The art-house film Straight To Hell Straight To Hell Returns (1987) attracted me with its unusual cast. There’s punk rock legend Joe Strummer, The Pogues as a Mexican gang, Jim Jarmusch, Elvis Costello, Grace Jones, Dennis Hopper and even Courtney Love. Not every movie can boast of such stardom. It remained to find out if there was anything else remarkable in it besides the participants. Straight To Hell is positioned as a punk-rockabilly cowboy-gangster spaghetti western. Few places you will find such a vinaigrette, it even sounds trashy.
The main characters are three hapless bandits. Norwood (Cy Richardson) this is Forest Whitaker and Samuel L. Jackson in one person. There’s a reason Jules from Pulp Fiction dressed the same as Norwood. And the murder scene in the hotel also resembles Pulp Fiction, which, however, is still 8 years away. Willie (Dick Rood) – with a rockabilly-grisera hairstyle, cute and quite clean. A romantic suffering from unrequited love and a schizoid psychopath. Simms (Strummer) is a punk and a heartthrob, all the girls give him right away, even though he’s still that slob. In general, he is bad as a person and as a friend. Norwood is the coolest and most cold-blooded, cool tough guy. He has a girlfriend, chubby slightly pregnant Velma (Courtney Love), who hangs out with him and his comrades everywhere.
Simms (Joe Strummer)
It becomes immediately embarrassing for these bandits. For the fact that they lose everything at once – both things and money. However, these guys do not need money, and treat them like paper. Flimsy suitcases open, bills are blown by the wind and like hell someone will rush to collect them. Hey, then why rob banks, risking your life? And it’s a shame that they get drunk almost to a pig squeal, and in general they behave disgustingly. It’s not a shame only for their shooting abilities.
Mexican gang McMahons (obviously a reference to the formal leader Shane McGowan) this is The Pogues in full force. In the town, coffee is held in high esteem instead of alcohol. Bandits carry an espresso machine with them and even make coffee breaks in shootouts.
- What brings such murderers to the city? - Blood, money, sex!
The script was written by Alex Cox and Dick Rood. There was even a “sex and cruelty consultant” among the crew, one Martin Taylor. Costumes deserve a separate curtsy, Pam Tate was responsible for them. The characters were written for actors, there’s such a near-musical party. I think all 4 weeks while the film was being shot, everyone had a good time. The Pogues were going to go on tour, but they didn’t find the money for it, and therefore all the musicians were free. Director Alex Cox refused to shoot Three Amigos (Three Amigos) according to the script by Steve Martin and instead shot such an art house Straight To Hell. In fact, this is a tribute and homage to Sergio Leone’s spaghetti westerns. Cox subsequently hoped that the maestro had seen his film at one of the festival screenings. The film was shot in Almeria, Spain – just where Leone’s western hits were shot. In these surreal landscapes of Andalusia, “Lawrence of Arabia”, “The Good, the Bad, the Evil”, films about Django and others were created. The harmonica, which sounded in one of the first episodes, refers us to the character of Charles Bronson from “Once upon a Time in the Wild West.”
The local theater of absurdity and madness is somewhat reminiscent of Fellini’s characters. At first, the film seems to be frankly boring, stretches boring, looks difficult. Only cute girls, colorful bandits and the authentic atmosphere of wild wild west, coupled with good camera work, do not allow it to be turned off. However, by the end Straight To Hell is swinging and the last half hour is a real pleasure. And a pleasant aftertaste. The 1987 version of “Straight to Hell” was called Straight To Hell, as was one of Strummer’s songs (which, however, is not in the film), and Straight To Hell Returns, Hell Returns, is, as I understand it, the 2010 director’s version, which lasts 91 minutes, which is 5 minutes longer than the original tape.
You don’t expect anyone to take a bullet when. All people are very cruel, to the point of grotesque, even sometimes funny. Life here is not worth a penny.
“We don’t mind bullets per person!”;
“You look like the guy we hanged yesterday! “I’m his brother!”
There are no positive characters in Hell, everything is rather negative, so when someone is killed, you don’t feel much sympathy. Death here is such a black humor.
Elvis Costello (he has the role of Butler) was the producer of The Pogues at that time. Joe Strummer was temporarily a member of The Pogues and toured with them after recording their most famous song Fairytale of New York. They even added London Calling and I Thought The Law to their repertoire. Dick Rood starred mainly in the 80s in the films of Alex Cox. As a director, he shot several clips for RHCP. Dick was also a friend of Joe Strummer and made a documentary about his last Let’s Rock Again tour. Among the cast of Cait O’Riordan, once the bassist of The Pogues, she married Costello and left the band in 1986, tired of exhausting crazy tours. Jim Jarmusch is gorgeous “Norwood! Don’t ruin the costume!”
Fabiana (Jennifer Balgobin)
The presence of several beauties makes the film very sexy. This is primarily Fabiana (Jennifer Balgobin), as well as Letizia (Sue Keel) and Slim McMahon (the already mentioned Kite O’Riordan). And Courtney Love was pretty pretty then, without the heroin chic.
The soundtrack deserves a separate line.
Here is the band Pray For Rain from San Francisco, Joe Strummer and The Pogues. The same members had previously been involved in working on the music for Alex Cox’s previous film “Sid and Nancy” (1986). Rake At The Gates Of Hell in the end credits passion is so good.
The Pogues – Rake At The Gates Of Hell
Simms: A gun is just a tool, no better or worse than the person who uses it.
Letitia: Just like shoes.
Simms: Yeah, did you watch the World Cup?
Letitia: That jacket you’re wearing has a hole in the sleeve. Do you ever change your clothes?
Simms: The desert is beautiful at night. She’s beautiful, but lonely.
Letizia: I like black coffee on Sunday morning. Black and strong.
Simms: Some people don’t believe in God.
Letizia: Elvis is the King.
