Review of Straight to Hell (1987) by Al M — 17 Aug 2010

In Straight to Hell, Alex Cox (Repo Man and Sid and Nancy) takes us on a bizzaro trip that parodies spaghetti westerns. While no where near as sublimely strange and awesome as Repo Man, Straight to Hell is still a funny, witty, and insane deconstruction of western and crime dramas.

Set in the present day, it follows an unlikely group of outlaws that includes The Clash's Joe Strummer and Courtney Love as they go into hiding ina small Western town. Along the way, a variety of celebrities make appearances: Grace Jones, Dennis Hopper, Jim Jarmusch, and Elivis Costello.

And The Pogues provide all of the music for the film. The film never entirely makes sense, and Courney Love is almost as annoying as she is Sid and Nancy. Still, the film plays out with ample hilarity, brutality, and insanity.

While Straight to Hell never does anything overly important, it is a film that should not be missed by indepdent cinema fans or people who enjoy postmodern pastiche. Indeed, Tarantino could learn a few lessons from Straight to Hell about how to make such films without coming across as too pretentious.