Right its time for a new post and this one is a review of a film back in the early 1990's and its the psychological thriller, Unlawful Entry starring Ray Liotta as a somewhat unhinged police officer and how he befriends a married couple and well...things all go badly (OK plot summed up right there!).
Anyway, so after 25 years how is this film nowadays??? Well let's take a look and find out.
And yes the usual warning is coming...
PLOT SPOILERS ARE AHEAD!!!
STORY
OK, so I was being a tad frivilous about the plot in my intro, so here is a bit more thorough look at the story, which begins with a couple, Michael and Karen Carr (Kurt Russell and Madeline Stowe) who live in an upscale apartment in Los Angeles, who's house is broken into by an intruder one night. The intruder struggles with Michael as he get's free, he goes for Karen and holds a knife to her throat and takes her out the back door and pushes her into their swimming pool as he escapes.
Not long after, the Carrs call the police and two officers are sent to their house, Pete Davis (Ray Liotta) and his partner, Roy Cole (Roger E. Mosley) and Pete seems taken by them, particularly by Karen. The following day while Michael is out on business, Karen is awaiting for the police to come around but they don't, so Michael suggests Karen call the station to speak to one of the officers they spoke to. Not long after, Pete shows up at their home and organises the speedy installation of a state of the art security system and as a mark of gratitude, Michael and Karen invite Pete to dinner. After the dinner, Michael tells Pete that he would like to get revenge on the intruder, which prompts Pete to ask Michael if he would to do a ride-along with his partner, Roy, which Michael accepts.
On the night of the ride-along, Michael is taken along several stops by Pete and Roy and at the end of the night Peter drops Roy off the station and tells Michael he has one more errand to run. Pete then takes Michael to a hideout where he has found the intruder that broke into the Carrs home, named Ernie Pike (Johnny Ray McGhee). Pete gives Michael the chance to get his revenge by giving him his nightstick to beat Pike with but Michael refuses, so Pete viciously beats up Pike instead, much to Michael's alarm. On returning home, Michael tells Karen about the night and that he is now concerned that Pete might be mentally unhinged and he tells Karen he no longer wants Pete around them.
The following morning, Pete shows up at the Carrs house and explains to Karen that things got ugly as Pike allegedly resisted him and Michael didn't take so well but he Pete further explains that he now restrains perps with all its takes after he was once shot in the chest when arresting a suspect. Karen however says she is glad that Pete got the intruder and Pete leaves her with Karen now feeling more reassured.
However, on the opening night of a new club, of which Michael is a co-investor, Pete shows up and Michael warns Pete to stay away from him and Karen and that he is a sick guy and he suggest seek help. Pete however does neither and instead starts to make things difficult for Michael as he has a clamp put on his car and cancels his credit cards. Pete even goes as far as to bust in on Michael and Karen's bedroom while they have sex, as Pete claims he was responding to their alarm, which went off shortly before. Michael furiously tells Pete to get out and the following day goes to the police to file a formal complaint against Pete.
Michael's lawyer, Roger (Ken Lerner) advises him to try and bribe Pete to back off trying to destroy Michael's business reputation. Michael then meets Pete and offers him $5,000 to walk away but Pete refuses the money and instead tells him that Karen doesn't feel safe with him (as Pete talked with Karen earlier after he did a talk for the school that Karen teaches at) and she needs to feel better protected. Michael furiously warns Pete to stay away from Karen, prompting Pete to punch him in the stomach and point a gun at his head, threatening to kill Michael, Pete then let's him go and drives off.
Michael then approaches, Roy at his apartment for help, who is initially reluctant but in the end he invites Michael in so they can talk. Roy later gives an ultimatum to Pete to back off the Carrs or else he will go upstairs and tell them what has been going on. Later that night though, Pete and Roy chase a drug dealer on the streets, Leon (Dino Anello) back to his apartment where they arrest him. However, Pete takes his chance to shoot Roy dead and kill Leon to make it look like Roy shot the dealer in the line of duty.
And its from here Michael turns up the heat on Michael and has him arrested for drug charges after the police discover a supply of cocaine at his house and he is put in jail. This allows for Pete to move in on a distraught and vulnerable Karen, so he can replace Michael as her partner. And its from here that Michael must try and find a way to get out of jail and save Karen from Pete's madness.....
