On N List of Movie Reviews

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Next of Kin (1989)

Rate: 7
Viewed: 9/08, 2/25

NextKin
9/08: Ah...yes, Next of Kin.

That film with Patrick Swayze and his gang of hillbillies, I sure remember after seeing it many years ago. The best memory I have is the silly, crazy shootout at the cemetery. Well, Next of Kin is still dumb as ever. One thing I didn't realize is the interesting cast of now-known thespians: Liam Neeson, Adam Baldwin, Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Michael J. Pollard, Ben Stiller, and Ted Levine.

To start with the first problem, Bill Paxton looking like a hillbilly doesn't work. Second, the film has no energy. Things just happen. Third, Patrick Swayze doesn't fit the mold of a real hillbilly. And Liam Neeson as one of them? Jeez, what a thought. Honestly, the filmmakers should do everybody a favor by finding real ones like how it was done for Deliverance. Fourth, the cops are better off handling the investigation.

Fifth, the gunfight battle between the hillbillies and the Mafia stupidos is absurd. Sixth, it takes place at the cemetery! What is this...Phantasm? Seventh, the part when the guy drove his bus that's full of snakes from Kentucky to Chicago is taking it too far. He should've left most of them at home and brought only one which is always enough to scare anybody.

Eighth, the blond-haired guy who brought his team of hound dogs to sniff for the bad guys. Um...why? Ninth, for some hillbillies, bows and arrows are used instead of guns. Tenth, after all is said and done, everybody gets away with a bunch of murders before going back home. Really? Eleventh, the name Lawrence Isabella sounds feminine; hence, what Mafia boss' son is named that?

All in all, if you want to laugh at actors pretending to be hillbillies, Next of Kin will do.

2/25: You got to love the hillbillies-vs-the-Mafia angle in Next of Kin.

It's one of those movies that the main star got all of the attention at the time yet the supporting cast became famous in the long run. Patrick Swayze may look believable for a hillbilly, but Liam Neeson has him beat despite being born in Northern Ireland. I like the story, and Adam Baldwin as Joey Rosselini makes for a formidable villain.

All in all, Next of Kin is always easy to watch.