FORMAT: VHS
Quentin Tarantino’s one-two punch of Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction inspired a glut of quirky, low budget, crime comedies filled with pop culture references and eclectic casts in the ‘90s. After directing those two classics, Tarantino made the ill-advised career move of starring in one with the painfully uneven Destiny Turns on the Radio.
Dylan McDermott stars as a con named Julian who escapes from jail and gets a ride to Vegas with a slick gambler named Johnny Destiny (Tarantino). He reconnects with his buddy Thoreau (James LeGros) hoping he still has the loot from their last heist. Thoreau says it was stolen by a godlike man who appeared out of his swimming pool. Naturally, he just so happened to be Johnny Destiny. Meanwhile, Julian tries to win back his girlfriend (Nancy Travis) from the clutches of a sleazy, low-level gangster (James Belushi).
Destiny Turns on the Radio is one of those movies with a lot of oddball characters and intersecting plotlines, but none of it quite gels in a satisfactory way. There are one or two decent individual moments, but many scenes have little to no comic momentum and/or run on far past their expiration date. Many of the performers are at sea wrestling with the weak material. Allen Garfield is kind of funny as a talent agent and Belushi seems to be having fun, even if he doesn’t get any actual laughs.
The fatal problem is with the character of Destiny himself. He has odd powers, but there’s no real rules to his schtick, except you know… he’s Destiny… or something. I’m sure Tarantino probably jumped at the opportunity to flex his acting chops, and yet he really didn’t do his career any favors by appearing in this mess. Some of his dialogue is pretty bad too. You almost wish he gave himself a rewrite.
AKA: Mister Destiny. AKA: Johnny Destiny.
I thought this movie was an underrated gem personally.
ReplyDelete