L.A. Heat

"A gun, a badge and the laws of chance."

1989 1h 25m EN

😐

5.2

MID

★5.2TMDB · 5

Action

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

An L.A. vice cop is on the hunt for a drug dealer, but the mission turns deadly when his partner is murdered.

“A gun, a badge and the laws of chance.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs
Jon Chance
Jim Brown
Captain
Kevin Benton
Clarence
Myles Thoroughgood
Spyder
Trish Johnson
Jane
John Henry Richardson
Boris
Robert Gallo
Sylvio
Raymond Martino
Raymond

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Joseph Merhi
Writers: Charles T. Kanganis
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

RUNTIME

Did you know

85 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

CINEMA

Did you know

Part of the "Jon Chance Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Joseph Merhi, shot by Richard Pepin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

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

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs and Jim Brown and Kevin Benton carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Joseph Merhi directs. Richard Pepin behind the camera. Paul G. Volk cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

185 minutes exactly — the "classic feature" runtime most directors aim for.
2Shot for just $0.2M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
337 years old — old enough to be someone's favourite childhood film.
4Part of the "Jon Chance Collection" — so the characters or world continue elsewhere.
5Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
6Directed by Joseph Merhi, shot by Richard Pepin. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
7Editor Paul G. Volk shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs and Jim Brown and Kevin Benton carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "A gun, a badge and the laws of chance.".
10IMDB entry: tt0097699 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Only 5 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.