The Quick and the Dead . Tucson Weekly . 03-16-95

The Quick and the Dead

DIRECTED BY: Sam Raimi

REVIEWED: 03-16-95

Sam Raimi, best known for the Evil Dead series, directs this surrealistically action-packed Western (based entirely on a gunfight contest) as if he'd taken the title to heart and slowing down would kill him. Every sequence spills over with visual punchlines, obnoxiously funny zoom-in shots and ferocious one-liners. It's almost too much movie for itself, and protagonist Sharon Stone can't anchor the picture the way it needs; her Clint Eastwood-style sullenness lacks substance. But the gallery of supporting actors, which includes Lance Henriksen, Leonard DiCaprio, Gene Hackman (doing a twisted take on his evil sheriff role from Unforgiven), fill the movie with so much wanton charisma that Stone's performance as the "straight man" actually starts working after a while. It's a weird picture where A-movie and B-movie qualities are blended at such a high velocity that you start to lose track of which is which.

--Zachary Woodruff

Other Films by Sam Raimi
A Simple Plan
For Love of the Game
Hercules: The Legendary Journey (tv)

Film Vault Suggested Links
The Magnificent Seven

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