Entertainment
Unhinged, Raunchy 80s Comedy Is A Cult Classic From Legendary Directors
By Robert Scucci
| Published
After The Evil Dead’s commercial success, Sam Raimi was eager to work on another project with Bruce Campbell, with help from the Coen brothers, in the form of 1985’s Crimewave. While this sounds like the best movie you’ve probably never heard of, it’s best to approach this one with guarded enthusiasm because what sounds awesome on paper doesn’t quite work on screen as intended. It’s not that the script isn’t funny, or that the setpieces aren’t ambitious, but rather that Raimi wasn’t allowed to edit the film due to studio interference. The end result is a movie that feels disjointed and incomplete despite the talent involved.
Had Raimi and the Coen brothers conceptualized the film later in their careers, when they had more clout and creative leverage, Crimewave could have been a masterpiece of subversive comedy. All the elements that draw you to it are present, but everything feels cobbled together and without a clear sense of direction. At the end of the day, that’s pretty much what you should expect when getting into a dark, neo-noir crime comedy inspired by Hitchcock, filtered through B-movie production values that lean fully into slapstick humor, as if you were watching a Laurel and Hardy bit stretched to feature length.
Still, if you’re a fan of the filmmakers, it’s a fascinating creative misstep to witness. If nothing else, it lets you check off one of their more obscure titles, a movie that never really had a chance to thrive upon release, but is now adored as the cult classic it was always destined to be.
A Glorious Mess Of Intent Vs Execution
Crimewave tells its primary story in flashbacks, leading up to the execution of Victor Ajax (Reed Birney), who finds himself strapped into an electric chair as midnight approaches. You’re also treated to a smash cut of a group of nuns crammed into a sedan, barreling toward the prison for reasons that won’t be explained until much later. Victor insists that he’s innocent, and hopes he can convince the executioner to spare him by recounting what really happened before he was apprehended and incarcerated.
Victor’s flashbacks tell the story behind the murders he’s been accused of committing, but given how convoluted everything becomes, it’s no wonder he’s minutes away from getting zapped out of his mortal coil. According to Victor, he worked as a technician for Ernest Trend (Edward R. Pressman), the co-owner of Trend-Odegard Security. While installing security cameras in his boss’s apartment building, Victor is sent off to track down his dream girl, Nancy (Sheree J. Wilson), who just so happens to live in the same building. What Victor doesn’t realize is that this errand is a deliberate distraction, as he’s supposed to be heading back to the shop across the street, completely unaware of what Mr. Trend already knows.
Mr. Trend has just learned that his business partner, Mr. Odegard, is trying to sell the company out from under him. In response, he hires exterminators Faron (Paul L. Smith) and Arthur (Brion James) to kill Odegard at the shop. Meanwhile, Victor attempts to charm Nancy, who is openly disinterested in him, but infatuated with Renaldo The Heel (Bruce Campbell), a sleazy rival who plans on buying the company from Odegard. Through this love triangle, the machinations of Mr. Trend, and the exterminators’ willingness to wipe out anyone in their path to make sure the sale doesn’t go through, Victor finds himself in the middle of a murder spree that becomes increasingly slapstick in execution, but incriminating all the same.
As bedlam unfolds according to Victor’s recounting of events, we gradually piece together what really happened that night. Whether or not he’s telling the truth, however, is left for the judge and executioner to decide as the clock ticks closer to midnight.
Could Have Been Brilliant, But We Got This Instead
The most disappointing aspect of Crimewave is that it contains all the raw elements you’d expect from a Sam Raimi film written by the Coen brothers. Bruce Campbell is reliably Bruce Campbell, and the slapstick is pushed so far into absurdity that it feels like an early preview of what the Coens would later refine in films like Raising Arizona and O Brother, Where Art Thou? Unfortunately, Raimi simply didn’t have the authority he needed to fully realize the project on his own terms, and the resulting studio interference hurt Crimewave far more than it helped.
While Crimewave remains a fun watch thanks to its cast, oddball story beats, and occasionally elaborate setpieces, its individual parts never quite line up to form a satisfying whole. The silver lining is that its failure directly inspired Raimi to double down on Evil Dead II after recovering from this production. In that sense, Crimewave became a necessary stepping stone that pushed the franchise we know and love into bolder, more unrestrained territory.
Had Crimewave been conceived in the 90s, 2000s, or later, the final product would likely have been far more cohesive. By that point, Raimi and the Coen brothers would have had enough creative control to fully embrace the absurdity baked into the screenplay. Even so, it’s still a Sam Raimi film written by the Coen brothers, which means you can expect a healthy dose of offbeat, dark humor that reflects the sensibilities they’ve consistently delivered throughout their careers. It just happens, in this case, to miss the mark more often than it hits, making for a messy but undeniably interesting watch.
As of this writing, Crimewave is streaming for free on Tubi.