THOUGHTS
"Unlawful entry" might be a somewhat cliched thriller in some ways but it is still a pretty entertaining and gripping movie and it was yet another film that capitalised on the concept of the "blank" from hell as there were already a couple of films that year of the same type with Single white female feautring the "roommate" from hell and "The hand that rocks the cradle" the "nanny" from hell. So here we get the ultimate cop from hell in the seemingly charming and likeable Pete, who really has a dark side you wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of.
PERFORMANCES AND NOTABLE SCENES (Warning: this section will contain spoilers and strong language!)
As for the performances well they are pretty good overall as the film's strong cast all do themselves justice in their roles.
And to start off, Kurt Russell is excellent as Michael Carr, who befriends Pete after an intruder breaks into Michael and Karen's house, however its not long before Michael's friendship with Pete turns sour, as Pete's mental instability soon comes apparent.
Kurt has his share of good moments in the film that include the scene where Michael admits to Pete that he would like to get revenge over the intruder that broke into his house. So, Michael tells Pete "I tell you, I wouldn't mind one more shot at that son of a bitch!" and Pete reacts surprised saying "Really?" and Michael says "Hell yeah! I'd like to kick the shit out of him!". Pete says "I'm sure you would?" and Michael says "Wouldn't you?" and Pete says "Oh, I already know what I would do. I'm just wondering about a nice civilised guy like you". And Michael then says "After what he did to Karen, I think all the rules are out the window. I'd rip his fucking heart out!" and Pete smiles and says "Michael, you're a scary guy!".
Then there is the scene where Michael returns home after his ride-along with Pete, which ends on a rather ugly note with Pete brutally beating up the intruder that broke into the Carr's house. And Michael tells Karen "I went with the guys on a few calls. Got to watch them be cops. We dropped Roy off and Pete had a little surprise for me. The guy who broke in here". Karen then reacts surprised "He caught him?" and Michael tells her "He did a little more than that" and Karen asks "The guy's in jail?" and Michael says "Hospital, more likely. I mean he really beat the living shit out of this guy, which is what I was supposed to do". And Michael tells Karen "Pete was showing off for me. He had it all set up, so I could be the big man and nail the guy". Michael, however clearly unsettled by the night stands silently for a moment as Karen asks if he is alright and Michael says "I think our cop friend is a little too tightly wound, that's all".
Another good scene from Kurt is where Michael at his new club, tells Pete to leave him and Karen alone and not to come around anymore, which Pete doesn't want to seem to listen to. So, in the scene Michael tells Pete straight up "Pete. I would like to get something straight here. I'd like you to leave". However Pete instead insists that he should go on trying to protect them both as there are more criminals out there and they are now a target for them. So, Pete says "A friend would be thanking me" but Michael tells him "I'm not your friend. I'm nothing to you. You got that? I think you're a sick guy, Pete! I don't want you around me or my wife!".
So, as Karen suddenly appears, she catches the tail end of their argument and Michael has to tell her he will be with her in a minute. However then Pete gives Michael a look and says "What are you gonna do? Call the cops?" and Michael furiously says "Get the fuck out!" and Pete says "Lower your voice" but Michael shouts "FUCK YOU!! FUCK YOU!!!". Pete however confidentially says to him of his business investor nearby "The pigeon's watching. I hope he doesn't fly away on you!" and he leaves.
Another noteworthy scene is when Michael and Karen have sex in their bedroom not long after their house alarm went off but they are suddenly interrupted by Pete, who enters their room and shines his torch at them before suddenly leaving the room.
So, in the scene Michael furiously get's dressed and storms down the stairs and yells at Pete "Just what the fuck do you think are you doing???!" and Pete, who by now is at the front door says "I was responding to your alarm, Michael". However, Michael is in no mood to listen and he shouts "Bullshit! You tripped it yourself!" and Pete asks "What?" and Michael says "And the credit cards and the boot on my car. You did that, didn't you??!". And as Roy turns up at the front door and asks what is going on, Pete tells Roy it was a false alarm and Michael says angrily "False alarm my ass!!". So, Pete looks up at Michael and says "I'm as embarrassed about this as you are" but Michael enraged yells at him "GET THE FUCK OUT OF MY HOUSE!!!" so Pete looks apologetically at Karen instead, who appears on the stair and says "I'm very sorry, Mrs Carr" before leaving.
