By Todd Garbarini
I
first became acquainted with director Peter Medak’s work in 1983 when I saw his
1980 masterwork The Changeling, one
of the most frightening ghost stories shot in color. Also known for 1972’s The Ruling Class and 1990’s The
Krays, Mr. Medak made the film noir Romeo
is Bleeding, shot in 1992 and released on Friday, February 4, 1994. The film is told in an elliptical narrative
fashion, starting with the end and going back in time to show us how the
protagonist got to where he is. We first
see Jack Grimaldi in a dilapidated diner, his voiceover indicative of a man
full of regrets who is probably in the Witness Protection Program and forced to
lead a life bereft of any true purpose or feeling. Once upon a time, he was a police officer in
New York City and his partners are comprised of actors we know well today: Scully
(David Proval from Mean Streets and The Sopranos), Martie (Will Patton from 24), John (Gene Canfield from Law & Order), and Joey (Larry Joshua
from NYPD Blue). Unfortunately, his lust for money gets the
better of him and he sells out the criminal witnesses to the Mafia. His wife Natalie (Annabella Sciorra) knows
that he’s up to something and is on to his affairs as well (he dilly dallies
with Sheri, a nineteen year-old mistress played by Juliette Lewis who dances
for him among other things), and catches a glimpse of the secret hiding place
that he foolishly stashes his cash in the corner of the backyard.
Mona Demarkov (Lena Olin) is a Russian
assassin who is out to take down the Mafia that Jack works for. The head of that organization is Don Falcone
(Roy Scheider) who pays Jack to kill her and wants the job done yesterday. Unfortunately for Falcone, Mona is drop dead
gorgeous and Jack weakens in her presence while he is guarding her a dumpy
hotel that the police use to hold suspects. Mona exerts a tremendous amount of sexual power and although Jack seems
to buckle under her spell, the two of them also realize that their couplings
are only business. Jack may love
Natalie, but she apparently cannot give him what he gets from Sheri and Mona,
which is to be dominated. Jack uses both
sex and money as a drug, he cannot seem to get enough of either one of
them.
It’s interesting to note that the film
is written by a woman, Hilary Henkin, who also wrote Fatal Beauty (1987), Road
House (1989), and Wag the Dog
(1997). There is an obvious female slant
to the story as the men are reduced to squirming little gerbils while the women
wield all the power. Even Natalie
momentarily and jokingly turns the tables on Jack while pointing a gun at him. We are not sure if she is kidding knowing
what we, the audience, knows and Jack isn’t sure either. It’s a moment that seems to last a very long
time. After all the craziness that
occurs between this moment and the end of the film, we are right bar at the bar
with Jack as he waits for Natalie to show, and we cannot help but wonder if she
ever will.
Much of the covert action takes place
at night where the probability of being discovered is high. There are moments of questionable judgment,
such as Mona forcing Jack to dig a grave for Falcone in full view of the
Brooklyn Bridge and nearby building complexes, and Jack digging through his
money while any of his neighbors could easily see him. The late Mr. Scheider, who appeared in
a slew of terrific films in the 1970’s (Klute,
The French Connection, The Seven-Ups, Jaws, Marathon Man, Sorcerer, Jaws 2, All
That Jazz), is one of my favorite actors but he is unusually stiff in the
role of mobster Falcone. He also didn’t
look well, as his death from Multiple Myeloma in 2008 confirmed that he was
probably sick for some time. The late Dennis
Farina, on the other hand, after having played Jimmy Serrano in Martin Brest’s brilliant
1988 comedy Midnight Run, does a
funny turn as a mobster turncoat in the single scene that he appears in.
I liked Romeo is Bleeding far more than I did in 1994. I was very naïve about mob life at the time
and how the police handle such matters, so after my graduation from The Sopranos the plot is far more obvious
than it was twenty-two years ago. The
new limited edition (3,000 units) Blu-ray from Twilight Time boasts a really nice transfer. However, if you are looking for a special feature-laden
set, this is not it. Aside from a
booklet with a nice essay from Julie Kirgo and an isolated score, this is a
very slim package. I love running
commentaries and would have enjoyed one from director Medak who provided an
informative feature-length commentary on the Dutch DVD release of The Changeling.
Click here to order from Screen Archives.