Shotgun (1989)

Just perfect...

Highly Overrated But Still Good

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

well, where to begin? shotgun is a very low budget buddy film, the value of which will be immediately obvious to anyone with a taste for Hollywood dreck.there's a lot of gratuitous violence in the movie, basically various prostitutes getting beaten by a lawyer/drug lord in a leather suit. additionally, there's the usual shoot-em-up cop violence familiar to the genre.shotgun expects the viewer to take the script at face value. for example, shotgun expects the viewer to experience all the violence in the movie as tragedy. for several reasons this just doesn't happen. one reason is that the acting is non-existent, the whole thing was only shot in 3 days. furthermore, the script is caught, happily for us, between its originality and the limits of its genre.shotgun wants us to to get our kicks seeing someone in Hollywood pick up a prostitute. however its actually not a prostitute, its some girl hamming it up in a 13-year-old's concept of a prostitute as gleaned from TV. and its not a john, its some boring guy barely playing a john. the transparency of the clichés and acting, such as it is, relieves the viewer of the mental challenge of apprehending any subtlety, much to the relief of IMDb reviewers of all tastes.then shotgun wants you to think they're going to a cheap hotel to do the deed. but the guy at the desk triggers a mild altercation as to whether the john is going to buy a condom. so watching shotgun at this point, you're thinking: lurid Miami Vice moment, feeble attempt at realism. maybe. thats what i was thinking, anyway.then, in the confusing scene, having brought the prostitute to the hotel room, the john leaves and the drug-lord/lawyer comes in, dressed in full s+m regale. everyone who sees shotgun for the first time assumes incorrectly that its the john coming back in. the scene is very reminiscent of an edward hopper painting, actually. pretty artistic.so the prostitute says, trying not very hard to be sultry/sleazy: "do you want hips (rubbing her hips) or lips (licks her lips)?" even though its obviously a set shot, its still pretty disgusting right here.who could take this seriously? no one.the lawyer says, "i think lips," and punches her in the mouth (get it?). there is a wailing guitar solo to accompany the rest of the beating. the guitar is pretty much the last nail in the coffin, ensuring that this movie will never return from the pits of self-mockery.so the john leaves the hotel, in the scene's coda, and gives the condom back to the desk and tells him, "i told you i didn't need the rubber." ba-dum ksh.shotgun is basically a few repetitions of this scene, interspersed with plot lines and banter which ape other buddy films. the ending is also spectacular and not to be missed, though few who get 10 minutes into the movie and decide to keep watching will need any encouragement.i would like to say more about how funny the dialog and performances are in shotgun.this is one of the most entertaining movies i have ever seen and i seriously recommend it to anyone who has the stomach for the strongest variety of satire: unintentional.

Shotgun follows the story of Rivington, an evil British defence lawyer who spends his spare time beating up ladies of the night. Along the way he kills one, who's brother happens to be Ian Jones, a tough a LA cop who has a habit for doing things his own way. After losing his badge and his partner Max is shot, Ian has to resort to unconventional manners to hit Rivington hard, at his drug compound in Mexico.Famed for an exceptional performance from the legendary Rif Hutton as Max Bilings, Shotgun' is a textbook example of how to create a virtually seamless action/thriller. Director Addison Randall at one point thought this low-budget movie would never be made as he was forced to work with a very small budget, a short shooting schedule and a studio that was only interested in releasing any many films as possible. However, Shotgun was made and nowadays is accepted as one of the finest action/thrillers of all time despite not receiving the praise it so greatly deserved back in the late 80's. Shotgun was brilliantly written as well as directed by Addison Randall who chose to add very subtle clues as to what would happen that are made more apparent on further viewings. With the added advantage of obvious research into the seedy areas of LA, Shotgun sought to portray the movie is left with a chilling feel of realism.An enchanting soundtrack is blended marvellously into Shotgun which seems to lull the viewer into a false sense of security. Despite the constant foreboding feeling created by the intricate plot and top notch acting, there is a certain playful feeling that is brought about by the elegant soundtrack making it difficult to actually envisage any evil events occurring. One could be forgiven for wondering on a first viewing just where this bizarre little movie is going but the story has a quality about it that can grab the viewer and keep their interest all the way to the double barrelled vengeance served at the end. Rivington in the bondage gear is an image that is now engrained on my mind with all its emptiness and despair. As the curtain falls on this performance (so to speak) it becomes hard not to question the events leading up to the attacks. In some ways Shotgun is an unsettling history lesson that makes itself seem all too real.Stuart Chapin gives a tremendous performance as the Detective Ian Jones, a man with a dirty job that somebody has to do and an abusive and power hungry captain. He played his character convincingly and Ian's eventual realisation of what is going on around him is portrayed so well that it adds more realism to the movie. Chapin was able to take a character that may be a figure of loathing in another type of thriller movie (the brother of a hooker) and make the audience feel empathy towards him. However, as mentioned before, Rif Hutton somehow stole the show playing the relatively small part of Max Bilings. His magnificent on screen presence seems so powerful that one forgets that he is only in the movie for a short amount of time. Added to this great mix was Katie Caple as Tanya Jones, Ian's beautiful hooker sister. Her getting undressed was one of the most erotic moments in a thriller and helped to contribute further realism to the movie. The scenes featuring the clashing characters of Ian and Tanya are both amusing and tense making for some interesting character interaction.Shotgun is undoubtedly a cult classic of the action/thriller genre which I recommend to all fans of action/thrillers. Visually pleasing with some superb acting and direction as well as a fine screenplay. My rating for Shotgun = 10/10

