At Close Range (1986) – One of the most menacing dramas of the 1980s

“Ever been out west, Tommy? Ever heard a coyote? They make this sound like ‘woo, woo, woo!’ Coyote bitch gets in heat. First thing she does, she take care of the males. Then she heads toward town. All the neighborhood dogs, they smell her. They go crazy. They follow her. She lures them out on to the desert. Coyote get dog out there… alone. All the other coyote come along, they circle ’round… they kill that dog, eat it.”

Sometimes, in the best films, you get a moment like that. A stretch of dialogue so perfect it manages to boil the film down to its very essence. And when Brad Sr. tells that particular story to his son Tommy, we understand precisely where we are, and who we are dealing with. But it’s how we get there that makes At Close Range such a fascinating piece of work from director James Foley. Written by Elia Kazan’s son Nicholas, the story goes that the script was one of those famous Black List works that was talked about in hushed revererence for years until Sean Penn asked the best man at his and then-wife Madonna’s wedding to helm it. Foley had made his name as a director for some of the popstar’s most notable music videos up to that point, but he only had one feature credit to his name – the Aidan Quinn/Daryl Hannah vehicle, Reckless. Penn’s instincts were spot on however – Foley was not only the right man for the job, he crafts a major piece of work for the era.

And this was a very interesting time in 1980s cinema. The landscape had shifted over the first half of the decade, as the studios suffered from one New Hollywood financial disaster too many, and retreated to the safe bets of high-concept cinema, spearheaded by the franchises of Lucas and Spielberg. But as the studios began to take less risks, many of those key voices from the prior movement also stepped back, and the likes of Francis Ford Coppola (the biggest success story and inevitable casualty of the New Hollywood) began to work on independently produced features with a new generation of actors. When Rumble Fish and The Outsiders arrived in 1983, they signalled a change in focus, not only in terms of production, but now on that new era of stars emerging from the ashes of a new, old Hollywood by that point. Names like Matt Dillon, Mickey Rourke, Larry Fishburne, Diane Lane could share a screen with past mainstays like Dennis Hopper, and slowly, a new, exciting breed of actor was born. As films like Taps, Risky Business and Fast Times at Ridgemont High established this young crowd, the decade reached an established point where, amongst the noise of big budget blockbusters that secured the funds for Hollywood to re-establish its footing, a new independent movement could develop and build over the remainder of the decade, until its eventual explosion into the mainstream in the early ’90s.

The exact point at which this movement began to take shape depends on who you ask, but for me, it will be that sweet spot between 1986 and ’87, when films like The Hitcher, River’s Edge and Near Dark felt both fresh and vital, yet totally indebted to the work that had inspired their respective filmmakers in the decade before. James Foley and At Close Range fit precisely into that category, and it might just be the very best film from that era.

Taking cue from films like Rumble Fish before it, there is a cast made up of both young, fresh faces and the old guard that had initially set the course for them to follow in the decade prior. In this specific case, we get Sean Penn at a fearless point in his early career, and Christopher Walken stepping into the position of world class character actor – a role he would play for many, many years, but arguably never better than he is here.

Let’s start with Penn. There’s a case to be made that he is the finest actor of his generation when you line up all of his credits. Sure, things have gone a bit south since he picked up that second Oscar, but there’s a body of work over a good 20 years that can be held up against anyone. But 1986 still finds him on the cusp of greatness. After an unforgettable turn in Fast Times, and a talent-demonstrating turn of pace in 1983’s Bad Boys, it was time for him to become a star, and At Close Range is that moment. He arrives on the scene in this film like something crossed between Brando and Dean in terms of magnetism, and by the end of the film, he’s made a strong case as the natural successor to Brando by way of Pacino. There’s a very famous behind-the-scenes story about the final showdown in this film. At risk of spoiling the story, lets just say it involves a gun being pointed by Penn’s Brad Jr. at Walken’s Brad Sr. With the two actors in position, as the call for “Action!” came, Penn darted out of the room, screaming at at one of the staff on set “give me the other gun!”. The implication being, Penn wanted to up the ante by swapping out the prop gun for a real gun with live ammunition. Walken’s reaction is the take you see in the final film, and yes, he is genuinely petrified. Now, that’s not to say I condone that course of action, or that there’s a chance in hell you would get away with something like that on a set today – especially in the wake of real tragedies – but within that great piece of trivia is a truth about the unflinching dedication Penn had at this point in his career, and how bold he was to go toe-to-toe with an actor the calibre and prestige of Walken.

As for Walken, this may just be the moment where he matures into the presence we all know and love him for. That’s not to say that he didn’t deliver essential performances before. Anyone who has seen The Deer Hunter will understand this was an already extremely unique and talented presence on screen – and with films like The Dead Zone or even unforgettable brief appearances in films like Annie Hall, he was already unlike anything else out there – but when we think of Walken the star, it’s that broiling menace and uncompromising style that sets him apart. And he was never more menacing than At Close Range. As his Brad Sr. introduces his son into his world, there’s an undeniable charm to the malevolence, but as the film tips over into its final act, so too does Brad Sr. into something that can only be decribed as monstrous. It’s a powerhouse performance in a career littered with them.

At Close Range is a brilliant drama featuring two extremely powerful yet nuanced performances. Foley would go on to have a very solid career, directing the close-quarters tension of Mamet with another incredible cast of actors in Glengarry Glen Ross, and craft some of the most underrated erotic thrillers of the ’90s with both After Dark, My Sweet and Fear, but At Close Range remains his most effective work, and something of an under-appreciated masterpiece.

This new Arrow Blu-ray features a number of solid features including two commentaries – one brand new featuring film critic Adrian Martin, the other featuring Foley himself – Sins of the Father, an interesting 15-minute study of the film from Dr. Laura Mayne, and a nice feature I’d not personally come across in the past – the isolated score. This is an opportunity to watch the film without dialogue and sound effects, as a way to appreciate the score against the backdrop of the visuals of the film. It doesn’t sound like it would work on paper, but it’s surprisingly effective, and in the case of At Close Range, where pieces of Madonna’s Live to Tell continually form the backdrop to the overall score, it’s fascinating to hear how it’s constructed.

If you’ve never checked out At Close Range, or, like me, hadn’t seen it in many years, give this new release a go, and discover or remind yourself of just what a brilliant achievement this film is.

Joe’s Archive – At Close Range (1986)