Repo Man **** (1984, Harry Dean Stanton, Emilio Estevez, Tracey Walter) – Classic Movie Review 2090

Writer-director Alex Cox’s 1984 cult action comedy crime thriller offers Harry Dean Stanton one of his best chances which he eagerly grabs in an iconic turn as the veteran repo man named Bud, who teaches a depressed and broke young rookie punk rocker called Otto Maddox (Emilio Estevez) how to repossess cars without getting killed.

That plot gives no impression of the movie whatever as aliens begin to enter this strange and brilliant little  gem of a cult favourite movie from clever, offbeat British director Cox.

With dazzling cinematography from stylish director of photography Robby Muller, it is still Cox’s best film and Stanton and Estevez have never been better either. Tracey Walter is great too as lunatic Miller, who also works with Stanton at the Helping Hand Acceptance Corporation, a small automobile repossession agency.

Also in the cast are Olivia Barash, Sy Richardson, Vonetta McGee, Susan Barnes and Fox Harris. In 2008 Los Angeles Times staff voted it the eighth best film set in LA in the last 25 years. Entertainment Weekly made it number 7 on their list of The Top 50 Cult Films.

British TV shows a director’s cut edited for its 70 or so F-words but with extra scenes that are not in the original release version.

Cox is also known for Sid and Nancy (1986) and Walker (1987).

Harry Dean Stanton gives an iconic turn as the veteran repo man named Bud.

Beloved star character actor Harry Dean Stanton died on 15 September 2017, aged 91. His film career goes back all the way to Hitchcock’s The Wrong Man in 1956. His many career highlights include Alien and Paris, Texas.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2090

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