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Walker (1987)
Runtime: 1 hr 35 mins
Synopsis: Cult director Alex Cox turns his hand to historical drama--with a twist--in this tale of William Walker (Ed Harris), an idealistic doctor, lawyer, and journalist who, at age 32, leads a bloody and violent invasion of Nicaragua at the request of robber baron Cornelius Vanderbilt. In short... Cult director Alex Cox turns his hand to historical drama--with a twist--in this tale of William Walker (Ed Harris), an idealistic doctor, lawyer, and journalist who, at age 32, leads a bloody and violent invasion of Nicaragua at the request of robber baron Cornelius Vanderbilt. In short order, Walker declares himself president of the country, believing that America has a moral right to "protect our neighbors from oppression." By the end of the film, Cox allows present-day reality to creep in, making the point that this type of savage imperialism goes on all over the world, all the time. WALKER's critical reception was cool, largely because of the deliberate anachronisms (characters are seen reading People magazine and escaping in helicopters) used to equate the story with current political situations, but the film holds up very well. Ed Harris's performance is riveting, the violence is unflinching and to-the-point, and any film featuring Peter Boyle as Cornelius Vanderbilt is worth watching for that reason alone. [More]
Genre: Dramas
Starring: Ed Harris, Richard Masur, Peter Boyle, Rene Auberjonois, Marlee Matlin
DVD Info
Release:
May 2, 2010
DVD Features:
- Anamorphic Widescreen - 1.85
Audio:
- Dolby Digital Mono 1.0 - English
Additional Release Materials:
- Audio Commentary - Alex Cox - Director; Rudy Wurlitzer - Screenwriter
- Featurettes - 1. "Dispatches from Nicaragua"
- 2. "On Moviemaking and the Revolution"
3. "The Immortals:
Additional Product:
- Booklet
Reviews
Walker is the dark, neurotic flipside of Repo Man, where the antiheroic title character is not interested in any form of individual self-expression other than a single-minded pursuit of fame and glory.
Cox and writer Rudy Wurlitzer get the politics right, but don't know how to clearly tell their story without seeming like loonies.
The movie's fierce detractors must have been so disgusted that they weren't even willing to concede its strokes of genius.
Ed Harris in the lead role valiantly tries to make the best of a bad situation, but the cartoon dimensions of the story leave him twisting in the wind.
Some bad movies are in no hurry to announce themselves, but Walker declares its badness right from the opening titles.
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