[Ron Temple]

I watched this one in BD last night. There's a thread on that forum, but I thought I'd post here my thoughts. A compelling Louisiana detective story starring Tommy Lee Jones and John Goodman about murdurs past and present filtered under the glass of Bayou backdrops and Cajun drawls. The story while straight forward rarely kept a straight line. Elements of the supernatural crept in and made it interesting. I assume the DVD transfer is great because BD was stellar. There were some plotting flaws, but it was so easy to overlook because TLJ is a mesmerizing actor. This guy is a national treasure. The depth of character he can evoke while keeping his voice in monotone without a change of expression on his world weary face is amazing. There are a host of characters that are intertwined in this mystery. They all play their part and it gets wrapped up neatly in the end, but excellent performances all around. There's a slight twist which adds to the enjoyment. It's a quality rental, maybe a buy for some.

 

[oink]

Watched awhile back and enjoyed.

Although not a buy, definitely not a waste of time.

 

[Gary McCoy]

This is an enjoyable film based on the James Lee Burke novels of Cajun deputy sheriff and detective Dave Robicheaux of New Iberia, Louisiana.


There have been seventeen Dave Robicheaux novels so far. The 1996 film Heavens Prisoners is based on another earlier book in the series. Alec Baldwin starred as Robicheaux in that film. Burke also wrote the book Two for Texas upon which the 1996 historical drama / TV movie about the founding of Texas was based.


Burke is writing about what he knows, he lives in New Iberia in real life, and was born in Texas. In the Electric Mist is a faithfull film version of Burke's In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead. Burke's prose is quite beautifull at times.

 

[Shaded Dogfood]

Did this even get a theatrical release?

 

[Ron Temple]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Gary McCoy /forum/post/16846178


This is an enjoyable film based on the James Lee Burke novels of Cajun deputy sheriff and detective Dave Robicheaux of New Iberia, Louisiana.


There have been seventeen Dave Robicheaux novels so far. The 1996 film Heavens Prisoners is based on another earlier book in the series. Alec Baldwin starred as Robicheaux in that film. Burke also wrote the book Two for Texas upon which the 1996 historical drama / TV movie about the founding of Texas was based.


Burke is writing about what he knows, he lives in New Iberia in real life, and was born in Texas. In the Electric Mist is a faithfull film version of Burke's In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead. Burke's prose is quite beautifull at times.

Thanks for that Gary. I got the feeling that the character was better drawn than most.


Shaded...IDK, I just picked it out of NF New Release list.

 

[Ron Temple]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Gary McCoy /forum/post/16846178


The 1996 film Heavens Prisoners is based on another earlier book in the series. Alec Baldwin starred as Robicheaux in that film.

Is that the film with Eric Roberts as the heavy and Terry Hatcher doing a bush scene on a balcony. If so, then that's all I remember about it

.

 

[Gary McCoy]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Temple /forum/post/16849814


Is that the film with Eric Roberts as the heavy and Terry Hatcher doing a bush scene on a balcony. If so, then that's all I remember about it

.

That's the one. In the Electric Mist is a better film and TLJ a better actor.

 

[Gary McCoy]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Ron Temple /forum/post/16847273


Thanks for that Gary. I got the feeling that the character was better drawn than most.


Shaded...IDK, I just picked it out of NF New Release list.

By some odd coincidence, I had the same feeling about the character. As this thread popped up I'm about 2/3rds of the way through In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead which is the sixth novel in the series. I'm reading the novels in order. Crime fiction is not a particular fascination of mine but this series is a good read.


I can tell you that this is the rare case where not much changed between the book and the film. In fact you will recognize lines of dialogue that survived intact.


One of my oldest friends is a Vietnam Vet and an AA member and I reccomended this series of books to him, as he is an avid reader. He replied quite at length that he was quite familiar with the books and that the Robicheaux character was "an excellant portrayal of an alcoholic in motion".


I do not recall any publicity for this film. But I thought enough of it to use the BluRay in the last movie night I hosted here in my Home Theater, so I have seen it twice so far. It is a sleeper, and there are a couple of minor plot holes, but it has pure entertainment value.


The last time I had such a feeling it was after seeing the Tom Selleck's portrayal of Jesse Stone, Robert B. Parker's alcoholic Chief of Police in Paradise, Massachutsetts. The flawed characters are so much more interesting than the simple 2-dimensional action heroes you most often see on the screen, especially when a gifted veteran actor like TLJ or Selleck has the part.


By the way there is a sixth Jesse Stone TV film in the works. Jesse Stone: No Remorse is listed in IMDB with a 2009 date and "Post Production" status. My guess is they are saving it for the ratings sweeps. I already have programmed it in my PVR.

 

[Ron Temple]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Gary McCoy /forum/post/16850062


By some odd coincidence, I had the same feeling about the character. As this thread popped up I'm about 2/3rds of the way through In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead which is the sixth novel in the series. I'm reading the novels in order. Crime fiction is not a particular fascination of mine but this series is a good read.


I can tell you that this is the rare case where not much changed between the book and the film. In fact you will recognize lines of dialogue that survived intact.


One of my oldest friends is a Vietnam Vet and an AA member and I reccomended this series of books to him, as he is an avid reader. He replied quite at length that he was quite familiar with the books and that the Robicheaux character was "an excellant portrayal of an alcoholic in motion".


I do not recall any publicity for this film. But I thought enough of it to use the BluRay in the last movie night I hosted here in my Home Theater, so I have seen it twice so far. It is a sleeper, and there are a couple of minor plot holes, but it has pure entertainment value.


The last time I had such a feeling it was after seeing the Tom Selleck's portrayal of Jesse Stone, Robert B. Parker's alcoholic Chief of Police in Paradise, Massachutsetts. The flawed characters are so much more interesting than the simple 2-dimensional action heroes you most often see on the screen, especially when a gifted veteran actor like TLJ or Selleck has the part.


By the way there is a sixth Jesse Stone TV film in the works. Jesse Stone: No Remorse is listed in IMDB with a 2009 date and "Post Production" status. My guess is they are saving it for the ratings sweeps. I already have programmed it in my PVR.

I ran through most of the Parker novels at the Sunnyvale library (better library than even the SJ main branch) a couple of years ago. At that time, I was current with Spenser, Stone and his female detective (can't remember her name). Jesse Stone is probably my favorite character. I think there were at least 4 were out back then. When Selleck put him on screen, I felt he was too old. Yet, he speaks Parker's dialog like he's channeling RP and the Stone character. I still have a disconnect regarding a 60yr old portraying a 40yr old character. Still, I enjoy them very much. I've got the last one in que and I'll definitely watch the new one. I don't typically read mysteries either, just a few selected authors...more of a scifi, history/hist. novel guy. I think we are similar there.

 

[gwsat]

I read everything James Lee Burke writes and his alcoholic hero, Dave Robicheaux is one of my favorite fictional characters. Although I read and enjoyed In the Electric Mist with Confederate Dead, upon which this movie was based, I have not seen the film because the reviews were mostly poor and I liked the book less well than most of the other Robicheaux stories. Nevertheless, I have placed the BD in my BB queue based on what has been posted here.


Speaking of Robert B. Parker, he, along with Michael Connelly, is my favorite detective story writer. Parker's prose lacks the almost poetic lyricism Burke sometime achieves but Parker is funny, tells ripping tales, and, better yet, tells them in an economical, almost terse way. Parker's cowboy tales, featuring the laconic but violent heroes, Virgil Cole and Everett Hitch, are also a lot of fun. The movie Appalossa, starring Ed Harris and Viggo Mortensen, is based on the first of the Cole-Hitch series.