Murphy's Law | |
---|---|
Directed by | J. Lee Thompson |
Written by | Gail Morgan Hickman |
Produced by | Pancho Kohner |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Alex Phillips Jr. |
Edited by | Peter Lee-Thompson Charles Simmons |
Music by | Marc Donahue Valentine McCallum |
Distributed by | Cannon Films |
Release date |
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Running time | 100 minutes |
Country | United States |
Language | English |
Budget | $8 million [1] |
Box office | $9,947,631 (USA) [1] |
Murphy's Law is a 1986 American neo-noir [2] action thriller film directed by J. Lee Thompson from a screenplay by Gail Morgan Hickman. It was released by Cannon Films to the United States on April 18, 1986. The film stars Charles Bronson and Kathleen Wilhoite in lead roles with a supporting cast that includes Carrie Snodgress, Robert F. Lyons, and Richard Romanus. The film marks the sixth collaboration between Bronson and director J. Lee Thompson (following 1976's St. Ives , 1977's The White Buffalo , 1980's Caboblanco , 1983's 10 to Midnight , and 1984's The Evil That Men Do ).
Jack Murphy (Bronson), a hardened, antisocial alcoholic LAPD detective, frequently escapes the harsh reality that his ex-wife (Angel Tompkins) has become a stripper and his career is going nowhere by drinking. His world is turned upside down, however, when he is framed by ex-convict Joan Freeman (Carrie Snodgress) for putting her in prison earlier in his career.
Freeman murders the detective's ex-wife and her boyfriend and begins killing off his associates while framing him for the crimes. The same police force he works for places him under arrest with Arabella McGee (Kathleen Wilhoite), a foul-mouthed petty thief he locked away. Murphy escapes from jail while still handcuffed to McGee and they pursue the real killer. While in pursuit of Freeman, who has managed to kill all of those on her hit list save Murphy, Arabella is kidnapped by Freeman and taken to the building where she was first arrested by Murphy. Murphy calls for reinforcements and is met with skepticism, unaware that the detective he notified, Ed Reineke, is a mole working for mob boss Vincenzo. Vincenzo is seeking vengeance against Murphy for the latter killing his brother earlier in the film. Murphy heads attempts to rescue Arabella, but is ambushed by Freeman. Meanwhile, Arabella is bound and gagged at the bottom of an elevator shaft. Reineke trains his gun on Murphy. Freeman quickly dispatches Reineke with an arrow. Unaware of what has transpired, Vincenzo and his two bodyguards enter the building to exact their vengeance. Murphy easily dispatches the bodyguards before goading Vincenzo into trying to kill him. Vincenzo attacks Murphy but Murphy shoots him dead. Freeman sends the elevator down in an attempt to kill Arabella. Murphy saves her in the nick of time, but Freeman shoots an arrow into Arabella's back, goading Murphy into a confrontation. She attacks Murphy with an axe, wounds him, and he knocks her over the railing of the staircase on the top floor. She manages to take hold of the axe wedged in the railing. She tries to get Murphy to help her, but he lets her fall to her death. Murphy is loaded into the back of an ambulance with a still-living Arabella, and they are taken to the hospital.
The film was photographed by Alex Phillips Jr.
Murphy's Law includes music by Marc Donahue and Valentine McCallum.
Variety gave a mixed review of Murphy's Law, referring to the film as a "very violent urban crime meller, is tiresome but too filled with extreme incident to be boring." [3] The New York Times described the film's plot as "flimsy" and noted that "it seems we're meant to be drawn into this nonexistent story. Yet there's nothing, not even the obligatory injustice done to Jack Murphy, that gives the movie even the pretense of emotional power or intrigue." [4]
Online film database Allmovie gave the film one and a half stars out of five, describing it as an "often silly but fitfully amusing potboiler [that] is one of the better Charles Bronson vehicles from his 1980s era." [5]
Charles Bronson was an American actor. He was known for his roles in action films and his "granite features and brawny physique". Bronson was born into extreme poverty in Ehrenfeld, Pennsylvania, a coal mining town in the Allegheny Mountains. Bronson's father, a miner, died when Bronson was young. Bronson himself worked in the mines as well until joining the United States Army Air Forces in 1943 to fight in World War II. After his service, he joined a theatrical troupe and studied acting. During the 1950s, he played various supporting roles in motion pictures and television, including anthology drama TV series in which he would appear as the main character. Near the end of the decade, he had his first cinematic leading role in Machine-Gun Kelly (1958).
Caroline Louise Snodgress was an American actress. She is best remembered for her role in the film Diary of a Mad Housewife (1970), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award and a BAFTA Award as well as winning two Golden Globes and two Laurel Awards.
Diary of a Mad Housewife is a 1970 American comedy-drama film about a frustrated wife portrayed by Carrie Snodgress. Snodgress was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won a Golden Globe award in the same category. The film was adapted by Eleanor Perry from the 1967 novel by Sue Kaufman and directed by Perry's then-husband Frank Perry. The film co-stars Richard Benjamin and Frank Langella.
