Based on a short story by Stephen King, this manqué misfire makes up in sheer dullness what it lacks in actual entertainment value. Christian Slater stars along with a D-list cast of actors who struggle valiantly to make something out of Director Jeff Beesley’s tedious vision.
Advertised as “A twisted tale of murder and revenge”, this direct-to-video tranquilizer twists all the suspense and intrigue out of King’s story. The original tale took a simple, basic revenge plot and made it interesting due to King’s amazing writing style and the way he took us inside the protagonist’s mind , describing a slow descent into insanity. Neither of these elements is on display in the film version, which only leaves us with the standard, unremarkable tale of a man who wants revenge for the death of his wife. As if there haven’t been enough films with that premise.
Advertised as “A twisted tale of murder and revenge”, this direct-to-video tranquilizer twists all the suspense and intrigue out of King’s story. The original tale took a simple, basic revenge plot and made it interesting due to King’s amazing writing style and the way he took us inside the protagonist’s mind , describing a slow descent into insanity. Neither of these elements is on display in the film version, which only leaves us with the standard, unremarkable tale of a man who wants revenge for the death of his wife. As if there haven’t been enough films with that premise.
- 4/11/2010
- by Rob Young
- JustPressPlay.net
The Stephen King short and movie adaption Dolan's Cadillac will release on DVD and Blu-Ray formats beginning March 16th. The film is in the style of a revenge thriller, as Robinson, played by Wes Bentley, hunts a notorious mob boss (Christian Slater) for the slaying of his girlfriend (Emmanuelle Vaugier). The DVD will include a behind the scenes featurette, cast interviews, and B-roll footage, or deleted scenes (Fangoria). All the action can be heard in crisp Dolby 5.1. Have a look at the synopsis, trailer, and DVD artwork, right here.
A synopsis for Dolan's Cadillac here:
"A dark revenge tale about Las Vegas middle school science teacher (Robinson) whose beloved wife (Elizabeth) witnesses an execution in the desert and is then targeted for death by the mobster who committed it, notorious Vegas crime lord Jimmy Dolan. Dolan's vast wealth stems from his human trafficking operations. Dolan succeeds in having Elizabeth killed...
A synopsis for Dolan's Cadillac here:
"A dark revenge tale about Las Vegas middle school science teacher (Robinson) whose beloved wife (Elizabeth) witnesses an execution in the desert and is then targeted for death by the mobster who committed it, notorious Vegas crime lord Jimmy Dolan. Dolan's vast wealth stems from his human trafficking operations. Dolan succeeds in having Elizabeth killed...
- 2/13/2010
- by Michael Ross Allen
- 28 Days Later Analysis
If you've been on the lookout for Dolan's Cadillac , an adaptation of the Stephen King tale of the same name, look no further than DVD. That's where it is heading. Eagle Entertainment will give the film a DVD and Blu-Ray debut on April 6. Christian Slater, Wes Bentley and Emmanuelle Vaugier star in this story of a man seeking vengeance for the death of his wife. Cadillac was once a project groomed for Sylvester Stallone. Jeff Beesley ultimately directed the adaptation based on a script by Richard Dooling. Meanwhile, Lionsgate has announced it will release Peter Hyams' The Relic on Blu-Ray on April 6. Paramount originally handled the DVD release. No special features have been revealed at this time.
- 1/19/2010
- shocktillyoudrop.com
Christian Slater (Alone in the Dark) and Wes Bentley (P2) are set to headline and Emmanuelle Vaugier (Saw II, Saw IV) will play the female lead in an adaptation of Stephen King's short story Dolan's Cadillac, Film Bridge International said Thursday. "Dolan's Cadillac" is a thriller about a man (Bentley), who plots to avenge the murder of his wife (Vaugier) by notorious and untouchable Las Vegas mob boss Jimmy Dolan (Slater). Erik Canuel is directing "Dolan's Cadillac" from an adaptation written by Richard Dooling. Production is scheduled to begin May 14.
- 4/25/2008
- bloody-disgusting.com
Christian Slater and Wes Bentley are set to headline and Emmanuelle Vaugier will play the female lead in an adaptation of Stephen King's short story "Dolan's Cadillac", Film Bridge International said Thursday.
