RACEHORSE SCREENING ROOM

"The Big Easy"

(1986)

Director: Jim McBride

Director of Photography: Affonso Beato

A kind of forgotten late '80s "erotic" thriller with a solid Ellen Barkin, an over-the-top Dennis Quaid as a "Nawlins" cop, and good supporting cast, including Ned Beatty, John Goodman, and others. May have been electric when it was released, but with 30-some years down the road, the movie seems silly, completely lacking any eroticism (the central "romance" never feels earned or real), and descends into boilerplate noir with more humor. Too bad. Bought at Videomatica.