Deadfall (1993) - Review

Deadfall (1993) is a crime/drama directed by Christopher Coppola starring Michael Biehn, Nicolas Cage, Sarah Trigger, and James Coburn. After a father/son con scheme gone wrong, Joe Donan (Biehn) must face the aftermath of the death of his father (Coburn). Working with his uncle Lou (also Coburn) and his underlings (Trigger, Cage) for various con and gang-related activities, Joe tries to learn more about the complicated history that transpired between his late-father and his father's twin.

The movie is packed with some pretty strong performances, sometimes even in more ways than the usual positive indication. I remember watching Deadfall almost ten years ago and relishing in the pure chaos that Cage brings to the screen as Eddie King, Lou's right hand man. This chaos is an evolution of his exploration of an irrational mind that is also on display in Vampire's Kiss, a review in which I believe his performance in Deadfall is mentioned. There are quotes from Cage that have become iconic within my friend group over the years that have come from this movie specifically, so the influence that this movie has had on my social life is quite great. Nic Cage notwithstanding, Michael Biehn gives a tortured performance out of Joe Donan, not because of any trauma that the character is supposed to have - of which he has plenty - but due to the very thin script he was likely given. Michael Biehn is a great actor, and it shows, Joe Donan is not a very strongly written character. James Coburn, whose face or voice you are likely to come across in a variety of different projects spanning nearly forty years, is always welcome to be on screen, and Deadfall is no exception. Again, the paper-thin characterization of both Lou and Mike Donan, of which he plays both characters, can only be improved so much by the skill Coburn did bring to the performance. The loss of Eddie near the middle of the movie marks a point where the train had already left the station; without the paranoia that Eddie brought out of other characters' perceptions of himself and the lack of trust he has in others, Deadfall meanders to a slow fizzle. The movie itself is a series of short, disconnected confidence jobs leading to an unsatisfying denouement.

Without being reductive of any other aspect of the movie, but Deadfall shines when it has out of this world characters, and the only one who fits the bill is Eddie King. Nicolas Cage, despite his later objections to how his 'freakouts' have been received, breathes life into the otherwise stiff body of this movie. Once his character exits the story, the movie goes back to meandering without a purpose. I enjoy Deadfall to a certain extent, and there is some serious talent that could lift the movie out of its muck and mire, but a bad story can only be helped so much by strong performances.