SALVADOR   1986
Directed by Oliver Stone
123 minutes
In English with English subtitles

Oliver Stone is well known these days for making big-budget political thrillers, but he actually started out directing a couple of horror films that were disasters. The reason why he was doing horror flicks is because they were popular at the time and he wanted to break into the industry. After this strategy failed, Stone was depressed and ready to give up on any idea of directing any future films, but there was one project that he wanted to realize before he quit. He wanted to at least do one movie he believed in. It was his third film, and it ended up being one of the top achievements of his career (perhaps his very best).... a hard-hitting film called Salvador. Since it was made before he was famous, this film never really got the recognition it truly deserves.

The film tackles the heavy situation that was happening in Central America in the 80s from a highly unusual and creative angle. James Woods and Jim Belushi star as two guys living a kind of Hunter S. Thompson gonzo lifestyle... in other words, a wild binge of unleashed freedom - two friends living on the edge. Drugs, alcohol and sex are their goals in life, and because of these passions, they travel down to Central America where living is cheap. But as they enter El Salvador, the United States decides to back a dictatorship that is declaring anyone who criticizes the government a communist terrorist... even priests. This type of scenario is still relevant today; think of more recent developments in Iraq and Libya. And, incredibly, despite everything descending into hell, Oliver Stone is able to keep the humor and magic alive throughout the movie. A fucking amazing film that captures both extremes of human existence - humanity and brutality - in equal measures. Woods is great (and was nominated for an Academy Award for this film) and so is the joint-smoking Belushi.... and the soundtrack is by Georges Delerue (Jules et Jim, Le mepris).

This will be a wonderful high-definition screening.