So, Michael furiously runs up the stairs and says "This son of a bitch is crazy!" so he runs into the bedroom and dials the phone to talk to his lawyer, Roger. So, as Michael get's through to Roger he says "Yeah, Roger. It's Michael. I'm sorry, I know it's late. How do I get a psycho cop off my back?!!".
Then there is the scene where Michael confronts Karen over her meeting up with Pete for a coffee, not long after Michael tries to bribe Pete, which ends badly with Pete threatening to kill him. So, Michael confronts Karen at her school and asks her "What is going? With you and Pete?" and Karen says "What are you accusing me of? We had a cup of coffee, for Christ sakes!" and Michael says "That must have been one hot cup of coffee!". Karen however insists "If you think anything else happened then your crazy!" and Michael says "Am I? He just put a gun to my head" and Karen shocked asks "What?" and Michael again says "Yeah, he just put a fucking gun to my head! He wants you. He thinks you want him". Karen then responds surprised "I swear he didn't get any of those ideas from me!" but Michael says "Well, he didn't pull them out of the air, Karen! So, what is it? You get off on leading him on? Talking to him about us? About our marriage? Jesus! I told you he's dangerous. What's it gonna take? Me in a body bag?!!".
Last of all is the scene where Michael has been arrested and put in jail for drug charges, as Pete has framed Michael to get him out of the way so he can have Karen all for himself. So, in the scene Michael lies in his prison cell and is visited by Pete, who gloats at him for his predicament. So, Pete says to Michael "I want you to know that she's gonna be taken care of. I know what Karen needs. And isn't it her happiness that we both want? If you could find us, why don't you look us up? I'd love to have you over for a barbecue". And Michael all the time sits silently, rage boiling inside him and he finally looks Pete dead in the eye and tells him "If you go near her....I'll kill you!" and Pete suddenly grins and pretends to be scared and says to him "So, long, Mikey!".
Ray Liotta next is great in his role as Pete Davis, the troubled cop, who at first appears charming and befriends the Carr's but its not long before start to turn ugly as it some becomes evident that Pete is a psychopath in the making.
And Ray has plenty of good scenes that include the one where Pete takes Michael out on a ride-along with his partner, Roy and at the end of the night after Pete drops off Roy, he takes Michael to a hideout where he finds the intruder that broke into their house.
So, in the scene Pete grabs the intruder, Ernie Pike and slams him against the passenger window where Michael is sitting in Pete's car. And Pete says "Michael! Meet Ernie Pike! Come out and ID this piece of shit!" and Michael get's out the car in surprise, he says "You got him! That's him!" and Pete then says to Pike "Did you hear that? You've just been made! You've just been made scumbag!". And as Pike apologises to Michael, Pete smacks him and says "Fuck off! He doesn't want to hear you're sorry. He wants to kick your ass! Guess what scumbag?! I'm gonna let him!". So, Pete turns to Michael and says "Right, let's go!" and Michael, stunned, asks "Are you serious?" and Pete says "Yeah! You said you wanted to rip his fuckin heart out, didn't you?!". Then all of a sudden, Michael feels unsettled as the reality of the situation hits him and he nervously smiles and says "But, I mean that was....just talking...".
Pete then grabs Pike by the throat and leads him toward Michael and he passes his nightstick to him but Michael says "Come on, Pete. You got him. Nice going, just take him in" but Pete won't back off and says "He put a knife to Karen's throat. Are you going to let him get away with that? Come on! Hit the motherfucker! Hit him! Hit him!" but Michael refuses "Hey, no. I'm not doing this!" and he throws down the nightstick. However as Michael does so, Pike manages to run off but not for long as Pete throws his nightstick, which hits Pike in the back and Pete runs up and starts to mercilessly beat Pike, shouting "Motherfucker!" but Michael, shocked shouts "Pete! Pete!! Jesus, that's enough!!" and Pete stops and looks up at Michael with a scary glare.
