Movie: "True Romance"
Year: 1993
Rated: R
Genre: Drama
Directed by: Tony Scott
Writing credits: Quentin Tarantino

Reviewer: -RoG-
Posted: 4/2/2008

Plot: A guy who works in a comic book shop meets a hooker with a heart of gold and the two fall in love. After he kills her pimp and steals his cocaine, the two lovebirds make their way out to California to sell the drugs and retire.

Review: Now here is a movie that everybody should see. No, scratch that... here is a movie that everybody should own. There are few movies in existence with such an impressive cast, all of whom were perfect for the roles they played. Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Michael Rapaport, Val Kilmer, Dennis Hopper, Gary Oldman, Christopher Walken, Brad Pitt, James Gandolfini, Tom Sizemore, Samuel L. Jackson, Chris Penn and Bronson Pinchot (go Balki!) all have roles in the film. You'd think with such a big cast like that, it would be hard to give everybody their proper screen time without it appearing to be forced... but the script flows perfectly, allowing each character to deliver extremely memorable performances and I still believe it's some of Quentin Tarantino's best writing to date.

First off, don't let the title dissuade you from checking this film out... this is not your typical boring love story that makes you want to stab your eyes out. It's part drama, part action, part comedy and all fantastic. Clarence (Slater) is a guy working a lonely job in a Detroit comic shop (who also happens to be obsessed with Elvis) when he meets a prostitute named Alabama (Arquette) and they soon fall in love. Clarence gets in a fight with her pimp when he tries to go and collect Alabama's clothes and ends up killing him. However, the suitcase he grabs isn't filled with clothes, it's filled with a whole lot o' cocaine. So, the two of them rush off to California in hopes of making a quick sale with the help of their friend Dick Ritchie (Rapaport), a struggling actor in Hollywood who has a few connections. The cocaine that Clarence takes also happens to belong to a mob boss and now they're after the two lovebirds.

Now anybody who's seen this movie knows that it also contains what many consider to be one of the finest exchanges between two brilliant actors in the history of film. Of course, I'm talking about the impeccable interrogation scene between Vincenzo Coccotti (Christopher Walken) and Clifford Worley (Dennis Hopper). Words simply cannot do this scene enough justice, so I won't even try. All I'll say is that both Walken and Hopper were at the top of their game and you have no idea what you're missing out on if you haven't already watched it.

In the end, will Clarence and Alabama make a small fortune off their cocaine sale and live happily ever after or will the deal turn out to be a bust? I won't spoil the ending for those of you who haven't seen the movie, so do yourself a favor and watch it. You'll be hard-pressed to find a more entertaining love story than True Romance. It's one of those flicks that truly has something for everyone in it.

Overall rating:
(Scored on a 0.5 - 5 pickles rating: 0.5 being the worst and 5 being the best)