Heaven's Prisoners

Heaven's Prisoners Review

Some may be surprised at the 5-star rating, but let's be honest, we enjoy most movies for sheer entertainment and escapism, not erudition. And to the contrary, the 'exposure' scene is NOTHING compared to the overall smoking, steamy tenor of this movie that practically drips from the eyes of Ms. Hatcher and Ms. Masterson, who have no trouble inflicting maximum interest with their clothes completely on. Between the lush, bayou atmospheres and the rampant sensuality, you are then left to enjoy a reasonably interesting crime story, peppered with noirish violence, acts of revenge, mob intrigue, and the generally overtly masculine behaviors of Mr. Roberts and Mr. Baldwin (among others), saying and doing things you just can't get away with in real life, or not for long. So on all these multiple escapist levels, I found it all quite satisfying, as did my girlfriend. It's been popping up on cable recently and we watch it every time. Now I'm going to buy it for what, .79? Two thumbs, way up!

Heaven's Prisoners Overview

A Vietnam vet/ex-detective leaves New Orleans with his wife for a quieter life in Louisiana's bayou. However, a plane crash on the Gulf gets him involved in the world of murder and deception.

Heaven's Prisoners Specifications

When he emerged from film school in the mid-1980s, director Phil Joanou was touted as the next Steven Spielberg, perhaps because Spielberg took him on as a protégé briefly. Since then, it's been "Phil who?" thanks to a series of mediocre thrillers like this one. Based on one of a series of novels by James Lee Burke about a troubled ex-cop named Dave Robicheaux, this film sat on the shelf for a couple of years before finally being released in 1995. Alec Baldwin plays Robicheaux, a recovering alcoholic who has put life on the New Orleans police department behind him--until a plane crashes in the lake next to his house. He rescues a young Central American girl from the wreck and adopts her--and winds up involved in a gumbo of drug running and dirty dealing involving an old pal named Bubba. Tip-off that this movie should have gone straight to video: Bubba is played by Eric Roberts. Redeeming feature (at least for men, who are all dogs, as everyone knows): a Teri Hatcher nude scene. --Marshall Fine

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*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Sep 26, 2010 00:32:06