[psycho d]

Fear City (1984). By most standards this is not a good movie. My guess is that it was slashed in editing to tame it down to an R rating, and in doing so left us with a hodgepodge of wooden acting and sleaze. Many complain about the story, but Ferrara flicks are more about gritty style than tight stories. It also did not help to follow the cult classic Ms. 45 with the lesser Fear City. Still, the raunchy backdrop of New York in the 80s was captured perfectly, serving as a celluloid annal of a bygone era. The acting was not worth shaking a stick at. The dialog was at times laughable, even entertainingly so. Poor Billy Dee. He must have been horrified at some of his lines. The villain was such a divergence from any sense of reality that he was actually quite entertaining. Of course most of us guys will be captivated with the ample sleaze of Fear City, with almost half of the story taking place in strip joints. A young and oft naked Melanie Griffith was an optical dessert that only added to the fun. For me, the most fun was in the predictability. Abel seemed to delight in making cinematic cliches into low art. Though this is not a flick I can recommend, Ferrara fans should still it a whirl. Merci.
d