Film Review

By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

Blood & Wine
Directed by Bob Rafelson
20th Century Fox Home Entertainment 05/98 DVD/VHS Feature Film
R - violence, language

Blood & Wine is the third and final installment in a series of films on dysfunctional families directed by Bob Rafelson, following Five Easy Pieces and The King of Marvin Gardens.

In this noir thriller Jack Nicholson plays Alex Gates, a Miami wine merchant who has come up with a plan that will free him from an unhappy marriage and give him a new life with Gabrella (Jennifer Lopez), his Cuban mistress. The robbery of a $l.3-million dollar necklace from a rich client goes well, thanks to the expertise of his partner Victor (Michael Caine), an English safecracker. However, Alex's wife (Judy Davis) and Jason (Stephen Dorff), her son from a previous marriage, get their hands on the necklace and head off to Key Largo with their own ideas of a new life.

The rest of the movie is a cat-and-mouse game between Alex and his stepson who even tries to take Gabrella away from him. Jennifer Lopez steals the movie with her portrait of an immigrant who ditches all the members of this dysfunctional family. Unlike them, she's not enthralled by greed.

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by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat