Pink Cadillac

source: Pink Cadillac

Trailer—Pink Cadillac

Clint Eastwood is Tommy Nowak, making his living working for a bond company, tracking down and bringing back those who have jumped bail. The opening scenes establish his character by showing him in action in two different cases. Bernadette Peters has always been a favorite of mine. Here she plays a young mother Lou Ann. Her husband is mixed up with a gang of Caucasian supremacists who are also thieves. It turns out her husband and their friends have a big stash of counterfeit money and, when a raid happens she is the only one there, thus the one arrested. Out on bail, she slips away and Nowak is hired to track her down. This isn't a particularly good movie. The title comes from the car that Lou Ann's husband owns, and which Lou Ann and Nowak end up traveling in. There is a big gun fight near the end. But when it is over it all adds up to nothing much.

Like most people I guess, I'd never heard of this movie (it not getting a theatrical release in the UK). But I like Clint so when it came around on late-night TV... The leads are excellent, the script is witty, but the direction plods. The first third is so slow it almost had me reaching for the off switch. (A Pink Cadillac that runs on Valium, is no fun ride, me thinks.) Still I hung on in there and am not disappointed that I did. Eastwood's attempt at playing "characters" was vaguely cringe-worthy. Let's face it, his best role is playing Clint Eastwood. Even so, he still has enough charm to get away with trying. Bernadette Peters adds subtlety, humor and integrity to her role. The film is well made. It hangs together. It was just never worth a special trip to the cinema. But fine on DVD or video with wine and a pizza.

Q: What's hotter than a blond in a pink cadillac convertable? A: a blond in a pink cadillac convertable with a trunkful of money. So hot, in fact, she's got her hapless husband, his white supremist buddies and a bounty hunter on her trail. This a true screwball comedy, not just because of the absurd situations and unlikely romance, but for its warmth, humor and intelligence. Some of the laughs are pure slapstick, others pure wit, but through it all, the lovers sparkle. Burnadette Peters, probably the best screwball actress of her generation, is a delight as the smart, silly Lu Ann. Eastwood displays a surprisingly light touch as the bounty hunter who gets drawn into the hurricane she's inadvertantly released. If you're looking for the Great American Film, try Citizen Kane. If you want braindead humor, try Dumb and Dumber. But if you want a light, funny, sexy, smart flick, you might want to check out Pink Cadillac.

I suppose this was part of the period when Clint Eastwood was intent on expanding his acting range from just squint-and-shoot. Actually I thought he did OK at it. Bernadette Peters was sooo cute and quirky, like she always is. There was one emotional scene where I cringed at her acting, but other than that once, she was great. The stereotypical white supremacists were laughable. Clint needs to come up with some better bad guys. These were just as bad as the biker gang from his orang movies; in fact, some of them might be the same ones.

I don't consider Pink Cadillac a terrible movie, just one I didn't care for. It is a well made movie, with a beautiful car, a good soundtrack, a few witty quips in the script, Clint Eastwood giving his all to the role and Bernadette Peters all bubbly and fun. On the other hand, I find the film rather dull, with a very sluggish first half, a mostly incoherent plot, characters that don't have much substance and you don't care much, some jokes that feel forced and lethargic direction. Overall, Pink Cadillac was not as bad as I thought, but considering how much I respect Eastwood, both as an actor and a director and a large body of his films, it could have been better. 4/10 Bethany Cox