Bound for Glory

Maybe it's a sign of the times: statistically speaking, about 95.3 percent of all new movies today are post-modern noirs, chock-full of smoking .45s shot sideways by smirking gangsters in retro sharkskin suits. Victims scream as their bodies spray ketchup-red blood, twangy surf guitars scream in the background, and audiences scream in revulsion at yet another Quentin Tarantino rip-off.

Mr. Tarantino has either killed film noir once and for all, or he's given it new life. It depends on whether you judge the health of the genre by his unstoppable tide of imitators (2 Days in the Valley being only the latest) or those few movies that squeak through the system with a couple of fresh ideas (The Last Seduction, The Usual Suspects). Regardless, every theater today seems to be showing at least one hard-boiled thriller, and the crappy ones far outnumber the good ones. Was it like this in the '40s and '50s too, during the golden age of noir? Probably, though these days we're stuck in an infinite loop of numbing mediocrity. In past "golden ages," the bad movies just faded away into the ether; today, they end up on HBO and get repeated 50 billion times. Watching mob finks get their heads blown off has now become a matter of course, and I fear for our children. Thankfully, however, Bound is here to raise hope for a dissipated genre.

Bound is yet further proof that modern independent filmmakers are producing the kinds of movies that Hollywood used to make. In this case, we have a dark, claustrophobic thriller with snappy dialogue about mobsters, money laundering, and a love triangle. The twist here is that the femme fatale isn't trying to sucker in a rough-edged, he-man detective, but rather a rough-edged, she-woman lesbian.

Jennifer Tilly plays Violet, a gangster's moll who's little more than a piece of decorative furniture adorning a Chicago Mafia condo. She wants out. To do it, she seduces Corky (Gina Gershon), a tattooed ex-con who's been hired to refurbish the next-door apartment. A resourceful sort, Corky comes up with a plan: When Caesar (Joe Pantoliano) has to launder (literally) over $2 million of mob money for a morning pick-up by the godfather, she'll steal it–and Violet will make him think he's being set up by his enemy, the godfather's own son. He'll have to run, and when he does, they'll make their own getaway–with the money.

But the plan doesn't exactly work. And you never really know whether Violet isn't just using Corky in her own plan…

Having a lesbian as your main character opens a gigantic Pandora's box–no matter what you do, even in this enlightened age, you're bound to offend some large group of people. If the character is one-dimensional or less than a good role model, you'll tick off gay activists (see Basic Instinct, or anything else from the Joe Eszterhas oeuvre). But if you show an uncompromisingly realistic portrayal of a homosexual, you're doomed to raise the ire of Bob Dole, Pat Robertson, and other defenders of "traditional" values. Thankfully, co-directors/writers Larry and Andy Wachowski chose the latter option. Gina Gershon's Corky is strong, smart, moody, mysterious, and horny–just like an actual person.

And this brings up another dilemma: On one hand, it's wonderful that the Wachowskis have created a strong, sexually alive lesbian character and aren't afraid to show her lifestyle. On the other hand, male members of the Penthouse Forum generation aren't exactly going to see the movie in order to share in its mainstream emancipation of the lesbian kiss. Bound treads the line between Red Shoe Diaries-style sex for the guys and lesbian erotica integral to the story line.

However, the final question should be, "Does it work?" And it does, by jiminy–though not at first. During Bound's first act, I was mentally preparing to write a stern review saying that cool overhead shots and glossy girl-girl action do not a great movie make. But then the Wachowskis put on the heat, with a dark comedy of errors that unfurls as Corky's plan goes awry. The film's extreme tension becomes a queasy sort of entertainment in the best tradition of film noir.

Gershon recovers from her Showgirls debacle with a performance that's a complete 180 turn–her Corky is vibrant. Likewise, Tilly manages to shed some of her usual squeaky-voiced mollhood to create a sympathetic character whom you don't entirely trust. And Pantoliano–who also gets typecast in these Mafioso roles–rips into his mobster with renewed energy, making him both scary and oddly attractive. It's a fascinating trio.

While the blood does spray in Bound, this is not your average Tarantino-esque thriller. It's way above average, and offers a fresh character for a mainstream movie, pulp fiction or otherwise.

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