“One False Move” (1992) starring Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, Cynda Williams & Michael Beach / Z-View
One False Move (1992)
Director: Carl Franklin
Screenplay: Billy Bob Thornton, Tom Epperson
Stars: Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, Cynda Williams, Michael Beach, Jim Metzler, Earl Billings, Natalie Canerday, Robert Ginnaven and Kevin Hunter.
Tagline: There was no crime in Star City, Arkansas. No murder. And no fear. Until now.
The Plot…
Ray (Thorton), his girl Fantasia (Williams) and Lane ‘Pluto’ Franklin (Beach) went on a crime spree. They committed six brutal murders in two locations in one night. Now they’ve got several thousand dollars and a big bag of cocaine. They plan to sell the cocaine for $200,000 to a buyer in another state. The three pack the car and leave LA.
Cops investigating the murder scenes figure out who the killers are and where they’re heading. LAPD detectives Dud Cole (Metzler) and his partner John McFeely (Billings) head to Star City, Arkansas. There they meet their liaison Police Chief Dale ‘Hurricane’ Dixon (Paxton). Hurricane has never had to draw his gun in six years as Chief of Police. He’s excited to be part of a “big city” task force. The LA cops see that Hurricane is in over his head.
The bodies pile up as Ray, Fantasia and Pluto make their way to star city. Hurricane’s past will come back to haunt him.
This will not end well.
Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…
One False Move was originally made to go straight to video. It won several awards in film festivals and then was given a limited release. Word spread and it went into a wide theatrical release.
Billy Bob Thorton and Cynda Williams played lovers in the movie. They were married after filming ended. Sadly, they were divorced a couple of years later.
Carl Franklin’s direction is top notch.
Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton and Cynda Williams are excellent. Michael Beach steals every scene he’s in. He’s THAT frightening as the genius level sociopathic killer.
One False Move (1992) rates 4 of 5 stars.
