I finally saw "To Live and Die in L.A." --WOW!!!

[The Nature Boy]

I'd heard some decent buzz on this one, and as I saw more of Friedkin's back catalogue, I grew more interested. When Circuit City had their 2 for $11 sale a whlie back, I blind bought this on a whim. And maybe it's a factor of low expectations but this one blew me away. It's not perfect, but it might be perfect in its imperfections. Tremendously authentic in feel and great twists in this one, and very much underrated as far as I can see.

Was this a big deal in the 80s? I'm still in awe of this one, wow!

[devilshalo]

Can't say enough good things about this movie. :up::up::up::up:

[Darkfriend]

Very good movie indeed :up:

Mind you, I only saw it once (at the movies) and I still remember

how the "hero" buys the farm in such a fast and realistic way...

[The Nature Boy]

Originally posted by Darkfriend
Very good movie indeed :up:

Mind you, I only saw it once (at the movies) and I still remember

how the "hero" buys the farm in such a fast and realistic way...

Oh man, that was off the charts! Friedkin is just the man for these kinds of things! It was so fresh, but in retrospect its an echo of French Connection and the mysterious shot from Popeye at the end

[Mowork]

Excellent, excellent movie. I remember being totally blown when it was released. The performances and the direction were uniformly great.

I also picked it up during the CC sale but haven't gotten around to seeing yet. Looking forward to it, though...

[wendersfan]

Robby Müller. :up:

[The Nature Boy]

Originally posted by wendersfan
Robby Müller. :up:

He was great, and check out the making of to see how run and gun this was if you haven't seen it. I know he didn't shoot all of the car chase stuff, but you've got to see this rig they were shooting stuff with. I know LA pushes the OSHA limits, but this thing was ungodly. 2 stories of scaffolding rather precariously placed in a pickup truck and zigging and zagging to get the shots as they move down the road. I don't care how secure it was, it was a crime against physics that this damn thing didn't collapse. To a man, the people commented on Friedkin's guerilla spirit and willingness to push real world laws to get a movie made, but this was ridiculous. It' s in the excellent making of featurette(featuring all principles but Tuttuorro)

[marty888]

It's great to see a movie that I've always considered to be unfairly ignored finally finding an appreciative audience!

[ArchibaldTuttle]

Saw this movie for the first time last year, and was also blown away, it's probably somewhere in my top ten favorite movies. The movie had a gritty real feal to it, and at least to me didn't feel as hackneyed as many other similar movies.

[jdslater]

I love this film, but I like alot of films like this from the eighties.

Also love the Chung!

[Hiro11]

Excellent movie: even the counterfeiting montage at the beginning is entire realistic and based on an actual working technique.

[Geofferson]

Fantastic movie. Probably Friedkin's last good movie.

[FiveO]

Also love this flick.

Finally got around to replacing my old VHS tape with the new DVD recently.

[Tarantino]

I saw it last year and really liked it.

[troystiffler]

I loved it. The only problem that I had with it was it's hip, stylin connection to the 80's. Like Manhunter, it doesn't ruin the movie, just takes a bit away. Both were just too hip with 80's mainstream pop culture to stand the test of time. Peterson might as well just drove around a Delorean in both.

For example, say, uhhhh, Fast and the Furious was an acclaimed movie. I know, I know, just imagine... In ten years, young people would slap their forehead and say "did they <i>really</i> listen to that? Did they <i>really</i> dress like that? How silly."

The French Connection hasn't aged a bit. Why? Because Hackman and Schneider didn't have fros and listen to ... whatever it was that was hip in the 70's.

[Dr. DVD]

This one special anywhere else?

[Tarantino]

Originally posted by Dr. DVD
This one special anywhere else?

Huh?

[scott1598]

is this a good blind buy? my store doesn't have it for rental so wondering as it is fairly cheap, but want to know if i will enjoy it if i really liked "The French Connection"?

[Rypro 525]

i'd def recommend it as a blind buy if you are a fan of french connection. the car chase this was the first of many movies where the chase goes on the opposite direction on the road is amazing.

[Johnny Zhivago]

Good film but that Wang Chung mid 80's score just pulls me out... Still, it's definitely worth checking out.

[ArchibaldTuttle]

Half the reason I like the movie is the 80's flavor it has, which would include the (imo) awesome Wang Chung score.