Bringing Out the Dead (1999)

   
BRINGING OUT THE DEAD is a monotonous hour-times-two of emergency 
medical hell.  Nick Cage (who else?) stars as a boozy, burned-out, 
been-ages-since-he-saved-someone Hell's Kitchen (that's New York) 
paramedic whose one problem of many is that he's "startin' to see 
the ghosts."  John Goodman, Ving Rhames, and a wide-eyed Tom Size-
more rotate through the role of graveyard-shift shift-mate, while 
the ever-unlovely Patricia Arquette plays some sort of love inter-
est.  (I think I was asleep during any sex scenes.  Did they get it 
on?)  The director is Martin Scorsese, the screenwriter is Paul 
Schrader, and together they O.D. on atmosphere.  Forget a solid 
story arc, this one's closer to a string of vignettes; albeit vin-
nies rendered in all the grim, grimy, and gallows-humored glory of 
the EMT profession.  Oh, the stories *this* former first responder 
could tell...  With Marc Anthony, Cliff Curtis, Bart DeFinna, Mary 
Beth Hurt, Aida Turturro, and a very, very funny Scorsese as the 
dispatcher.  (Rated "R"/120 min.)

Grade: C                

Copyright 1999 Michael J. Legeros
Movie Hell is a trademark of Michael J. Legeros

[an error occurred while processing this directive]