An amoral drifter stuck between a naïve teen and an adulteress in Texas
An unprincipled man in his mid-30s (Don Johnson) rolls into a small town in the greater Austin area wherein he uses his mojo to land a job as a used car salesman. The sultry wife of the owner (Virginia Madsen) shows interest while he has his eyes on a winsome lass at the dealership (Jennifer Connelly), not to mention a nearby bank.
Directed by Dennis Hopper, "The Hot Spot" (1990) is Southern Gothic neo-noir based on Charles Williams’ 1953 book “Hell Hath No Fury” (aka “The Hot Spot”). The original script handed out to the cast was by Mike Figgis, but Hopper changed it to Williams & Nona Tyson’s screenplay from 1962 three days before shooting started. I point this out because the entire first half of the flick lazily meanders.
Take the steamy Southern Gothic of Tennessee Williams, like “The Fugitive Kind” (1960), and mix it with the more modern approach of “Two Moon Junction” (1988) and that’s this movie. It has its points of interest, like the three stars, the sweltering heat of the Deep South, the Hamilton (natural) Pool and the defunct sawmill.
It’s like a Tarantino flick in the Deep South, just without the great dialogues. Meanwhile the blackmail subplot involving William Sadler is contrived and eye-rolling. Hopper originally wanted Mickey Rourke for the lead role and maybe that’s what got things off to a bad start. I should add that Johnson is certainly the king of cool here and I had zero problem with him in the role; Harry is just ignoble and therefore contemptible, although he has an impressive kick-axx side to him.
For something similar but superior, check out Michael Cimino’s underrated “Desperate Hours” (1990), which was released one week earlier.
The film runs 2 hours, 10 minutes, and was shot in the heart of Texas as follows: Taylor (bank robbery), which is northeast of Austin; Luling (old sawmill), which is south of Austin; and Dripping Springs (swimming scenes), which is west of Austin. The sand dune sequence in the opening was shot at Monahans Sandhills State Park, which is along I-20 midway between Pecos and Midway, about 25 miles from the border of New Mexico.
GRADE: C+