Ca$h

As a kid I would take the subway from Brooklyn into Manhattan to catch a movie or two. Typically I would wind up at one of the Time Square theaters. Many of them had been grand venues in there day but by the time the seventies rolled around they were frequently dank, broken down places. Looking back we now refer to them affectionately as grind houses. Places like this couldn’t afford the ‘A’ or even ‘B’ films of the day. The best you could expect was something in one of the many variations of exploitation flick. Of course one of the most popular of these were the Hong Kong martial arts movies but there were also quite a few pure action movies that were exactly what a ten year old boy wanted to see. Not a whole lot was required to put together a flick like this. All the producers needed to do was find a really overly muscular leading man, perhaps a n attractive actress to play the damsel in distress and a well seasoned shut coordinator and special effects supervisor. The later two were necessary to provide the requisite explosions and brutal mayhem. This kind of movie was not designed to be in contention for any awards and most are fairly forgettable. Still for those of us that spent many hot summer afternoons sitting in a darken movie house the memories still can bring a smile to our faces. Not many studios or distributors are into such faire but recently one film was sent for review that brought me right back to those carefree afternoons; ‘Ca$h’ or a you might have seen it listed ‘Bullets, Blood & a Fistful of Ca$h’.

You might not think this at first glance but this film exemplifies what independent cinema is all about. The writer/director Sam Akina obviously put his whole heart into bringing this project to fruition. According to the production notes Akina spent his savings of $25,000 to finance this movie. This required an expertise in production management that any corporation would envy. Not only did he take on the usual writing and direction but he filled the shoes of cinematographer and editor. I have to wonder whether he cooked the food for the craft services table in between takes. I’ve had the privilege to become friends with several Indy auteurs with similar workloads and I have always been impressed with the sheer passion these men exhibit. I get the same impression with this movie. Sure there are faults but Akina is making an honest attempt at providing a good old fashion fun flick. He is still at the formative stage of his film making career and that sense of experimental enthusiasm is projected off the screen. I admit that I was pulled into this film more as a guilty pleasure than anything else. This is in no fashion intended as a negative remark but is meant as praise. I am so tired of Indy flick pretentiously trying for a gravitas that they can never achieve, this movie is honest in its goal of wanting to give the audience a couple of hours of fast pace action. Akina succeeds better in this regard than many film makers wielding budgets a thousand fold high than he had to work with.

Cash (Tom Doty) is a big tough man, so imposing there is only a need for one name. Of course the loaded shot gun that is constant accessory helps in that regard. He is an ex-con recently out of prison. I have absolutely no doubt that nobody messed with him in there. Cash is focused on only one thing at this point, one of the oldest and most powerful motivators in the human experience; revenge. Over ten years ago a criminal named Hector Gonzales (Jerry Lloyd) raped and murdered cash’s wife and Cash is not inclined to forgive and forget this brutal act. One thing that should factor into the approach Cash takes is the fact that in those intervening years Gonzales has been extremely busy consolidating his power so that he is now the undisputed crime lord of the city. Such a man is not likely to be an easy target but Cash is not concerned with how many henchmen or under bosses he has to kill so long as it eventually leads him to his ultimate prey. The script sets thing up so that you really want to see Gonzales get everything coming to him but one problem is the pacing. Akina crafts a strong narrative but he takes too long for the setup. The primary aspect of an action flick is after all action and the grind house tradition is to bring it on quickly and often. Once Akina gets more practice in this his future works will be incredible. He has an eye for framing a visually interesting movie and his potential makes him a film maker to watch carefully. This is a fun movie that could have been better but work fine as it is.

Posted 02/09/2010