John Dahl Movies
Reserved Montanan John Dahl gravitated toward cinematic stories that bore little resemblance to his peaceful roots and made a name for himself as a superb neo-noir director in the 1990s.Raised in Billings, MT, where his youth included a stint as a Boy Scout with his father as his Scout leader, Dahl studied music at the University of Montana before switching to film at Montana State. Dahl subsequently moved to Los Angeles to attend the American Film Institute. Entering the movie industry however he could, Dahl directed music videos and did storyboard art for Jonathan Demme before he finally got a break when his script P.I.: Private Investigations (1987) was made into a TV movie.
Dahl moved to feature direction with the independent crime movie and his first neo-noir Kill Me Again (1989). Written by Dahl as well, Kill Me Again starred Joanne Whalley-Kilmer as a Mob-scamming femme fatale who cuts a swath through the West, becoming a homage to (and a clever send up of) the 1940s Spider Woman legacy. Dahl hit his creative stride with his next film, Red Rock West (1992). Another dusty Western/noir tale of double-crossing, murder, and adultery, Red Rock West showcased Dahl's eye for atmospheric visuals and sharp sense of humor about the genre. Though Nicolas Cage and Lara Flynn Boyle play the patsy and the lethal seductress to a T, suitably twisted Dennis Hopper particularly stood out as hired killer Lyle From Dallas. Consigned to a cable TV debut by its faithless backers, Red Rock West was rescued by a small San Francisco distributor and it became a breakthrough art house hit for Dahl. Dahl returned to the neo-noir well again with The Last Seduction (1994), this time setting a Double Indemnity-style vamp on the loose in New York City and state. Anchored by Linda Fiorentino's ferociously sexy and funny career performance as the most fatale of femmes, The Last Seduction followed the same route to theatrical success via cable TV, making Fiorentino infamously ineligible for a deserved Oscar nomination.
After suffering a box-office and critical rejection with his science fiction yarn Unforgettable (1996), Dahl returned to the underworld with Rounders (1998), a sleekly shot character study set against New York's private poker clubs and card sharks. Rounders' Mean Streets-esque friendship between law student Matt Damon and self-destructive Edward Norton provided moments of interesting buddy drama (even more interesting than co-star John Malkovich's "Russian" accent) and earned kudos for Norton. Dahl's next foray into noir territory, Joy Ride (2001), however, eschewed in-depth character examination for movie-wise dark highway thrills as two guys and a girl get into deep trouble when the guys play a practical joke on the wrong trucker. Though the film failed to make waves at the box office, critics once again praised Dahl's knack for economical, unironic genre-based filmmaking. ~ Lucia Bozzola, All Movie Guide
- 2008
Dexter and Miguel engage in a series of manipulative moves in an attempt to gain the upper hand; Miguel ingratiates himself further into Rita's good graces by gifting her with an expensive wedding present; Debra questions whether her relationship with Anton is heading anywhere. ~ Ray Stackhouse, All Movie Guide
- 2008
Dexter has a run-in with a pedophile; Freebo is accused of a murder he didn't commit, and Dexter knows the truth but can't say anything about it. Also, Dexter's friendship with Miguel begins to weigh on his mind. ~ Ray Stackhouse, All Movie Guide
John Dahl's mob comedy You Kill Me stars Ben Kingsley as Frank Falenczyk, an alcoholic mob hitman who is ordered into AA by his boss (Philip Baker Hall). In order to clean up, he goes to San Francisco and successfully starts tw12-stepping with the help of his sponsor (Luke Wilson). Eventually Frank gets a job at a mortuary, where he falls in love with Laurel (Téa Leoni). Soon his new existence is threatened when people from his old life start showing up. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ben Kingsley, Téa Leoni, (more)
John Dahl directed this war drama based on the true story of one of the most daring military actions of World War II. In the waning days of World War II, General Douglas MacArthur chose to make good on a pledge that he made in 1942 -- that he would return to the Philippines after he and his troops were forced to retreat. However, MacArthur's determination was more than a matter of pride. Over 500 American soldiers were being held in Cabanatuan, a notoriously brutal prisoner of war camp in the Philippines operated by the Japanese army, and MacArthur wanted to see to it that they made it home. MacArthur chose Lt. Col. Henry Mucci (Benjamin Bratt) to lead the Sixth Ranger Battalion on a mission 30 miles behind enemy lines to infiltrate Cabanatuan and liberate the American prisoners. With the help of Capt. Prince (James Franco), Mucci leads his men on a life-or-death raid against forces known for their savagery. The Great Raid was based on William B. Breuer's book The Great Raid on Cabanatuan: Rescuing the Doomed Ghosts of Bataan and Corregidor, and also stars Joseph Fiennes, Connie Nielsen, and Marton Csokas. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Benjamin Bratt, James Franco, (more)
After forays into film noir, thrillers, dramas, and even documentaries, director John Dahl tries the teen horror genre on for size. Paul Walker stars as Lewis Thomas, a college freshman embarking on a cross-country road trip during summer break to pick up his girlfriend Venna (Leelee Sobieski). Along for the ride is Lewis' brother Fuller (Steve Zahn), a practical joker who uses the car's CB radio to play a cruel prank on a lonely trucker known only by the handle Rusty Nail. The victim of Fuller's gag turns out to be a psychotic murderer and soon the brothers are being pursued by the relentless stalker, who gets his revenge in gruesome fashion. Joy Ride, which co-stars Matthew Kimbrough, was produced under the working title "Squelch." ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Steve Zahn, Paul Walker, (more)