Then there is the scene where Pete turns up at Michael's new club at the opening night and the two of them have a drink but Michael tells him he wants Pete to leave him and Karen alone. So, in the scene Pete toasts a drink to Michael "Here's to your club, Michael" and Michael says "Pete. I want to get something straight here. I want you to leave" and Pete, surprised says "Michael, what is with you tonight? Why did you even invite me here?!". However, Michael firmly tells Pete "Telling you and inviting you are two completely different things!" and Pete says "Is it because you were up late last night?". And Michael asks "How did you know that?" and Pete tells him "I drove past your house on patrol and saw your lights were on. You went to bed after three" but Michael insists "You don't have to protect us now. You caught him!". However Pete goes on to say "One guy's caught and you think that's it? You saw how much evil shit there is out there. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't try to protect you and Karen?!". Michael now starts to get angry and says "Goddamit, you listen to me, cos I'm telling you, leave us alone!".
Pete then says to Michael "Nobody expects you to be me, I'm a cop. I make my living tackling guys like Pike. You don't. You needn't be ashamed!" and Michael asks him "You think that's what this about?" and Pete says "Yeah. I bet you had one hell of a night last night when you got home. Juices flowing and everything. A friend would be thanking me!". But Michael tells him he's not his friend and he thinks he is a sick guy just as Karen comes over to speak to Michael and he tells her to give him a minute. So, as Karen leaves, Pete angrily taunts Michael saying "What are you gonna do? Call the cops?" and Michael furiously says "Get the fuck out!" and Pete says quietly "Lower your voice!" but Michael is in no mood and yells louder "FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU!!". And Pete leans in on Michael says "The pigeon's watching. I hope he doesn't fly away on you!".
Another good scene from Ray is when Michael meets up with Pete in the LA hills and attempts to bribe him so that he will back off putting pressure on him with his business partners. However, Pete is not listening to him and instead says "I used to work these hills. I knew this lady. She was out walking her little poodle. A coyote comes charging out, snatches up the poodle and takes off. All we ever found of that little doggy was its diamond-studded leash. When Karen first met you, she thought you were different than her gambling father....". And Michael suddenly reacts surprised, saying "What?" and Pete continues "It's interesting how people follow patterns. She doesn't feel safe with you either, Michael. Karen needs to feel protected when those coyotes come charging out of the brush". Michael however now is furious again and he angrily says "Listen. You stay the fuck away from her...!" then Pete suddenly punches Michael in the gut, who goes down coughing. And Pete stands over him and says "Assaulting a police officer?? A nice civilised man like you, Michael?!" and Michael gasping says "What are you gonna do?? Arrest me?" and Pete says "Arrest you?" and takes out his gun and points it at Michael's cheek and says "...I could kill you!" and he let's him go and drives off.
Then there is the scene where (SPOILER!!!!) Pete and Roy chase a drug dealer, Leon, back to his apartment where Roy frisks him and meanwhile that happens, Pete closes the doors and windows, puts his gloves on and takes out a sidearm from his leg. Then Pete aims the gun at Roy and shoots him in the chest and he then gives Leon the gun and says to him "Take the gun...." and Leon, hysterical shouts "I don't want the gun!!" but Pete firmly says "Take the gun....! Go!" and Leon takes it and runs but then Pete grabs Roy's gun and shoots Leon in the back, who falls down dead. And Pete looks coldly at Leon and says "You killed my partner, Leon" and he turns and sits down and looks at Roy, who is lying on the floor, dying from his wounds and Pete coldly says to him "You're not goin upstairs to talk to anyone!" and Roy not long after passes away.
Then we have the moment where Michael is put in jail for drug possession after Pete had set him up and Pete visits Michael in jail as he taunts him about being with Karen. So, Pete says to Michael "Having trouble making bail, Mike? Money's a little tight, huh? Karen's really upset. You really shouldn't have done this to her. She's all alone now. But don't worry, not for long. I want you to know
that she's gonna be taken care of. I know what Karen needs. And isn't it her happiness that we both want? Hmm? If you could find us, why don't you look us up? I'd love to have you over for a barbecue". And the whole time, Michael has been sitting silently in anger and he finally says to Pete "You go near her....I'll kill you!" and Pete smiles and pretends to be scared and says to him "So long, Mikey. You look good in blue!".
