Tango & Cash Reviews

TANGO AND CASH has all the ingredients of a typical buddy-cop picture in the tradition of LETHAL WEAPON, but under the direction of Andrei Konchalovsky (RUNAWAY TRAIN; SHY PEOPLE), it is a wild exercise in excess that also works as a satire of its genre. Sylvester Stallone plays Ray Tango, a sophisticated, wealthy detective lionized by the press as the best cop in Los Angeles; Kurt Russell is Gabe Cash, a scruffy but celebrated LA detective who competes with Tango in making big busts. The two are thrown together in an effort to end the activities of California's biggest drug dealer, Yves Perret (Jack Palance). After exchanging insults and wisecracks (most of them painfully unfunny), the supercops are set up by Perret, arrested for a murder they didn't commit, and sent to prison. Naturally, Tango and Cash escape, determined to clear their names and nail Perret. The plot is a recycled mess, the dialog is awful, and the character motivation is nil, but thanks to Konchalovsky (and a strong performance by Russell), TANGO AND CASH is not only bearable, it's likable. Responsible for some of the finest films of the 80s, the Soviet-born director brings an insane, kinetic energy to the film that makes for effective action sequences and potent satire. A very smart "dumb" movie.