Wrong Turn at Tahoe

I'm not a big fan of Cuba's but he was believable in his role. Miguel Ferrer certainly commanded attention and, in my opinion, was a better overall performance, but Cuba pulled off his character well -a loyal, hardened, right-hand man to Miguel "Vincent".

While it is more of a typical gangster style flick, it does offer something a little different; which is what I think makes this movie work.

I would recommend this movie on a rainy day or if someone asked about it, but I wouldn't call someone to tell them to go pick it up... Possibly good enough for the big screen, but certainly not a let down for DVD.

This is one of those films that flew under the radar... WAY better than I thought it was gonna be .This movie was done well compared to others of similar 'direct-to-video' design. The introduction start dramatic and sets the stage for a action packed gangster flick. The editing was done well with seamless transitions from scene to scene. The story line played out on screen with very few bumps in the road. The cast and crew were impressive especially considering the low budget used to bring this vision to the video store light of day. Honestly, there are times you forget that this is a low budget B flick with consistently great acting by Cuba Gooding Jr

"Vincent" (Miguel Ferrer) is a relatively minor crime boss who is fortunate to have a man like "Joshua" (Cuba Gooding Jr.) looking out for his interests. So, when Joshua learns that a drug dealer has plans to kill Vincent, he relays this information to his boss, and they set out to take care of the problem once and for all. Unfortunately, what they don't know is that the drug dealer just happens to work for "Nino" (Harvey Keitel) who is the biggest crime lord on the East Coast, and he doesn't appreciate having one of his men knocked off. It's at this point, however, that "business" becomes quite personal, and matters get out-of-control very quickly. Now rather than reveal any more of this movie and risk spoiling it for those who haven't seen it, I will just say that this film encapsulated a good story with some excellent performances without expending an unnecessary amount of time in the process. I especially liked the performance of Cuba Gooding Jr., who seemed perfectly cast for this particular role. At any rate, I enjoyed this movie and all things considered I rate it as above average.

I do enjoy a crime thriller and this, even though it went straight to DVD, isn't a bad one. Some great performances, plenty of violence and a pretty strong plot all add up to an entertaining watch (if you like that kind of thing). I'll tell you more of my thoughts after the following summary (summary haters please wait in the car with Joshua; he'll take you for a ride if you ask him nicely).

Joshua is the number one guy to Vincent, a medium sized drug lord and crime boss on the East coast of the United States. He hears, through a third party, that a dealer by the name of Frankie Tahoe is out to kill Vincent. Of course Vincent won't stand for that and they go and take care of Frankie. Now, unfortunately Frankie works for the biggest boss on the East coast, Nino, and he's upset at losing one of his best dealers. They meet and, well, let's say they didn't part as best buddies. After Nino takes his revenge on Vincent the gloves come off and it gets very violent indeed. Of course there is a lot more to tell but I'm not going to spoil it for you.

This is a very dark and a very violent film with some great performances. I thought Cuba Gooding Jr. was excellent as the brooding Joshua who has a dark secret he has been carrying since childhood; in fact it's the best performance I've seen from him in quite a while. Miguel Ferrer plays the part of the, sometimes psychotic, crime boss Vincent perfectly and Harvey Keitel is also excellent, as ever, as Nino.

It's a pretty well made film which, although the budget was obviously pretty small still manages to excite and enthral. It has a very well written script but it is one of those that you have to watch, you can't have it on in the background and expect to follow it. So, if you like a good crime drama and you're not bothered too much by some rather graphic violence, then this one's definitely recommended… otherwise, I would give it a miss.

My score: 6.5/10

WRONG TURN AT TAHOE is a straightforward low budget crime thriller boasting a decent cast, lots of action and incident, and a familiar but well-worked storyline. It's about a small time crook who accidentally bumps off the wrong person and subsequently finds himself the subject of a vendetta by a big shot crime boss.

Such story lines are ten a penny, but WRONG TURN AT TAHOE does well with the material by focusing on the nuts and bolts action of the piece. There's a whole host of well-shot violence here, and a short running time that means the film never outstays its welcome. Plus, the casting of the underrated Miguel Ferrer (ROBOCOP) in a lead role is an inspired one, as this actor gets far too little screen time given his undeniable talent. Okay, Cuba Gooding Jr. is acceptable at best, but Harvey Keitel has fun with a small but grandstanding role.