Tom Berenger gives a typically excellent and engaging performance as Ernest DeWalt, a retiring, laid-back and amiable former cop turned crime novelist and college professor who's asked by the fiery, enticing Elizabeth Laughton (well played by the lovely Valeria Golino) to investigate the murder of her unfaithful husband Alex (a fine Stephen Lang) and the disappearance of his sultry tramp mistress Jeri Gillen (a smoking hot Kari Wuhrer). Both DeWalt's attraction to Elizabeth and his precarious health complicate things to a substantial degree. Director Salome Brezinger, working from an absorbing script by Randall Silvis, wrings plenty of tension from the gripping story and adroitly creates a pungent, vivid and sweltering downhome Southern atmosphere. A top-notch supporting cast qualifies as another major asset: Robert Davi as a compassionate detective, Richard Edson as a sleazy whitetrash druggie, Geoffrey Lewis as a bumbling oaf, and Ellen Greene as a sassy diner waitress. As an added bonus, both Wuhrer and Golino take their clothes off. Anton Sanko's flavorsome, harmonic country score and Mauro Fiore's bright, pretty cinematography further enhance the overall sound quality of this nifty little winner.
Review of An Occasional Hell
