (and thatâs saying something), the filmâs cloud of doom that hangs over its main characterâs head in the form of a beautiful woman who doesnât care whom she has to destroy (including herself) in order to get what she wants remains indelibly etched in the minds of every viewer who has come across this film, one which even managed to outdo Tarantino in some respects for crazed depictions of insane violenceâŠ
9/10