Judgment Night

1993 film where four old buddies in Chicago rent a lavish motor home for a night of partying and watching boxing. After they witness a murder by Fallon, a sinister drug lord very well-played by Denis Leary, a long, tense, violent urban odyssey follows.

Though somewhat dated by its 20 years, JUDGMENT NIGHT is everything a thriller-seeker desires. The simple but focused plot follows the old formula, and it's fairly easy to predict the basics of how it will turn out, but it has plenty of small surprises along the way, and there's nothing too unbelievable. The four friends--one who turns out to be the big hero, one who keeps mucking everything up for everybody else, and two who are kind of in the middle--are a rather cookie-cutter set, but good acting and even better filming keep this film alive.

Interesting to see the young Stephen Dorff in an atypical role as the younger brother of the hero played by Emilio Estevez.

Since seeing this film I've never been comfortable with Denis Leary as a comedian because he's so damn convincing as the cold-hearted bad guy in this. I think he's a great actor but this is the movie to see him in as it's A. His best performance and B. One of the best villains ever in movies.

Leary plays Fallon, a dangerous criminal from Chicago's bad side. And when four middle class pals from the quiet suburbs cross him and witness a murder a chase across derelict landscapes follows. The spoon-fed quartet are way out of their comfort zone and have no idea how to navigate the ghetto or deal with its dwellers. Peter Greene, an actor always like to see, plays Sykes, one of Fallon's cohorts as well as Everlast from the rap group House of Pain as Rhodes. They sure do make a threatening impression.

Judgment Night kind of comes across as a modern, urban Deliverance. There are many similarities between them but Judgment Night clearly has more excitement. Estevez (who was cast very late after Tom Cruise and Christian Slater turned down the lead role), Gooding Jnr, Piven and Dorff play well off each other and Piven especially seems to really get into the whiny runt of his character. Though the editors really should have cut down the in-fighting and petty bickering between the quartet as it often slows the film down to a complete stop.

Director Stephen Hopkins (who also did Predator 2 and Blown Away) uses creeping camera movements and neo-noir lighting to provoke multiple eerie moments as well as a great deal of tension. Slow-mo and warped sound effects are also used to great effect in the finale. Alan Silvestri's score is also one of his best, alternating between several different moods. His first score (electronic based) was rejected by Hopkins but that difficult decision proved be a good judgment (ha!) as the end result is one of the film's best features.

Judgment Night is certainly an overlooked tour-de-force and is a brilliant action film with fine performances all round, but Leary completely and utterly steals the show.

Soundtrack for this movie is one of the first CDs I got and one of the most worn out ones. But it took me more than two decades to finally see the movie too. I suppose I was dodging it because of pretty much bad reviews and, once again, I missed the good movie. OK, it's not masterpiece, but for an action drama it is above average. And music kicks ass!

7/10

Judgment Night is pure 90's action escapism, from a time when the genre had a slick, nihilistic atmosphere. It's one of those 'night from hell' chase films that takes a group of naive, childish suburban dudes and throws the, into the heart of an urban hellhole, pursued by a rabid pack of howling hyena like scumbag criminals through a chaotic nightscape filled with an army of babbling homeless loons, endless labyrinthine project buildings, and seemingly no way out. Emilio Estevez plays a family man who decides to take his hapless brother (Stephen Dorff), his buddy Cuba Gooding Jr., and their letcherous lawyer friend (Jeremy Piven), for a night out in the big city to, see the basketball game, in his giant obnoxious Winnebago. As soon as they enter the old smoke, trouble begins to brew. They witness a terrified fleeing bum get murdered by vicious street thug Fallon (Denis Leary), and his dangerous, leering crew. They themselves become witnesses and are forced to run through a hostile, unfamiliar environment for there lives, pursued by these determined, nefarious psychos. It's a simple enough premise elevated by excellent choice of locations and a well done aura of urban decay and inner city disorder, presided over by goons and gargoyles. Leary is a razor tongued prick, relishing every moment of whiplash violence and aggression. Peter Greene is solid as his second in command. The film has a rowdy, animalistic energy to it and is a good watch for the AM hours when you're a little wired and looking for something to light a fire under your ass.

I've heard this film dissed by so many, and I cannot for the love of god understand why. It has excitement, terrific actors and a totally awesome soundtrack.

Sorry, but to me a film with Emilio Estevez, Denis Leary, Cuba Gooding and Stephen Dorff cannot fail, nomadder HOW lame it is. It just so happens that this film is NOT lame in anyway. You're in suspence from the start to the end.

OK, so there ARE a couple of cliches under the way - this I cannot deny, but honestly, name me ONE film that totally avoids cliches in any way, share or form and I'll glady admit to have been wrong.

This movie rocks, although it is about ten years old now. But I first saw it back when it came out, and to this day I still get carried away in it!