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Tightrope -
As a fan of movies - noir or otherwise - where the hero fights a villain and their own demons at the same time, this is right up my alley. Making the setting New Orleans, a place that not only has everyone's vice, but also makes each one hard to resist, is an inspired choice. Casting Eastwood as Block is also inspired because he seems like a guy who could resist any temptation - he's the Good in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly after all - so when he can't, it hits harder than usual. Block's descent deserves credit for how gradually the scares and strangeness gets, and speaking of, his final pursuit of the killer is long, but it never becomes dull or runs out of steam, no pun intended. I also love the atmosphere, how Genevieve Bujold holds her own against Eastwood and that there are some good laughs despite the very R-rated material.
Fighting your own demons isn't easy, and as this movie successfully proves, it really isn't easy when your work and home lives make them stronger. The movie is not without its flaws: Dan Hedaya's character doesn't have much personality, and considering the high body count, I'm surprised Block's superiors didn't breathe down his neck more. With that said, considering the rather generic title and the fact that Clint has been in a lot of cop movies, I went in thinking this would be yet another one. It is, however, much more than that.
As a fan of movies - noir or otherwise - where the hero fights a villain and their own demons at the same time, this is right up my alley. Making the setting New Orleans, a place that not only has everyone's vice, but also makes each one hard to resist, is an inspired choice. Casting Eastwood as Block is also inspired because he seems like a guy who could resist any temptation - he's the Good in The Good, the Bad and the Ugly after all - so when he can't, it hits harder than usual. Block's descent deserves credit for how gradually the scares and strangeness gets, and speaking of, his final pursuit of the killer is long, but it never becomes dull or runs out of steam, no pun intended. I also love the atmosphere, how Genevieve Bujold holds her own against Eastwood and that there are some good laughs despite the very R-rated material.
Fighting your own demons isn't easy, and as this movie successfully proves, it really isn't easy when your work and home lives make them stronger. The movie is not without its flaws: Dan Hedaya's character doesn't have much personality, and considering the high body count, I'm surprised Block's superiors didn't breathe down his neck more. With that said, considering the rather generic title and the fact that Clint has been in a lot of cop movies, I went in thinking this would be yet another one. It is, however, much more than that.