Just like the majority of the reviewers, I caught this little gem late late night (3 a.m) on my local ABC station some years ago. I'am glad that I'm not the only one in the world that has enjoyed this masterpiece. It has all your classic PM Entertainment elements: Hollywood backdrop, angry detectives, car crashes/explosions, unsuspecting hookers, loud screeching guitar solos, machine guns that sound like pistols, but no Lawrence-Hilton Jacobs (j/k). This is probably my favorite movie out of my PM Entertainment video library, the reason, its that damn good!!Stuart Chapin plays a total badass from beginning to end, his theme song just kicks, "Shotgun...Shotgun Jones". Rif Hutton (the KFC guy :) just tears it up as Chapin's partner, Max Billings, later to be promoted to Det. Sgt. Max Billings. My favorite supporting cast member is probably Broadway Joey, his charm and goofy front tooth will melt your heart away, what more do you want from a adult bookstore clerk?Favorite scene is probably the night club scene, with the DJ spinning some tight background beats, the scene builds up to an awesome performance by Chapin (I think somebody should of told that guy in the black sweater that people will notice you wearing the same black sweater two nights in a row, keep an eye out for this guy, very crucial in the movie). Favorite line is probably this one, Det. Sgt. Max "KFC" Billings: "You know the streets are starting to call you Shotgun Jones." Shotgun Jones: "Well its better than what they used to call me."OMG what a classic line!!I think I should stop before I give away all the juicy stuff, if you like "Shotgun" I highly recommend other PM Entertainment videos such as, "Angels of the City", "Deadly Breed", "Quiet Fire", and the Det. Jon "Welcome Back Kotter" Chance Trilogy, "L.A. Heat", "L.A. Vice", and "Chance". Oh, my second favorite PM movie is "The Art of Dying" with my man Wings Hauser, check it out, another gem from the people of PM.I loved all these PM Entertainment movies that I went on eBay and bought as many as I could. My friends think I'm a loser for proudly displaying these movies on my TV shelf. But who cares, friends come and go, but I will always have my PM movies with me!! :D

This one has every tired cop flick cliche imagined -- the partner loved like a brother, the hooker sister who ends up killed by a mask-wearing trick, other street walkers who all look like expensive call-girls and do their stuff to "Gee, is this a porno?" background music, the police command that's always making life difficult for the put-upon, hard-drinking partners (one Black, one White; one married, one single; blah blah blah).For me, the highpoints of these films are those scenes in the Police Chief's office. You know the drill: "I'm watching you, G_dammit! One more dead suspect and you'll be walking a beat in the worst part of town I can find. You're OFF this case, capisce?!" In this regard, "Shotgun" did not disappoint. It kept me happy, too, with the camera work, acting, transitions, plot tricks and, especially, that God-awful heavy metal guitar soundtrack. The only thing missing was one of those moments where the hero cop splashes his face with cold water and stares intensely at himself in the mirror before the cutaway to the next head-bashing scene. But for that, it would be a perfect 10 in that parallel movie universe one enters through the bottom of a bottle of booze.Summary: -10 stars in this Universe. Watch it late at night with an equally drunk friend and enjoy.