Synopsis
A detective investigates a series of murders that he begins to suspect are being committed by a woman involved in prostitution and narcotics trafficking.
1991 Directed by Paul Ziller
A detective investigates a series of murders that he begins to suspect are being committed by a woman involved in prostitution and narcotics trafficking.
Sax blares full throttle in the intro as a lady in lingerie gets dressed slo-mo, silhouetted by dark shadows splayed onto the wall, hell yeah. Later, there's a shot of her hose inseam while she walks across a marble lobby floor as Peruvian pipes tintinnabulate. Later still, she appears at the top of a blinding white stairway in a bright white negligee matching the white walls as the sax player blares his damnfool head off. A guy fights another guy wearing a bathrobe to wailin' electric guitar and a cat runs through the fray (foreshadowing). Dame gets emotional while applying lipstick and makes a Joker smear. A characteristically quirky, fun and stylish vintage thriller—I mean, just look at the trailer:…
Videotheken-Massenware aus den 90ern, genaugenommen von 1991, die ein wenig auf der damaligen Erotik-Thriller-Welle mitschwimmen wollte, sich aber leider inhaltlich und inszenatorisch leidiglich in der unteren Liga einordnet.
Zudem reichte auch das Budget dieser kanadischen Produktion nicht dafür, den Film kinotauglich zu machen. Damit landete er in den USA im Kabelfernsehen und bei uns dann eben auf Video.
Seither gab es auch kaum Bestrebungen, den Streifen "wiederzubeleben" und ihn auf einem der aktuellen Medien auszuwerten, denn dazu fehlen ihm einfach an allen Ecken und Enden die Schauwerte!
Einen Grund gibt es dann aber doch, hier trotzdem einen zweiten Blick zu riskieren, was dann anbetracht der sehr knackigen Laufzeit von unter 90 Minuten auch nicht sonderlich schmerzt: Es ist dies Michael…
Don't get me wrong, I could watch a grizzled Michael Ironside bark at people all day but Deadly Surveillance doesn't really do anything for me. I get that it was probably a low budget film but didn't anyone think to use another set other than the same apartment, which, by the way, was BLINDINGLY white. I had an eye test recently and the optician told me that if I struggle to focus on certain things then I'll need glasses. This film has confirmed that I do in fact need glasses.
This all-but-forgotten Canadian production was marketed as an erotic thriller but barely even qualifies. Fortunately, it does pass muster as an offbeat police drama with an enjoyably shabby Michael Ironside as a cop seeking to bring down a heroin trafficker. Frequent quirky touches and some witty dialogue help you forget that the case and its resolution don't really amount to much. David Carradine shows up for a few mostly inconsequential minutes as Ironside's captain.
This is not the worst erotic thriller I've seen. Michael Ironside makes for a fun to watch lead in this sort of thing. There are some good Doug and the Slugs songs on the soundtrack. I really can't abide anyone who pours their beer over ice.
I think this is the first film on here I've been the first to leave a review on if that says anything. A pretty run of the mill 90s erotic thriller with Michael Ironside (yes!). There's a million of these type of movies but this one is actually pretty good and kept my interest throughout. As a bonus if you grew up in the 90s in Montreal, you'll likely recognize some landmarks around.