Backtrack

Dennis Hopper – 1990 – USA

I haven’t seen Backtrack in its original incarnation as Catchfire directed by ‘Alan Smithee,' so I don’t know what, if anything, is all that different.  One assumes that since Dennis Hopper’s name appears on Backtrack as director that this version would be somewhat of an improvement.  Unfortunately, except for a fascinating collection of minor characters being played by various oddball hams that were almost certainly only drawn into the project because of their friendships with Hopper, it isn’t all that interesting.  Hopper plays a hit man who – for whatever – reason decides to protect a murder witness (Jodie Foster) from the gangsters who are out to get her.  On the road together, they fall in love in one of the creepiest and least convincing May-December romances I’ve ever seen in a movie.  Nothing is particularly bad, but it’s not that great either; especially in light of the talent involved.  On the plus side, it’s nearly impossible to not enjoy watching actors like Hopper, Dean Stockwell, Joe Pesci, Fred Ward and John Turturro chewing up the scenery like their lives depend on it.  Even Bob Dylan pops up in an inexplicable cameo.  It’s a little sad to see a frail Vincent Price, one foot in the grave, without any of the depth and poignancy seen in his last film, Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands (1990).  The film doesn’t have any real style, humor, edge or memorable sequences, and that’s a serious problem for a crime drama allegedly directed by Dennis Hopper.