And last of all is the scene where Pete and Michael have their climactic fight scene as they struggle with each other at Michael and Karen's home and Pete takes the upper hand by hitting Michael in the face with a frying pan. Then the phone rings and Pete answers it as it is the security firm that installed the system in the Carr's house, And Pete pretends to Michael and says "Thank you for calling. I was swinging a golf club and it went though the... It went through the patio window. It's OK. There's glass everywhere, but it's OK. Yeah, the password's pyramid....". However there is a beat then Pete says on the phone ""No. No, I did not change the password!" and Michael suddenly tells him "I did!". So, Pete furiously puts the phone down and asks "What's the password?!" and Michael says to him "Figure it out, asshole....seven letters! Fuck you!" and he laughs and Pete now filled with rage says "This is gonna cost you, Michael!".
Madeline Stowe next up is also very good as Karen, Michael's wife, who Pete ends up falling for and his obsession with her grows as the film goes on.
And Madeline has some good scenes also that include the one where Michael comes home from his ride-along with Pete, clearly shaken up by Pete's psychotic display as he viciously beat up the intruder that broke into the Carr's home.
So, in the scene Karen asks Michael "Are you sure you're OK? What's the matter?" and Michael says to her "Just I think our cop friend is a little too tightly wound that's all" and Karen asks him "Don't you think you are overracting a little bit?" and Michael says "Not really". Karen then says to Michael "You're upset and I understand, but shouldn't we give him the benefit of the doubt? Maybe he got rough, but you're acting like Pete's the criminal" and Michael looks at her and says "Am I? I was there, Karen. I saw it. I don't care what you think. We stay away from this guy". Karen then becomes annoyed and asks "You don't care what I think?! Fine. I won't bother thinking!" and Michael says "Knock it off" and Karen then yells "No, YOU knock it off! I'm sorry, but I don't share your new found sympathy for the man who broke in here and put a goddamn knife to my throat, Michael!".
Then there is the scene where Karen and Pete go for a beer at a local cop bar at lunchtime after Pete gives a talk to the kids at Karen's school and they discuss Karen's background. And Pete asks in the scene "How did you and Michael get together?" and Karen says "I was a waitress in his first club" and Pete, surprised asks "Really? You were a waitress?" and Karen says "It was my first job". Karen the continues with her story "It was the first job I ever had. The first one I needed. We were kind of well off. My father, as it turned out, had sort of gambling problems. And I, umm... People started coming over and taking our cars in the night. It was kind of a scary time". And Pete then asks her "Did Michael take you away from all that?" and Karen says "Things always came real easy to Michael". Pete then asks a more personal question "Is that why you married him?" and Karen looks a little taken aback and says "I married him because I fell in love with him. This is....I hardly know you and we're talking like this".
And last of all is the scene where Karen and Pete proceed to akwardly make out, as by this time (SPOILER!) Pete has murdered Karen's friend and fellow(ess) teacher, Penny and Karen had earlier unwittingly discovered her dead body and tried to hide her fear from Pete that she knew. So, in the scene as they make out, Karen feels for Pete's gun, which he has stuck in the back of his trousers and she finally grabs it and points it at Pete.
So, Karen in the scene shouts at Pete "Get out!" and Pete asks "What are you doing?" and Karen shouts "You're a sick fucking brutal asshole! GET OUT!!". Pete then walks slowly toward her and says "You're not gonna kill me..." and Karen says "I swear I'll kill you!" and Pete continues to advance "You know this is right" he says and Karen yells "STAY AWAY!!!". And as Pete advances, Karen nervously pulls the trigger but nothing happens, so Pete says "Do it again!" and Karen pulls the trigger again and again and its clearly empty, so Pete hits her saying "You reall think I'd give you a loaded gun, huh?!".
Roger E. Mosley is also pretty good in the film as Roy, Pete's friend and fellow police officer, who ends up his realising that his partner also has a screw loose and it ends up costing him.