"Dolan's Cadillac" is a thriller about a man (Bentley), who plots to avenge the murder of his wife (Vaugier) by notorious and untouchable Las Vegas mob boss Jimmy Dolan (Slater).
Erik Canuel is directing "Dolan's Cadillac" from an adaptation written by Richard Dooling. Production is scheduled to begin May 14.
Film Bridge is overseeing the financing and handling worldwide distribution.
Slater ("Bobby") is repped by CAA. Bentley ("Ghost Rider") is repped by WMA and Untitled Entertainment. Vaugier ("Saw IV") is repped by APA and Evolution Entertainment.
"Dolan's Cadillac" is a thriller about a man (Bentley), who plots to avenge the murder of his wife (Vaugier) by notorious and untouchable Las Vegas mob boss Jimmy Dolan (Slater).
Erik Canuel is directing "Dolan's Cadillac" from an adaptation written by Richard Dooling. Production is scheduled to begin May 14.
Film Bridge is overseeing the financing and handling worldwide distribution.
Slater ("Bobby") is repped by CAA. Bentley ("Ghost Rider") is repped by WMA and Untitled Entertainment. Vaugier ("Saw IV") is repped by APA and Evolution Entertainment.
- 4/24/2008
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Where is Paddy Chayevsky when you need him? That's what this dark comedy about the horrors of modern medicine desperately needs: a script doctor specializing in gallows humor. Someone with the verve and outrage to pull off, say, a scabby hilarity such as Chayevsky's script for "The Hospital", for which he won an Oscar.
Auteurists will recall that "Critical Care"'s director, Sidney Lumet, also received a best director Oscar. Based on examination of this smart but anemic cinematic sample directed by Lumet but not penned by Chayevsky, one could practice some auteurist revisionism -- something like "Network", a Chayevsky film.
This LIVE Entertainment release was selected as the opening-night film for the 33rd annual Chicago International Film Festival, world-premiering in the Windy City on Thursday. A scathing indictment of modern medicine, "Critical Care" is based on a novel scribed by a lawyer, Richard Dooling, whose canny observations about the care for terminally ill patients inspired this adaptation. "Critical Care" levels lethal broadsides against critical-care unit practices.
In this ultrasophisticated age of computerized medicine and laser wizardry, patients' lives can be prolonged far beyond their natural course. Although the intention to keep people alive is humane, we see in "Critical Care" that such beneficence is ultimately barbaric. Hooked up to machines, incapable of maintaining even the simplest of body functions, the terminally ill often experience a torturous death, leaving them no dignity -- dying vegetables.
In screenwriter Steven S. Schwartz's brainy distillation, the finger of guilt is pointed everywhere: from the insurance companies that methodically adhere to the legalistic letter of the policies to the physicians whose compassion is stimulated by dollar signs -- performing costly invasive operations to run up the bills -- to the arrogance of the hospital establishment that looks at patients as simply being "digitized information" for their cutting-edge butchery.
Unfortunately, this crisp, dark vision lacks the berserk bravura needed to vitalize such a delicate, comedic operation. The scenario stoops to buffoonish caricature, gyrates around a humdrum plot, and blips to flat line with self-conscious crafting. While Lumet smartly counterpoints this dark delirium with a searingly bright-white look and meticulously backdrops it with a horrific, antiseptic set, "Critical Care" seems more artsy than alive -- as if the Swedish Film Institute had chipped in with a prototypical early Bergman set for the students to practice on.
Still, Lumet's reputation for nurturing strong performances is in evidence here. James Spader is well-chosen for the lead role, a young doctor well-suited to the pressures of the intensive-care unit yet too immature to handle his new moniker of M.D. Faring less well is Albert Brooks, cast as an over-the-hill alcoholic who lords it over the critical care unit.
Static, sparse and hyper-verbal, "Critical Care"'s condition might be improved by a transfer to the stage.
