Henry Rollins Week: The Chase

Hola folks! So this week is intended to be about Henry Rollins, more specifically any film, TV and specials he had a direct involvement with. Many of you are aware of this man's spoken word tours, his band Rollins Band and even his autobiography " Get In The Van" but few know that he went to see Black Flag in 1980 when he jumped the stage and took the mike for a song. As lead singer of the failed DC punk band State of Alert came and went, fate took Henry by the hand. A few days later, he got a a call to head and audition for Black Flag. At 5'9" he has had the balls to try to outdo Iggy Pop at the punk scene, he has whored out for MTV and even voice over acting for Batman Beyond. This is The Chase.

Gimme the Jack or she takes two in the spine!

Jack Hammond (Charlie Sheen of Grizzly II: The Concert, Red Dawn, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Platoon, Young Guns, Major League, Men at Work, Hot Shots!, Shadow Conspiracy, Two and a Half Men and Machete Kills) a schmuck wrangling birthday gigs as a clown has been sentenced for life in prison but manages to give the slip and disappeared fleeing for Mexico. Getting stopped at a convenience store by a couple of cops in harness, Jack grabs a nearby debutante Natalie (Kristy Swanson of Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Knots Landing, Nightingales, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Phantom, 8 Heads in a Duffel Bag, Early Edition, Grapevine and Swamp Shark) at gunpoint.

Escaping the clutches of the cops and now engaging for in a high speed pursuit, two cops are getting the "Cops" reality TV recording in a daily patrol when it hits the radio about an ongoing chase and demand for back up. Officer Dobbs(Henry Rollins of Johnny Mnemonic, Heat, Lost Highway, Oddville, MTV, Batman Beyond, The New Guy, Bad Boys II, Teen Titans, Wrong Turn 2: Dead End, The Devil's Tomb and Feast) and Officer Figus (Josh Mostel of Jesus Christ Superstar, Delta House, Star 80, At Ease, Windy City, The Money Pit, City of Hope, City Slickers, The Maddening, The Out-of-Towners, Knockaround Guys, Growning Up and Other Lies and Blue Bloods) pop the clutch and go into action. As the license plate has been taken down, it is revealed that Natalie is heiress of Dalton Voss (Ray Wise of Swamp Thing, Robocop, Dallas, Seduced, The Colbys, Knots Landing, Twin Peaks, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, Body Shot, Command& Conquer: Red Alert 2, Jeepers Creepers II, 24, and Reaper) multimillionaire and pillar of the community. This whole event goes down from Newport Beach all the way down the I-5 through San Diego to the desperate attempt of escape to Mexico.

JAYWALKER!!!!

 With the gaining press of this dangerous pursuance throughout the towns, live coverage is being recorded from the air as well as vans trying to get footage of it in progress. Jack and Natalie find in this romp on the road that while from different backgrounds they actually have quite a bit in common and Jack finds himself regretting never having the balls to ask a girl like her out. Will they escape to Mexico? Can Jack and Natalie form a real relationship? Will this be one of Dobbs and Figus's better collars? Screw the potential love story, this is only to be watched for Rollins and Mostel's scenes.

One of my favorite scenes of this movie is still Flea and Anthony Kiedis of The Red Hot Chili Peppers trying vigilante justice to smash the BMW into the guard rails, quote smack the punk out end quote and rescue said hottie. They do this with a bright green monster truck. Director/writer Adam Rifkin (Tale of Two Sisters, Nutt House, Psycho Cop Returns, Bone Chillers, Without Charlie and Shooting the Warwicks) found most of Mostel and Rollins' ad lib more entertaining that what was written for them so he gave Mostel and Rollins the go for it. The I-5 freeway scenes were predominantly shot in Houston TX via Highway 290 and then new Hardy Toll Road so dozens of palm trees were trucked in and planted along the highway. Yeesh, that is a crappy prop job.  

This movie hit the screens a mere 3 months prior to the infamous O. J. Bronco Chase. See? Life can imitate art.

What do you think of the Padres' chances for the pennant??