Red Rock West

"Where nothing is as it seems."

1993 1h 38m EN

👍

6.8

SOLID

★6.8TMDB · 417

CrimeThriller

Synopsis

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When a promised job for Texan Michael fails to materialize in Wyoming, Mike is mistaken by Wayne to be the hitman he hired to kill his unfaithful wife, Suzanne. Mike takes full advantage of the situation, collects the money, and runs. During his getaway, things go wrong, and soon get worse when he runs into the real hitman, Lyle.

“Where nothing is as it seems.”

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Cast

Nicolas Cage
Michael Williams
Dennis Hopper
Lyle from Dallas
Lara Flynn Boyle
Suzanne Brown
J.T. Walsh
Wayne Brown
Timothy Carhart
Deputy Matt Greytack
Dan Shor
Deputy Russ Bowman
Dwight Yoakam
Truck Driver
Craig Reay
Jim

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: John Dahl
Writers: John Dahl, Rick Dahl
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 31% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

33 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by John Dahl, shot by Marc Reshovsky. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by William Olvis. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Scott Chestnut shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Nicolas Cage and Dennis Hopper and Lara Flynn Boyle carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "Where nothing is as it seems.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0105226 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

John Dahl directs. Marc Reshovsky behind the camera. William Olvis scores. Scott Chestnut cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 31% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
233 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by John Dahl, shot by Marc Reshovsky. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by William Olvis. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Scott Chestnut shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Nicolas Cage and Dennis Hopper and Lara Flynn Boyle carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "Where nothing is as it seems.".
8IMDB entry: tt0105226 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 17 themes, including "vietnam veteran", "sheriff", "wyoming, usa", "hitman".

The technical file

Cinematography: Marc Reshovsky
Original score: William Olvis
Editing: Scott Chestnut
Production design: Robert Pearson
Costume design: Terry Dresbach
Makeup / hair: John Carl Buechler
Stunt coordinator: Dan Bradley
Runtime: 98 min · 1h 38m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $8,000,000
Box office: $2,500,000
Return: 31% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Red Rock West (1993)

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John Dahl

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Steve2016-06-25
★ 8/10
A bit dated looking at it over 20 years later, but still entertaining. A slick neo-noir that helped revive the genre.
John Chard2019-02-07
★ 9/10
All Roads Lead To Intrigue. Red Rock West is directed by John Dahl who also co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Rick. It stars Nicolas Cage, Dennis Hopper, Lara Flynn Boyle, J. T. Walsh and Timothy Carhart. Music is by William Olvis and cinematography by Marc Reshovsky. When a promised job in Wyoming fails to materialise on account of an injury sustained in combat, Michael Williams (Cage) drifts into the town of Red Rock and is mistaken in a bar for a hit-man hired to kill an unfaithful wife. Tempted by the high cash on offer, Michael plays along and promptly finds himself in a web of intrigue from which escape is looking unlikely Welcome To Red Rock/You Are Now Leaving Red Rock. The studio didn't know what to do with it, a neo-noir flavoured with contemporary Western spices. Put out on cable in America and thriving on its limited release in Europe, it started to gain a cult fan-base. More so after a theatre in the Frisco Bay area started showing it and it made considerable coinage. Today it still remains more of a cult piece than anything else, which while it deserves more accolades and exposure, is still kind of nice for the fans, because it's like we have our own little neo-noir treasure all to ourselves. Red Rock West is essential for the neo-noir heads and well worthy of inspection by the average modern day crime film fan. Plot wise it's a bit, shall we say iffy? Yet the twists, turns and characterisations are so deftly constructed and performed, it matters not a jot. Cage's ex- marine is an honest and decent guy who whilst down on his luck - punished for his honesty - finds himself in a vortex of mystery and murder that he can't escape from. His companions in this scenario are film noir staples, the femme fatale (Boyle) with a smoulder as big as her secret, the hit-man (Hopper) with a glint in his eye to accompany his callous leanings, and the shifty bar owner (Walsh) trying to off his wife whilst keeping his shady cards close to his chest. As the tricksy plot unfolds in a haze of bad judgements and untruths, further pulsed by the vagaries of fate, it becomes apparent that Dahl wants us to know it isn't taking itself too seriously. There's a glorious scent of dark humour hanging in the air, an unpretentiousness about the whole thing that's refreshing. The look and feel is perfect for the narrative, the colour is stripped back to create a moody atmospheric surround, while the score and sound-tracking immediately brings to mind country and western tales of woe. Dahl knows his noir onions, but this is not just a homage hat tipper to the past, he understands what works in noir, be it the blending of the quirky with the edgy, or scene setting in locales such as a colourless bar and a foggy cemetery, Dahl gets the key ingredients right to deliver the goods wholesale. The small cast come up trumps. Boyle as Suzanne Brown is weak if her femme fatale is pitted against the likes of Matty Walker or Bridget Gregory, but it's an adequate performance that doesn't hinder the picture. She is helped enormously, though, by having to share most scenes with Cage who brings his "A" game. Consistently inconsistent throughout his career, Cage, when on form is a joy to watch, here he gets to thrive as a put upon hero, shifting seamlessly between confusion and boldness, where incredulous looks are the order of the day with a side order of eccentric intensity. Hopper does what he does so well, amusing villainy, while Walsh is effortlessly menacing and suspicious. In small secondary support Carhart and country star Dwight Yoakam leave favourable impressions. This is not an edge of your seat thriller, or a cranium bothering piece of dramedy, it's neo-noir done right. Where morality is grey at best and money is the root of all evil, it's slick, playful, cold blooded and absorbing. Hooray! 9/10