Quicksand (Artisan, 2001)
Picture: B Sound: B Extras: C Film: C-
When two seasoned actors
like Michael Caine and Michael Keaton appear in a film together, yet the film
has no following and hardly anyone has heard about it, so that usually is not a
good sign. Quicksand is a prime example of a film that both actors probably
wish they had not signed up for in the first place and will most likely have no
problem with the film never reaching an audience to begin with.
Michael Keaton has been ducking
the limelight these days and picking strange projects to work on. With exception of his work on Jackie Brown (1997) and Out of Sight (1998) he was virtually
unheard of in the late 1990’s and only did work on something like Jack Frost (1998) and then stooped to
the likes of TV with Live From Baghdad,
not exactly something one would expect from someone like him, even though that
program was a well-done production. In
2001 he did Quicksand, which sat on
the shelf for a while and then in early 2004 was issued to DVD from Artisan,
who seems to get all the scraps leftover.
Michael Caine, on the
other hand, was reported in saying in recent years that he was basically
retired and would only work on titles that were ‘worthy’ of working on. Miss
Congeniality (2000), Get Carter
(2000), and Nigel Powers in Goldmember (2002)
anyone must have been what he meant by that.
Well, that might be hitting below the belt since he has done a few
worthy projects though like Quills
(2000), The Quiet American (2002)
and even Secondhand Lions (2003),
and the upcoming role as Alfred in the next installment of Batman.
That brings us up to speed
with Quicksand, which I felt it
necessary to first mention some of the recent work from these two and to
demonstrate how that differs from this film.
At least those films people have heard about, while this one just sat
around and after seeing it, it deserves to sit around a little longer. Most
will wonder what it was about this scrip that actually made these two actors
cry out, “Pack my bags I gotta do this film!”
If nothing else this movie achieved by making Jack Frost look like a crowning achievement in Keaton’s career and
almost has the ability to erase other rock bottom efforts like My Life.
Oh wait, here’s the
storyline…
Michael Keaton plays the
head of a compliance section of a bank in New York that travels to Monaco to check on certain suspicious activity
surrounding a film’s production. There
he meets up with an international film star (Michael Caine) who is the only person
that can help Keaton prove his innocence because he has been framed for
murdering the Police Chief in Monaco. I
don’t know about you, but I don’t think that Stanley Kubrick could have made
this one interesting, but it might appeal to some…key word: might.
The film is presented for
DVD for DVD in a 1.85 X 1 transfer that look’s pretty good considering. There tends to be a bit of softness that
occurs mostly in the darker scenes and almost gives the film a much grittier
look than intended. The Dolby Digital
5.1 mix is nothing to write home about, but then again, neither is the
film. Most of the directional effects
take up the front channels with the surrounds becoming active here and there. Overall the presentation both audio and video
wise is right on par for a fair release.
The only supplement aside from a trailer is a brief Q & A portion with Michael Caine, actress Judith Godreche, and
producer Jim Reeve. This is a film also
coming from a director like John Mackenzie, which is another reason why it’s
disappointing, but then again he has had a shaky career ever since his
excellent 1980 film The Long Good Friday
starring Bob Hoskins.
Well, if you’ve made it
this far and still have any interest in seeing this film or for that matter,
uninterested, this is the part where I warn you once again about just how
disappointing a film like this is! Let’s
just say if you make it to the video store to rent this one, make sure they are
out of just about every title before checking this one out. Ouch!
The title of the film is almost appropriate, but this sand couldn’t move
quickly enough for me!
- Nate Goss
