80sfilms

I missed Tequila Sunrise when it was released in theaters in 1988, but I had a chance to see it the following year when it came out on video (remember videos?).

Tequila Sunrise had it all–romance, danger, action, drama, witty dialogue, handsome leading men and a beautiful female lead. And the music…”Surrender to Me” still makes me swoon.

Writer/director Robert Towne (Chinatown) outdid himself in this quiet little tense crime film noir, which starred Gibson as a former drug dealer whose best friend from high school (Kurt Russell) works for the Los Angeles sheriff’s drug detail.

As if that’s not enough to complicate a long-standing friendship, both men also share designs on the same woman (Michelle Pfeiffer), the owner of the Italian restaurant they both frequent.

Gibson plays Dale “Mac” McKussic (Gibson), an ex-drug dealer trying to live the straight life, no thanks to the company he keeps. He and his old friend, Detective Lieutenant Nicholas “Nick” Frescia (Russell), dance around entrapment, and Jo Ann Vallenari (Pfeiffer) gets tangled up in the mess as the men compete for her affection, as well as to see who will come out on top professionally speaking.

The film also starred Raul Julia, Arliss Howard and J.T. Walsh.

Gibson enjoyed success in other films such as Lethal Weapon 2 (1989), Lethal Weapon (1987), Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome (1985), The River (1984), The Year of Living Dangerously (1982)  and Mad Max 2 (1981).

Pfeiffer upped the ante with her performances in The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989), Dangerous Liaisons (1988), The Witches of Eastwick (1987), Ladyhawke (1985) and Scarface (1983), and went for leess-than-stellar in Married to the Mob (1988) and Grease 2 (1982).

Russell also starred in other 80s dramas, including The Mean Season (1985), Swing Shift (1984), Silkwood (1983), The Thing (1982), Escape from New York (1981) and Used Cars (1980) and the comedies The Best of Times (1986), Tango & Cash (1989), Overboard (1987) and Big Trouble in Little China (1986).

Both Walsh and Julia are deceased, but Julia’s work can also be seen in Compromising Positions (1985) and Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), and Walsh’s in Good Morning, Vietnam (1987) and Hannah and Her Sisters (1986).

Putting aside my new-found dislike for Gibson, I think Tequila Sunriseis one of the best crime dramas released in the 80s, and fans of Gibson, Pfeiffer and Russell should definitely check it out.

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