Cheap 2 Days in the Valley (Widescreen Edition) (Video) (John Herzfeld) Price

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Customer Reviews of 2 Days in the Valley (Widescreen Edition)

Over-the-Top Parody of Crime Film Archetypes & Los Angeles Culture.
"2 Days in the Valley" is a comedic crime flick that follows the tortuous entanglements of 10 Los Angelinos who, in the space of 2 days, are inadvertently brought together by a murder-for-profit plot. Sangfroid Lee (James Spader) hires has-been hit man Dosmo (Danny Aiello) to assist in a murder, with plans to dispose of Dosmo afterward and collect on an insurance payoff with his bombshell partner in crime Helga (Charlize Theron). Meanwhile, a failed film director at the end of his tether, Teddy (Paul Mazursky) stumbles upon a kindly nurse named Audrey (Marsha Mason) as he looks for someone to adopt his dog before he commits suicide. Audrey's obnoxious art dealer brother Allan (Greg Cruttwell) and his mousy personal assistant Susan (Glenn Headly) are held hostage by Dosmo as he evades Lee. And burned-out cop Alvin (Jeff Daniels) and his ambitious partner Wes (Eric Stoltz) come upon the murder scene while cruising to bust massage parlors. <
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>"2 Days in the Valley" isn't what I would normally call a "black comedy". This movie makes fun of murder, sociopaths, police, and misery in general. But it's not subtle or clever. It's an over-the-top parody of crime film archetypes and Hollywood players. It's often too simplistic and in-your-face for my taste, but it has some funny moments. Some members of the audience will undoubtedly enjoy the knock-down drag-out brawl between Teri Hatcher and Charlize Theron, as Becky and Helga. But you have to like your catfights very stagey. If you're looking for something light and overstated, "2 Days in the Valley" might fit the bill. The DVD (HBO 1997) includes a trailer (3 min) and text bios and filmographies for 11 cast members and writer/director John Herzfeld. Subtitles are available in English, French, and Spanish. Dubbing available in French.

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Great flick
The lives of several strange characters intersect in John Herzfeld's quirky crime comedy. A depressed has-been director (Paul Mazursky), an arrogant art dealer and his long-suffering assistant, a loser hit man (Danny Aiello), a cold assassin (James Spader) and his girlfriend (Charlize Theron), all with several cops (Keith Carradine, Eric Stoltz and Jeff Daniels) in their pursuit, get tangled up in a murderous insurance scam. <
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>I'll mention the fine acting by Glenne Headley and Marsha Mason as none of the other reviewers have mentioned them, but the entire cast was particularly good. Since this was a comedy, I think it's worth pointing out several of the inside jokes. Most obviously, Paul Mazursky's character is a down-and-out director with one Emmy for a made-for-television movie and, after that, the world's biggest flop. Of course Mazursky is a quite excellent screenwriter and director. Less obviously, Danny Aiello's down on his luck hitman has been working in a pizza parlor. Aiello of course played the owner of the pizza parlor in Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing." [...] <
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>That's right, and at the end of the film we're let into the fact that the cop has been given 48 hours to turn in his badge because the department has determined that he has been acting like a total jerk to all the citizens he's come in contact with, and we've just seen his last day on the job. I'm not usually very generous with my ratings, but I'll round 4.5 up to 5 for this one. Oh, and the score

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You have to been there.
This is Los Angeles. Being a native of more than a half a century I feel that I have some credence. This movie is funny as hell. It satarizes the many foibles of the west coast culture and may seem a little strange to folks who did not grow up here. But, it rules. Enjoy the pratfalls, the unrealistic scenes, it's all possible in L.A.