CRITICAL CARE
LIVE Entertainment
Producers Steven S. Schwartz, Sidney Lumet
Director Sidney Lumet
Screenwriter Steven S. Schwartz
Based on the book by Richard Dooling
Executive producer Don Carmody
Executive in charge of production
Yalda Tehranian
Director of photography David Watkin
Production designer Philip Rosenberg
Costume designer Dona Granata
Editor Tom Swartwout
Music Michael Convertino
Casting Avy Kaufman
Sound mixer Bruce Carwardine
Color/stereo
Cast:
Dr. Werner Ernst James Spader
Felicia Potter Kyra Sedgwick
Stella Helen Mirren
Nun Anne Bancroft
Dr. Butz Albert Brooks
Bed Two Patient Jeffrey Wright
Connie Potter Margo Martindale
Furnaceman Wallace Shawn
Dr. Hofstader Philip Bosco
Running time -- 100 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
Auteurists will recall that "Critical Care"'s director, Sidney Lumet, also received a best director Oscar. Based on examination of this smart but anemic cinematic sample directed by Lumet but not penned by Chayevsky, one could practice some auteurist revisionism -- something like "Network", a Chayevsky film.
This LIVE Entertainment release was selected as the opening-night film for the 33rd annual Chicago International Film Festival, world-premiering in the Windy City on Thursday. A scathing indictment of modern medicine, "Critical Care" is based on a novel scribed by a lawyer, Richard Dooling, whose canny observations about the care for terminally ill patients inspired this adaptation. "Critical Care" levels lethal broadsides against critical-care unit practices.
In this ultrasophisticated age of computerized medicine and laser wizardry, patients' lives can be prolonged far beyond their natural course. Although the intention to keep people alive is humane, we see in "Critical Care" that such beneficence is ultimately barbaric. Hooked up to machines, incapable of maintaining even the simplest of body functions, the terminally ill often experience a torturous death, leaving them no dignity -- dying vegetables.
In screenwriter Steven S. Schwartz's brainy distillation, the finger of guilt is pointed everywhere: from the insurance companies that methodically adhere to the legalistic letter of the policies to the physicians whose compassion is stimulated by dollar signs -- performing costly invasive operations to run up the bills -- to the arrogance of the hospital establishment that looks at patients as simply being "digitized information" for their cutting-edge butchery.
Unfortunately, this crisp, dark vision lacks the berserk bravura needed to vitalize such a delicate, comedic operation. The scenario stoops to buffoonish caricature, gyrates around a humdrum plot, and blips to flat line with self-conscious crafting. While Lumet smartly counterpoints this dark delirium with a searingly bright-white look and meticulously backdrops it with a horrific, antiseptic set, "Critical Care" seems more artsy than alive -- as if the Swedish Film Institute had chipped in with a prototypical early Bergman set for the students to practice on.
Still, Lumet's reputation for nurturing strong performances is in evidence here. James Spader is well-chosen for the lead role, a young doctor well-suited to the pressures of the intensive-care unit yet too immature to handle his new moniker of M.D. Faring less well is Albert Brooks, cast as an over-the-hill alcoholic who lords it over the critical care unit.
Static, sparse and hyper-verbal, "Critical Care"'s condition might be improved by a transfer to the stage.
CRITICAL CARE
LIVE Entertainment
Producers Steven S. Schwartz, Sidney Lumet
Director Sidney Lumet
Screenwriter Steven S. Schwartz
Based on the book by Richard Dooling
Executive producer Don Carmody
Executive in charge of production
Yalda Tehranian
Director of photography David Watkin
Production designer Philip Rosenberg
Costume designer Dona Granata
Editor Tom Swartwout
Music Michael Convertino
Casting Avy Kaufman
Sound mixer Bruce Carwardine
Color/stereo
Cast:
Dr. Werner Ernst James Spader
Felicia Potter Kyra Sedgwick
Stella Helen Mirren
Nun Anne Bancroft
Dr. Butz Albert Brooks
Bed Two Patient Jeffrey Wright
Connie Potter Margo Martindale
Furnaceman Wallace Shawn
Dr. Hofstader Philip Bosco
Running time -- 100 minutes
MPAA rating: R...
- 10/13/1997
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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