I will for time only mention two of Roger's scenes, the first where Michael approaches Roy at his apartment and asks for his help but Roy at first is relcutant. So, Michael says to Roy "Office Cole. Your partner, I went to him. I tried to work things out" and Roy smiles and says "Didn't you know enough to stay away from him? He's playing you. Every time you react, it just get's worse". So, Michael says "So, its cops on one side and everyone else on the other?" and Roy looks at him and says "Yeah. That's it!". Michael then tells Roy "He threatened to kill me last night. How should I react to that? If anybody knows this guy is coming apart, it's got to be you. Come on, man. The guy's after my wife. I don't know where else to go". Roy however decides to just go into his apartment and close the door, but a moment later he opens it again and says to Michael "Come on in".
And lastly there is the scene where Pete and Roy go for a jog together where Roy warns Pete to back off Michael and Karen, especially Karen, who Pete believes he is better for her than Michael is.
So, in the scene as the two of them jog together, Pete says "He doesn't understand. I'm better for her than he is. He doesn't love her. He can't take care of her the way that I can. She needs it!". Roy however tries to dissaude Pete and says "What the hell are you going on about? She's never gonna be yours. You listen to me! Nothing... Nothing is ever going to happen between you and her. She is some fantasy in your head!". Pete then says "You don't know what you're talking about!" and Roy says "I don't huh? You tell me what you were doing with him the other night. Tell me you didn't stick a gun in his face!" and Pete tries to play his actions down and says "I was just playing with him!".
Roy then angrily says "I'm not playing with you! You've got to back off this madness! You've got to put in for stress leave and see a doctor and get your head straight!". Pete then asks "Or?" and Roy says "Or I will go upstairs and tell them exactly what is going on with you. Understand?!" and Pete surprised says "You'd do that?" and Roy answers "You goddamn right!". Roy then grabs Pete firmly by the arm and says to him "And if you don't do it in the next 24 hours, that is EXACTLY what I will do!! Now, you go have coffee with a shrink and it will be all right. You'll see!" and he pats Pete on the back and starts off his run again leaving Pete alone to think over what has been said.
Ken Lerner next is also pretty good as Roger, Michael's lawyer, who helps him out to a certain
extent with Michael's problems with Pete.
Ken has a couple of scenes worth mentioning such as the one where Roger suggests to Michael that he try and bribe Pete to make him back off as Pete is pressuring Michael's business reputation. And Ken tells Michael "Your friend, Officer Davis, called Lurie and asked him lots of questions. How well does he know you? Has he done business with you before? Lurie's pulling his people out. He thinks you're under investigation" and Michael angrily says of Pete "This fucker is ruining me!". Roger then suggests to Michael "You know what this is? Some kind of cop scam. This putz is just supplementing his lousy income. Pay him off". And Michael looks incredulously at Roger and says "Roger, as my lawyer, you are advising me to bribe a police officer???" and Roger says "No. I'm advising you to donate to the son of a bitch's favorite charity!".
And lastly there is the scene where Roger meets with Michael while he is being held in prison for the drug charges (set up by Pete). And Roger says to Michael "I don't think they'll set bail too high. It's not like you're a professional dope dealer" and Michael bemused asks "Professional??" and Roger says "They dredged half a pound of cocaine out of your house. So, I'd say we've got a problem" and Michael tells his problem is real simple in that Pete wants him out the way so he can have Karen.
Roger then says to Michael "Look. This is way over my head. I got in touch with Sam Gershon. He's the best criminal attorney I know. He'll represent you at your hearing". Michael then tells Roger "You guys need to talk to Roy Cole. Davis' partner, Officer Roy Cole. He told me that if anything else happened, he'd help me out". Roger takes a moment then tells Michael "Cole's dead. In the line of duty, in a shoot-out. I talked to his captain" and Michael realises that Pete must have killed Roy and says to himself "Then he wont stop until he kills me". Michael then looks at Roger and says "Get me out of here, Roger" and Roger says "I will. Its all in hand" and Michael firmly says "No, you listen to me. Just get me out of here!".