John Dahl directed this exploration of New York private clubs devoted to high-stakes poker, with first-person narration from the film's central figure, law student Mike McDermott (Matt Damon), who loses his entire savings to Russian club owner Teddy KGB (John Malkovich). Mike then turns away from cards, devoting his attentions to his law studies and his live-in girlfriend Jo (Gretchen Mol), who's concerned when Mike's former gambling buddy Worm (Edward Norton) is released from prison. She has good reason to worry, since it takes Worm only a matter of minutes to draw Mike back into poker action. When she learns Mike has returned to the poker clubs, she moves out, and Mike begins to lose interest in his studies. Worm has a pre-prison debt, and the threatening Grama (Michael Rispoli) wants the money. Mike not only indulges the irresponsible Worm, he gets involved in Worm's debts. When Grama demands $15,000 on a five-day deadline, the two buddies go into high gear with a non-stop, no-sleep gambling binge that spirals downward toward an ultimate confrontation with Teddy KGB. Darkened club interiors and New York nights are captured by the cinematography of Jean Yves Escoffier, who moved from French films (the 1991 Les Amants du Pont Neuf) to American movies with the reflective surfaces of Excess Baggage (1997) and the patina of pathos found in Harmony Korine's experimental Gummo (1997). Shown at the 1998 Venice Film Festival and the 1998 Montreal Film Festival. ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Matt Damon, Edward Norton, (more)
Iconoclastic director John Dahl used a screenplay by John Geddie as the basis for this far-fetched story of a man -- suspected of killing his wife -- who borrows murder victims' memories to track the real culprit. Ray Liotta plays Dr. David Krane, a Seattle medical examiner charged with murdering his wife Cara (Caroline Elliot). Charges are dropped because a police officer mishandled evidence. Krane has recovered from alcoholism and is obsessed with proving his innocence. While investigating a store shooting, he discovers clues that convince him that the murderer also killed his wife. Krane attends a lecture by researcher Dr. Martha Briggs (Linda Fiorentino), who is studying a technique to transfer memory that involves injecting rats with the spinal fluid of other rats combined with a serum that she has perfected. Krane steals the serum, breaks into a police evidence room and steals his wife's spinal fluid, and injects himself, even though Briggs has warned that the technique may lead to heart attacks in humans. It's not until Krane has injected himself with the fluid of the store shooting victims that he gets a clear picture of the presumed killer, Eddie Dutton (Kim Coates). ~ Michael Betzold, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Ray Liotta, Linda Fiorentino, (more)
Director John Dahl's The Last Seduction is an updated film noir centering around a seductive, cheerfully lethal femme fatale. Bridget Gregory (Linda Fiorentino) talks her gullible, easily manipulated, doctor-husband Clay (Bill Pullman) into pulling off a $700,000 drug deal to pay off his gambling debts. But while Clay is in the shower, Bridget quietly leaves with the money. She ends up in a bar in a small town where she meets Mike (Peter Berg) and uses him to further her scheme to keep the money and get rid of her inconvenient husband. Linda Fiorentino was championed by many critics for a Best Actress Academy Award nomination, but neither she nor the movie could be nominated since the film had made its debut on cable television. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Linda Fiorentino, Peter Berg, (more)
John Dahl directed and co-wrote (along with his brother Rick Dahl) this quirky and energetic film noir that, after a well-received screening at the Toronto Film Festival, was consigned to oblivion before resurfacing on cable television. When the owner of a San Francisco movie theater, who was a big fan of the film, arranged for a theatrical release, the film clicked and toured the country as an art house hit. The film concerns eternal loser Michael (Nicolas Cage), down to his last five dollars and looking for work. He finds himself at a bar in the town of Red Rock. The bartender, Wayne (J.T. Walsh) eyes him suspiciously and asks him, "You must be Lyle, from Dallas." Michael, eager to earn some cash, agrees. It seems Wayne has a job for Michael, but what Michael doesn't realize until too late is that the job is to kill Wayne's wife for $10,000. Michael heads out to Wayne's farm with the cash to warn Wayne's wife, Suzanne (Lara Flynn Boyle). Suzanne responds by offering to double Michael's fee if he will kill her husband instead. Michael takes the money and tries to leave town, but when a thunderstorm comes up, he runs over a man who was trying to flag him down. The sheriff arrives on the scene to attend to matters -- who turns out to be Wayne. Wayne proceeds to drive Michael out of town for an execution, but Michael manages to elude him. Flagging down a driver on the road who is driving back into Red Rock, they return to the bar, where the driver offers to buy Michael a drink. As Michael accepts the offer of a drink, he realizes that he is drinking with the real "Lyle from Dallas" (Dennis Hopper) who is awaiting Wayne's return. ~ Paul Brenner, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Nicolas Cage, Dennis Hopper, (more)
In his film debut, novice director John Dahl (who would later make The Last Seduction), weaves a quirky tale of love, murder and deception. Jack Andrews (Val Kilmer), a seedy private detective is hired by Fay Forrester (Joanne Whalley-Kilmer), to help her fake her own death in a clever scheme to escape from her mob pursuers, whom she double-crossed stealing money she had been sent to pick up, and are now intent on killing her. There then ensues a series of complicated plot-twists, double-crosses and surprises as Fay and Jack race each other to escape the mobsters, who have found them, and to get the money before the other does. ~ Linda Rasmussen, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Val Kilmer, Joanne Whalley, (more)
- 1987
- R
When newspaper editor Charles Bradley (Anthony Zerbe) makes a call uncovering corrupt Los Angeles cops selling drugs, his phone is tapped and his architect son Joey (Clayton Rohner) is endangered. A detective is killed in Joey's apartment and detective Ryan (Ray Sharkey) is assigned to protect him. Ryan is in league with the crooked cops and tries to kill Joey. Joey escapes but is hit by a car driven by Jenny Fox (Talia Balsam). She takes him back to her place where Joey is nursed back to heath and the seeds of love are planted. ~ Dan Pavlides, All Movie Guide