John Lee Thompson was an English film director, screenwriter and producer. Initially an exponent of social realism, he became known as a versatile and prolific director of thrillers, action, and adventure films.
Kathleen Wilhoite is an American actress and musician. She made her feature film debut in Private School (1983) before having a leading role in Murphy's Law (1986), followed by supporting parts in Witchboard, Crossing Delancey (1988), Road House (1989), and Lorenzo's Oil (1992). She also had notable guest-starring roles on several series during this time, including Twin Peaks (1990).
The Fury is a 1978 American supernatural horror thriller film directed by Brian De Palma and starring Kirk Douglas, John Cassavetes, Amy Irving, Carrie Snodgress, Charles Durning, and Andrew Stevens. The screenplay by John Farris was based on his 1976 novel of the same name.
Kinjite: Forbidden Subjects is a 1989 American action thriller film starring Charles Bronson and directed by J. Lee Thompson. As Thompson's final film, it was the last project he and Bronson did together—a long and famed Hollywood collaboration. The word "kinjite" (禁じて) translates to English as "forbidden move", hinting at the subject matter.
Fort Apache, The Bronx is a 1981 American crime drama film directed by Daniel Petrie. The film stars Paul Newman as Murphy, a hard-drinking, lonely veteran cop, and Ken Wahl as his young partner, Corelli, both of whom work in a crime-ridden precinct in the Bronx. Although Murphy's life takes a good turn when he falls in love with young nurse Isabella, the arrival of police captain Connolly threatens to tip the neighborhood's delicate balance into anarchy. Danny Aiello, Kathleen Beller and Pam Grier play supporting roles. The film was written by Heywood Gould and produced by Martin Richards and Thomas Fiorello, with David Susskind as executive producer.
Richard Romanus was an American actor. Among other roles, he appeared in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and provided voices for Ralph Bakshi's animated films Wizards and Hey Good Lookin'. He played Richard La Penna, Jennifer Melfi's ex-husband, later husband again, in four episodes of The Sopranos from 1999 to 2002. In 1999, he co-wrote the Christmas film If You Believe along with his wife Anthea Sylbert, which was nominated by the Writers Guild of America TV Award for Original Long Form.
Death Wish 4: The Crackdown is a 1987 American vigilante action-thriller film, and the fourth installment in the Death Wish film series. The film was directed by J. Lee Thompson, and features Charles Bronson, who reprises his leading role as Paul Kersey. In the film, Kersey is once again forced to become a vigilante after his girlfriend's daughter dies of a drug overdose. He is recruited by a tabloid owner, Nathan White to take down various crime figures of the Los Angeles drug trade.
Assassination is a 1987 American action thriller film directed by Peter Hunt and starring Charles Bronson, Jill Ireland, Charles Howerton, Jan Gan Boyd, Stephen Elliott, and Chris Alcaide. The plot is about a bodyguard who is assigned to protect the First Lady of the United States against an assassination plot.
Angel Tompkins is an American actress and model. She appeared in several films and television shows, and is a Golden Globe nominee.
Machine-Gun Kelly is a 1958 film noir directed by Roger Corman that chronicles the criminal activities of the real-life gangster George "Machine Gun" Kelly. Despite its small budget, the film received positive critical reviews.
Rabbit, Run is a 1970 American independent drama film directed by Jack Smight. The film was adapted from John Updike's 1960 novel by screenplay writer Howard B. Kreitsek, who also served as producer. The film starred James Caan as Rabbit Angstrom, Carrie Snodgress as Rabbit's wife Janice, and Anjanette Comer as his girlfriend Ruth. The movie co-starred Jack Albertson as Coach Marty Tothero, Arthur Hill as Rev. Jack Eccles, and Henry Jones and Josephine Hutchinson as Rabbit's parents.
Christine Belford is an American former television and film actress. She has sometimes been credited as Christina Belford.
Broken Promises: Taking Emily Back is a 1993 American drama television film directed and produced by Donald Wrye. The film stars Cheryl Ladd, Polly Draper, Robert Desiderio, D. David Morin, Kathleen Wilhoite, and Ted Levine. It premiered on CBS on December 26, 1993.
The Teacher is a 1974 American coming-of-age erotic thriller film written, produced, and directed by Hikmet Avedis in 12 days for an estimated $65,000 and released by Crown International Pictures. The film is Avedis' exploitation homage to 1967's The Graduate.
The Attic is a 1980 American psychological horror drama film directed by George Edwards and starring Carrie Snodgress and Ray Milland.
Cynthia is a 1947 American comedy drama film directed by Robert Z. Leonard and starring Mary Astor, Elizabeth Taylor, and George Murphy. The film is based on the 1945 play The Rich, Full Life by Viña Delmar and was adapted by screenwriters Harold Buchman and Charles Kaufman.
Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard is a 2021 American action comedy film directed by Patrick Hughes and written by Tom O'Connor and Brandon and Phillip Murphy. The film is a sequel to the 2017 film The Hitman's Bodyguard and features Ryan Reynolds, Samuel L. Jackson, Salma Hayek, and Richard E. Grant reprising their roles, with Frank Grillo, Antonio Banderas, and Morgan Freeman joining the cast.