Crossroads Reviews

Action director Hill (48 HOURS) brings his steady hand to this story of young Juilliard-trained guitarist Macchio, who takes a job at a Harlem nursing home. He hopes to learn the whereabouts of a legendary missing blues song from ancient blues man Seneca, who's a patient there. Seneca promises to teach Macchio the song if the young man helps him get back to a Mississippi crossroads, where Seneca is determined to win back his soul from the devil, with whom he made a deal years before. En route to the Delta, this odd couple encounters pretty runaway Gertz, briefly providing a love interest for Macchio, but the devil awaits and both Seneca and Macchio are anxious to give him his due. Working from a screenplay that drew on scriptwriter Fusco's experience as an itinerant young blues man, Hill and cinematographer Bailey perfectly capture the look and feel of the Mississippi Delta, heretofore little seen on film. Seneca and Gertz turn in assured performances, and Macchio is convincing as the dedicated young guitarist, having been carefully coached to appear to do his own playing (although Cooder, who is primarily responsible for the film's wonderful soundtrack, actually does most of it).