The debut feature from director Gary Fleder (later “Kiss the Girls” and “Runaway Jury”) and screenwriter Scott Rosenberg (later “Con Air” and “Gone in 60 Seconds”), “Things to Do in Denver When You’re Dead,” (“Denver”), was one of the first movies to be labeled a “Pulp Fiction” knock-off.
As “Denver” came out just over a year after “Pulp,” was also rooted in crime, and featured snappy, Mickey Spillane-inspired dialogue, this is understandable. Although there is no verifiable proof, it was rumored that Rosenberg wrote the screenplay as far back as 1990, and it languished in “development hell” until there became a need for “Pulp” clones. Even if this wasn’t the case, it is highly unlikely that any feature film of this ilk could be written, cast, shot, edited, scored, promoted, and released in a year’s time.
The Saint
At the center of it all is Jimmy “The Saint” (Andy Garcia), a retired mobster and current co-owner of a fledgling video service, where terminally ill clients record messages on VHS tape to be viewed by their families upon their passing. Prior to his life in crime, Jimmy was going to be a priest but lost the calling; hence “The Saint” nickname.After a trade deal of sorts within the mob hierarchy, Jimmy’s former boss, “The Man with the Plan” (Christopher Walken), calls in an I.O.U. with Jimmy’s name on it. The Man’s not-real-stable adult son was recently dumped by his girlfriend and is close to going off the deep end. For $50,000, the Man wants Jimmy, and a crew of his choosing, to intimidate the ex-girlfriend’s new beau to such a degree that he splits and (in theory) the ex returns to the welcoming arms of the Man’s son.
Jimmy is able to field a crew of other former mobsters who are all “former” for valid reasons. Easy Wind (Bill Nunn), Pieces (Christopher Lloyd), and Franchise (William Forsythe) are relatively stable and even-keel, but it’s the fourth and final member, Critical Bill (Treat Williams) that is the volatile wild card.
The Damsels
Before and after the botched intimidation thing, Jimmy meets, charms, and eventually wins over Dagney (Gabrielle Anwar), a woman who catches his eye in a blues bar. At the same time, Jimmy rescues Lucinda (Fairuza Balk), a down-on-her-luck waif who (rightfully) views him as a man of solid moral character.
Unlike “Pulp,” “Denver” is presented in sequential order (with a scant few flashbacks) and only deals with a single crime and its aftermath. Both films are heavily character-driven with even the most fleeting speaking parts adding great texture to the final product.
Doled out along the way are welcomed, integral cameos from Jack Warden, Bill Cobbs, Glenn Plummer, Don Cheadle, Josh Charles, Willie Garson, Jenny McCarthy as the Man’s nurse, and Steve Buscemi as a no-quarter assassin named Mr. Shhh.
‘Boat Drinks’
Not until the final scene do we understand the repeated greeting between members of the crew throughout—pressing open-handed palms together and saying the words “boat drinks.” That understanding delivers a devastatingly emotional final coda to the story.The movie shares its name with a Warren Zevon song, which the producers desperately wanted to include on the soundtrack. They were able to do so only after assuring Zevon that it would be played in full during the end credits.
What ultimately pushed “Denver” into highly recommendable status for me was the performance of Garcia as Jimmy. In the wake of his Oscar-nominated role as the sick-puppy Vincent in “The Godfather III,” Garcia appeared in four thoroughly forgettable flicks, and “Denver” offered him a chance to do a riff on Vincent, but with a bigger heart, and he succeeded admirably.
Above all things, Jimmy is honest. He couldn’t commit to either being a man of God or a criminal and he failed as a business man, yet he honored his past debts while improving the lives of two women along the way.
It’s not the ideal path to ultimate redemption, but the ideal is often not an option.
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