Red Heat
                                                                                                                         
Director: Walter Hill
Year: 1988
Rating: 6.0
It seems likely that director Walter Hill was trying to recapture the success of 48 Hrs. Since that film in 1982,  he had directed Streets of Fire, Brewster's Millions, Crossroads and Extreme Prejudice. All respectable films but not exactly gangbusters. Three of them lost money and only Brewster's Millions did well thanks mainly to Richard Pryor. So back to the traditional buddy film of opposites being stuck together and eventually respecting each other. But Jim Belushi is no Eddie Murphy and Arnold Schwarzenegger is no Nick Nolte. This follows all the rules of the Buddy film and goes exactly as expected. Belushi is a Chicago cop and Arnold is a Soviet cop and they too are exactly as expected. Belushi is a sloppy unorthodox cop with a wisecrack for everything while Arnold puts on his Terminator face as the personality deprived Soviet cop. His expression could have been painted on because it never changes. So in fact, it is a perfect role for him.



But Hill knows how to stage an action scene and there are a couple gems in this one with a bus chasing bus setpiece that is terrific as they demolish much of Chicago. A Russian gangster Rosta escapes to America where he is picked up and jailed. Danko (Arnold) is sent to extradite him back. But Rosta escapes and now Belushi and Arnold are teamed up to find him. Oddly, the following year Black Rain had a similar plot. The two of them as custom dictates trade insults and get into trouble. Belushi annoys the audience more than his partner. Just loud and obnoxious and never shuts up. One interesting aspect of the film is that Hill is even handed in his depiction of America and the Soviets. In fact, a little pro Soviet and Danko never has anything good to say about America.



The film generally works though because it moves along quickly, something is always happening and even in a robotic role like this it is hard not to find Schwarzenegger magnetic. A solid supporting group as well with Peter Boyle, Larry Fishburne, Pruitt Taylor Vince and Gina Gershon. Certainly far from one of Schwarzenegger's better films. He later said, he could not understand why it didn't do better at the box office but then in this same year he made Twins which inexplicably was a tremendous hit.