Brewster's Millions (1985)

It's the only version of the story that I've personally seen, to date, but Wiki states that the 1985 version of Brewster's is the seventh film to be based on the same text, a 1902 novel of the same name by George Barr McCutcheon.
The titular character is a Minor League baseball pitcher who inherits a large sum of cash. The rub is that in order to claim ownership of the loot he must first meet the unusual criteria set by his dead relative: Brewster must spend $30 million in just 30 days and by the end have no assets to show for it.
A money problem approached from the opposite perspective than usual is a fun idea, but in reality it's reliant on Richard Pryor's onscreen personality from beginning to end. Without his comedic talent it would still be a fun idea, but most likely also a more forgettable film than it honestly already is.

2½ flagrant misuses out of 5

Streets of Fire (1984)

Walter Hill's self-proclaimed 'Rock and Roll Fable' is like a pulp novel brought to life. It kicks off with a music performance that encapsulates the 1980s perfectly, but outside of the live venue it's like the 1950s never ended and somehow the two things don't ever seem to be at loggerheads.
The antihero is Tom Cody (Michael Paré), a guy who responds to his feelings but refuses to be ruled completely by them. When it comes to conflict, even if he loses he'll win because of his uncompromisingly independent spirit. When his old flame is kidnapped by a gang led by Willem Dafoe in fetish dungarees, Cody and a couple of hangers-on cross town to take her back.
It's a charming flick with a devoted fan base. I enjoy it, but personally feel that Hill's other famous work, The Warriors (1979), is a lot better.

3 screen wipes out of 5

48 Hrs. (1982)

It’s a 'buddy cop' movie with one San Francisco cop and one smart-talking convict who's given a 48 hour get out of jail pass card. The usual precinct clichés are in abundance, shouty Chief, hookers getting booked at desks and officers shuffling around in the background, but elsewhere it’s less formulaic.
I don’t like Murphy’s attention-grabbing screen persona very much, but I’m a fan of director Walter Hill’s ability to put us into the dramatic heart of a scene without overplaying it or making it seem false, so even though I was kept at a distance by the former I was pulled back into the story by the latter.
In short, it’s an entertaining 80s cop drama in an overcrowded genre arena.

3½ crummy days out of 5

The Driver (1978)

Specifically a driver of a getaway vehicle who hires himself out for jobs, but only if he thinks you’re professional enough to meet his exacting standards. His code has kept him safe for years; he's never been caught. On the opposite side of the law is a Los Angeles detective that wants to change all that.
Keeping the main protagonist (Ryan O'Neal) as an unnamed, rarely speaking, mystery figure works in the film's favour. In that respect it borrows some of its tricks from Melville's Le Samouraï (1967), and consequently will likely appeal to a similar audience. In turn, it has itself been influential to modern film-makers and to at least one video game developer.

3½ player streaks out of 5

Wild Bill (1995)

WB is a Hickok story that acknowledges the embellishments surrounding the real life character and works them into the plot. I liked that. But the shifting back in time via black and white flashbacks is something that I didn't like. It was distracting and made everything feel disjointed.
What drags it down more than anything else, however, is the casting. Jeff Bridges as the marshal with a gun in each hand would definitely seem a good idea on paper, but it didn't work so well onscreen. Likewise, John Hurt is a fine actor but not a good choice for Bill's close friend Charlie. Jane's role is necessary; it's a shame she's annoyingly melodramatic. The worst of all is David Arquette's piss-weak attempt at being the antagonist.

2½ remedies for the restless spirit out of 5

BULLET TO THE HEAD [2013]

Sly Stallone and The Fast & The Furious' Sung Kang drive around killing people in director Walter Hill's Bullet To The Head, an adaptation of Alex Nolent's graphic novel Du Plomb Dans La Tete.
It's pretty much cinematic trash that seems like it was scripted by an uneducated adolescent with absolutely nothing worthwhile to say.  With films like these you would at least expect some sort of thought put into the kill sequences or the one-liners but there is none of that to be seen.  The film is simply void of any appeal whatsoever.

½ headshot out of 5

The Warriors (1979)

When you’re far from home and the shit gets real it’s best to have friends you can trust, but there’s always one guy that has to ruin things for everyone else and more often than not someone else has to pay the price.
It's a B-Movie that resembles a John Carpenter film at times, but if you can laugh at its many flaws it has a great deal of fun waiting to be discovered.
The Director’s Cut adds some unnecessary cartoon styled intertitles and an intro that was supposed to have Orson Welles but sadly doesn't.
See it before the inevitable soulless remake comes along.

4 rumbles on the way back to Coney out of 5