Judgement Night (1993)

by Rizzy

I don't know how you find new movies to watch, but I typically get hooked on an actor/director etc. and then branch out and try to find other things they've been in. And lately I've been watching a lot of Entourage so thought I'd check out a Jeremy Piven movie I haven't seen before. I'm going through and I find a little gem that'd gone unnoticed to me in he past, Judgement Night and I pull it up and look at it on Netflix and see that HOLY SHIT this film also has Cuba Gooding Jr., Stephen Dorff and DENIS LEARY!!! This is so making the top of my list and I can't wait to get it. I mean it also has Emilio Estevez in it, but every movie has got to have it's fault, right?

Then the movie comes and I do a little investigating into this film and find the movie poster. Imagine my disappointment when I see it.  Keep in mind I rented the movie originally because of Jeremy Piven and after I see this I'm pretty sure he's not going to make it past the opening scene. Then I realize who our hero is Emilio Estevez (who's driver license lists his name as Francis, which sounds about right in my book) and all I can think is, really? Estevez? Yep, this movie is post "Another Stakeout" and the "Mighty Ducks", but pre "Jerry Maguire," "The Ref," and even, alas, "PCU."  That means that Estevez is the biggest name of the pack. And to think if they made this today, not only would they not make Estevez the lead, this film would be MASSIVE!!

So anyway, onto the movie.  It opens with Francis talking to his wife and child about how he needs to start spending more time at home. She then tells him to go out, cause maybe he'll get it out of his system.  Awesome, this scene basically means that Estevez is going to make it through the entire film so he can have his life changing experience. Damn, I'm crushed and ready to turn it off right away when...

Just in time Cuba and Piven show up saving the day... or at least the moment, in what's got to be some of the most bizarre clothing choices I've seen in awhile.  Apparently ugly vests were the height of style in '93. So with a name like Judgement Night I'm just waiting for the action to start, but instead they do give us some plot before hand.

Of course instead of using the plot time to create interesting characters with each their own unique personalities with plenty of room to grow, we get 4 stereotypes pounded into us over and over again. Piven is a tool overly concerned with money. Dorff is a young punk who likes to start fights. Estevez is the equalizer who likes to keep everyone in check. Cuba is the guy who wants to be in charge, but doesn't think before he acts. Over and over and over again we get to see this.  At this point I'm hoping Leary shows up soon to scare the piss out of these 4 suburban boys. Through a series of lame plot devices they end up in the ghetto and witness a murder and suddenly Leary shows up with his rules, which include "no witnesses."  Uh oh!

Now the game turns into a cat and mouse game forcing the boys through lots of different settings and jumping fences and climbing across buildings and all sorts of other fun stuff. The problem with this movie is it's really trying to be too many things at once. A chase film, a men bonding film, a becoming a man and fighting back film, an action film, a look into the separation of class in our current society, but by doing this it ends up spreading itself way too thin. The idea behind this movie is a good idea: 4 upper/middle class friends get stuck in the wrong part of town and immediately make an enemy.  They spend so much time cramming in as many settings as they could that they lost a lot of possible story and character development.  Every word out of these guy's mouths was a cliche! I mean, I guess I really should have expected as much with a name like Judgement Night, but still with a plot so filled with hope, I would have liked to have seen it go other directions.

All in all, this film wasn't terrible, just rushed and like many male oriented films lacking in content in favor of an overdose of action (as opposed to women oriented films which are of course the opposite). All in all if you enjoy seeing stars before they were, I'd definitely pick this one up cause despite all my mockery, it definitely entertained me for the time allotted which marks it as gold in my book.

Need a little help making it through? Check out Rizzy's Judement Night drinking game.