Mulholland Falls

"The power of love vs. the love of power."

1996 1h 47m EN

😐

6.0

MID

★6.0TMDB · 339

DramaMysteryThrillerCrime

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

In 1950s Los Angeles, a special crime squad of the LAPD investigates the murder of a young woman.

“The power of love vs. the love of power.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Nick Nolte
Max Hoover
Melanie Griffith
Katherine Hoover
Chazz Palminteri
Elleroy Coolidge
Michael Madsen
Eddie Hall
Chris Penn
Arthur Relyea
Treat Williams
Fitzgerald
Jennifer Connelly
Allison Pond
Daniel Baldwin
McCafferty

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Lee Tamahori
Writers: Peter Dexter, Floyd Mutrux, Peter Dexter
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 40% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Lee Tamahori, shot by Haskell Wexler. 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 Dave Grusin. 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 Sally Menke 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

Nick Nolte and Melanie Griffith and Chazz Palminteri carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "The power of love vs. the love of power.".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0117107 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Lee Tamahori directs. Haskell Wexler behind the camera. Dave Grusin scores. Sally Menke cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Earned back only 40% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
230 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
3Directed by Lee Tamahori, shot by Haskell Wexler. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Dave Grusin. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Sally Menke shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Nick Nolte and Melanie Griffith and Chazz Palminteri carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "The power of love vs. the love of power.".
8IMDB entry: tt0117107 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Classified under 8 themes, including "prostitute", "police", "investigation", "special unit".

The technical file

Cinematography: Haskell Wexler
Original score: Dave Grusin
Editing: Sally Menke
Production design: Richard Sylbert
Costume design: Ellen Mirojnick
Stunt coordinator: Buddy Joe Hooker
Runtime: 107 min · 1h 47m
Status: Released
Budget: $29,000,000
Box office: $11,500,000
Return: 40% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Mulholland Falls (1996)

Awards

Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress

Individual records documented via Wikidata; the summary above may count more.

Also by

Lee Tamahori

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2020-03-29
★ 5/10
There ain't no falls in L.A. Mulholland Falls is directed by Lee Tamahori and written by Pete Dexter. It stars Nick Nolte, Chazz Palminteri, Melanie Griffith, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Jennifer Connelly, Treat Williams, John Malkovich, Bruce Dern and Andrew McCarthy. Music is by Dave Grusin and cinematography by Haskell Wexler. 1950s Los Angeles and four unorthodox detectives led by Maxwell Hoover (Nolte) are called in to investigate the death of a young woman found crushed at a construction site. The woman is revealed to be an aspiring actress who had recently had a relationship with the married Hoover. Can is open, and worms everywhere, and following those worms leads Hoover down murky avenues... It's the almost nearly great neo-noir movie, everything looks right in principal, it has a strongly assembled cast, the 50s visuals and cinematography are splendid, and the murder mystery element of the plot - with some added sex, sizzle and nuclear shenanigans - looks promising on the page. Yet it never delivers on that promise of being something dark, to be a labyrinthine noir thriller beating a black heart. It starts of so well, based on the infamous "Hat Squad" we reasonably expect the story to expand upon the opening macho machinations of the four tough hombres in the hats, but instead away from Nolte's grizzled Hoover, the other three guys are merely dressed up props. Which means there's some good actors wasted, sadly. As the plot moves slowly forward the investigation and Hoover character axis becomes less interesting. Griffith came in for some critical grief for a lacklustre performance, but she's done no favours by the writers who fail to give her marriage to Hoover any substance. So when things go pear shaped and the characters of Mr and Mrs Hoover should explode on the screen, we really don't care having had no interest previously to hang our emotional being on. It all builds to what can best be described as a poor pay off, the resolution to the hinted at muddy mystery is hardly shocking, and the "big" face-off sequence between good and bad guys (or bad and bad if you prefer) is about as exciting as watching paint dry. It's not an awful movie, but it is a very disappointing one. A film where a bit more thought given by the producers could have yielded so much more. 5/10
GenerationofSwine2023-01-11
★ 1/10
Well.... Andrew McCarthy does an excellent job, but everyone else kind of phones it in, including the director. It's supposed to be a kind of Neo Noir, but it never really feels as gritty or as mysterious as a noir should and the femme fatales never really feel as fatal and ominous and devious as they should. The detectives aren't really hard boiled, not even Madison who always seems to be hard boiled. The detectives also never really get around to doing much detecting. In the end it's really, honestly, only Andrew McCarthy that even looks like he's trying. Other than that it's just four guys that drive around in a convertible and try to look tough or irritating as the plot unfolds around them... without really needing their involvement.