And last of all is Deborah Offner as Penny, Karen's friend, who is also a teacher at Karen's school, who has a thing for Pete although her affections would never be returned of course!
And Debbie's most notable scene is where Karen sets it up for Pete to give a talk to the kids at school, which he does so and Karen and Penny stand up the back of the classroom watching him. And Penny, clearly into Pete, observes him walk over to a kid in the class who asks to see his handcuffs and she says quietly to Karen "Do you think I can get him to use those on me??".
DIRECTOR AND MUSIC
Finally moving onto the director, Jonathan Kaplan does a fine job here with the film as he keeps the tension and suspense going well throughout as you get more and more engrossed in watching the Carr's predicament and Pete's descent into craziness. Kaplan also was known for having already directed the acclaimed drama, The Accused starring Jodie Foster, who played a rape victim, so this is a strong follow up film to that one although Kaplan's career in films took something of a downturn after this.
As for the music, well its a bit of a surprise this one as it was scored by James Horner but it sounds nothing like a typical Horner scorner as you could imagine as it is a bit more restrained in its use of orchestrations and instead makes use of bass, piano and even some synths. Regardless of that, it is still a pretty good score and it suits the menacing tone of the film very well and shows once again that Horner was one of the best composers of his generation, who regularly produced good work.
FLAWS
As for flaws....yes, Unlawful Entry ain't perfect.
And to kick off, one of the things that bugged me was to do with the whole idea of Michael and Karen even befriending Pete in the first place as a police officer coming to their house, to later follow it up with Pete neatly arranging for the swift installation of a state-of-the-art security system into their house. It just seemed to be ridiculously convenient and pat for the purpose of the film that Pete would be so accessible as a friend to well to-do LA couples! Not only that of course they invite him to dinner and Pete takes Michael along for the ride-along at night. It just doesn't smack of reality in a any way to me and seems pretty daft that a police officer would even get embroiled with a couple to that extent in the first place!
The film is also guilty in its use of the typical thriller cliches such as Pete using his powers as a police officer to stop pretty women for speeding, such as the one in the film, who he later hooks up with her for sex, only to then throw her out the car when he realises he wants to be with Karen instead but can't be. And in that scene Pete tells her "My only problem is with sleazy lowlife whores like you!" and he throws her out the car, its a pretty contrived scene in itself.
Then there is of course the whole thing of the dead fake-out of Pete where (SPOILER!!) in their struggle near the end, Michael punches Pete down a flight of stairs and he lands heavily on his side, going limp, and Michael prods at him with Pete's gun, and Pete looks dead only to spring up alive a few moments later! Its a cliche that's been done to death in so many thriller films and its a pretty obvious one here.
Another cliche is also of course the whole fake-out of Pete pretending to go away from the Carr house when he turns up at the locked door with Penny inside, she is reluctant to let him in, so he leaves some groceries for her to pick up later. So, Penny does the usual thing of opening the door to take them in only for Pete to suddenly grab her and well...you know the rest!
I also thought it was pretty vague as to what Michael's job actually was in the film also but from what I gather, he was some sort of property developer as he would invest in doing up new clubs, however this is never explicitly stated in the film. And this is something of a bugbear for me in films where character's parts are poorly written in certain areas and their background of Michael's profession is certainly a bit ropey here.
And last of all I'd say it was also pretty silly how Roger, Michael's lawyer, was willing to sell his house just to bail him out of jail. I mean the guy is a pretty understanding lawyer is all I'm going to say! Michael of course had extenuating circumstances with his arrest and jail time but even so, Roger is going homeless for this guy and doing it rather willingly! You would think as a lawyer he would have a spare 250 grand behind him somewhere! ;-)
Anyway that's it for the flaws.
SUM UP
So to sum up, Unlawful Entry after 25 years, is still a gripping and entertaining thriller that is well worth checking out, especially for the performances of the three leads, who are all strong, particularly Ray Liotta, who is great as the unhined cop from hell, who stalks the LA couple. Its a film that of course is guilty of some thriller cliches and is pretty far fetched at times but if you can put that aside then there is still plenty to enjoy here in what is a pretty solid thriller.
Right, so that's it for now and I'll return soon with another post.
Till then its bye for now!
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