Review of Trouble in Mind (1985) by Michael R — 17 Oct 2011

I liked it more when I was a kid. Now it seems to put the 'noir' movieness in the way of understanding what motivates and causes people to fail, ie their choices up or down. An ex con/cop with a bitter hard edge wants to make something full of real feeling in the world of hardasses.

The girl with the kid is heartbroken by the grifter she's with, the cafe owner is a stereotypical 'old soul' (it seems ppl always use this to describe themselves when they want to give unasked for advice) who lets herself get used but tries to prevent others from doing it too.

Then the gangsters are lead by Divine in a man's suit. I like the basic gist of it, the search for human feelings in the bitterness, but the characters are annoying and just want to be satisfied like dogs.

Divine's kingpin boss is the only reason I finished watching it. What a great actor.