"Tequila Sunrise" is a glossy, star-studded, crime drama in which romance, humour and action all figure prominently but it's the intriguing natures of its characters that provide the movie's greatest strength. These people are not to be taken at face value as their motivations are often complicated by internal and external conflicts that emerge because of issues concerned with their most valued personal relationships and situations that test their levels of commitment, loyalty and trust to the absolute maximum.
Dale "Mac" McKussic (Mel Gibson) and Detective Lieutenant Nick Frescia (Kurt Russell) have been close friends since their high school days but pressure has been brought to bear on their friendship in recent years because they've been working on different sides of the law. Mac, who has recently retired from dealing in drugs, is finding it hard to distance himself from the business as the loss of income involved is causing problems with his estranged wife and this, in turn, could jeopardise the amount of time he gets to spend with his young son. Furthermore, his cousin Gregg (Arliss Howard) is continually pressing him to get involved in some new deals and his long-time friend, a Mexican drug dealer called Carlos, wants him to take part in a very lucrative scheme that he's currently working on.
Nick's loyalty to Mac and his obvious unwillingness to arrest him has created tensions in his police work in the past but if Mac has not genuinely retired, then it could transpire that Nick would have no other choice than to arrest him in the near future, especially as his department has received information about a major shipment of drugs that Carlos intends to bring in to L.A. Agent Hal Maguire (J T Walsh) of the Drug Enforcement Agency works closely with Nick and is convinced that Mac is still dealing. The differing attitudes that these men have towards Mac's activities is the cause of continuous conflict between them.
Mac and Nick both fall for the beautiful owner of a high class Italian restaurant. Jo Ann Vallenari (Michelle Pfeiffer) is very cool. sophisticated and measured in what she says but is undeniably attracted to both men. Nick makes the mistake of trying to use his relationship with her to elicit information about Mac and Carlos and this makes her turn her attention more strongly to Mac who she finds to be far more sincere. Meanwhile, a joint operation involving the D.E.A. and the Mexican police led by Commandante Xavier Escalante (Raul Julia) is under way to capture Carlos and of course, anyone doing business with him.
"Tequila Sunrise" is a visual treat with great camera-work, lighting and beautiful scenes such as the one in which Mac and Nick are shown in silhouette against a stunning background. Their darkened figures seem to emphasise the closeness of their friendship because when seen purely as two shadowed profiles, the differences and conflicts between them appear to become insignificant.
Mel Gibson conveys the uncertainty that his character experiences during a period in his life when he's feeling more apprehensive and vulnerable than he has in the past and Kurt Russell successfully makes Nick's mixture of genuine and manipulative characteristics seem perfectly believable. Michelle Pfeiffer displays great poise but is also convincing in showing her emotional reactions to certain situations and Raul Julia and J T Walsh are terrific in their supporting roles.
Not enough attention seems to have been given to the pacing of the action in this movie but overall, it is extremely entertaining to watch and contains some witty dialogue.
Dale "Mac" McKussic (Mel Gibson) and Detective Lieutenant Nick Frescia (Kurt Russell) have been close friends since their high school days but pressure has been brought to bear on their friendship in recent years because they've been working on different sides of the law. Mac, who has recently retired from dealing in drugs, is finding it hard to distance himself from the business as the loss of income involved is causing problems with his estranged wife and this, in turn, could jeopardise the amount of time he gets to spend with his young son. Furthermore, his cousin Gregg (Arliss Howard) is continually pressing him to get involved in some new deals and his long-time friend, a Mexican drug dealer called Carlos, wants him to take part in a very lucrative scheme that he's currently working on.
Nick's loyalty to Mac and his obvious unwillingness to arrest him has created tensions in his police work in the past but if Mac has not genuinely retired, then it could transpire that Nick would have no other choice than to arrest him in the near future, especially as his department has received information about a major shipment of drugs that Carlos intends to bring in to L.A. Agent Hal Maguire (J T Walsh) of the Drug Enforcement Agency works closely with Nick and is convinced that Mac is still dealing. The differing attitudes that these men have towards Mac's activities is the cause of continuous conflict between them.
Mac and Nick both fall for the beautiful owner of a high class Italian restaurant. Jo Ann Vallenari (Michelle Pfeiffer) is very cool. sophisticated and measured in what she says but is undeniably attracted to both men. Nick makes the mistake of trying to use his relationship with her to elicit information about Mac and Carlos and this makes her turn her attention more strongly to Mac who she finds to be far more sincere. Meanwhile, a joint operation involving the D.E.A. and the Mexican police led by Commandante Xavier Escalante (Raul Julia) is under way to capture Carlos and of course, anyone doing business with him.
"Tequila Sunrise" is a visual treat with great camera-work, lighting and beautiful scenes such as the one in which Mac and Nick are shown in silhouette against a stunning background. Their darkened figures seem to emphasise the closeness of their friendship because when seen purely as two shadowed profiles, the differences and conflicts between them appear to become insignificant.
Mel Gibson conveys the uncertainty that his character experiences during a period in his life when he's feeling more apprehensive and vulnerable than he has in the past and Kurt Russell successfully makes Nick's mixture of genuine and manipulative characteristics seem perfectly believable. Michelle Pfeiffer displays great poise but is also convincing in showing her emotional reactions to certain situations and Raul Julia and J T Walsh are terrific in their supporting roles.
Not enough attention seems to have been given to the pacing of the action in this movie but overall, it is extremely entertaining to watch and contains some witty dialogue.