8 Million Ways to Die (1986)

In director Hal Ashby's last and very under-rated film - the R-rated edgy, unconventional and believable police-crime thriller and neo-noir boasted a screenplay co-written by Oliver Stone and adapted from Lawrence Block's 1982 crime novel of the same name (although Stone reportedly disowned the film for its many improvised lines and revisions by two script doctors, R. Lance Hill and Robert Towne).

Budgeted at $18 million, it was a monumental flop (at $1.3 million of revenue) - one of three film disasters that forced its independent production-distribution company Producers Sales Organization (PSO) into bankruptcy (the other two films were The Clan of the Cave Bear (1986) and 9 1/2 Weeks (1986)). It was little known that 8 Million Ways to Die (1986), an adaptation of the fifth novel in the Scudder series, wasn't the only Lawrence Block crime novel (featuring Matt Scudder) that made it to the screen. The second iteration of a Matt Scudder tale was 28 years later - director Scott Frank's A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014), starring Liam Neeson, now set in New York City.

The plot was about an ex-narcotics LA cop and recovering alcoholic who was drawn back into his past occupation as a rogue investigator when he became mixed up with a deadly, underworld drug ring. He was forced to go on a redemptive journey after the murder of a call girl by a sadistic drug lord. Its taglines were: "He's already failed as a cop. If he fails again, it's her life," and "Death comes to all except those who deserve it most."

• the film opened with an ambitious tracking shot filmed from a helicopter over Los Angeles, as the central character (with a voice-over) referred to the film's title with a line of dialogue taken from the Naked City TV show, that aired with four seasons of episodes from 1958-1963. The show always concluded with the narrator's iconic statement (in italics): "There are 8 million stories in the Naked City. Remember that old TV show?...What we got in this town, we got eight million ways to die"
• the failed cop referred to in the tagline was identified as Matthew J. "Matt" Scudder (Jeff Bridges), an LA Sheriff's Dept. narcotics cop who would soon lose both his job, home and his family (wife Linda (Lisa Sloan) and daughter Laurie (Christa Denton)) - and his basic health

LA Sheriff's Dept. Narcotics Cop Matt Scudder - During a Violent Drug Bust of Hector Lopez With His Family

• in the film's opening sequence during a narcotics drug bust in the home of drug-dealing Hispanic Hector Lopez (Wilfredo Hernandez) who was having dinner with his family, the suspect went beserk with a "Louisville Slugger" baseball bat and viciously struck three officers; from outside a window, narcotics cop Matt Scudder fired into the man's chest and killed him to stop his rampage, as the screaming wife (Luisa Leschin) and family looked on in horror
• Matt's alcoholism and drinking problems were intensified as a result of the incident and he was forced to take a leave of absence for medical reasons; with his family and livelihood destroyed, he was struggling to recover by attending AA meetings (now six months sober); he was forced to work free-lance jobs as a rogue cop-PI
• following Matt's 6-month sobriety award at an AA meeting, an unnamed female member of the group spoke to him outside: "Someone wants to meet you. I think you'll want to meet them, too"; she passed Matt a note and then ran off - the note (with an attached $100 dollar bill) invited him to a private gambling club party at a luxurious hill-top mansion (with a miniature train elevator tram or funicular from the parking level)
• once Scudder entered a gambling club party in progress, he was warmly greeted and approached by a tall, thin, naive and lanky female in a white dress named Sunny (Alexandra Paul, a Baywatch star); the pretty female was aggressively sexual toward Scudder for unknown reasons, called him: "Honey," kissed him, and claimed she was "an old friend"; she even called him her boyfriend: "My guy!"; her seductive nature was due to her profession as a high-priced prostitute
• at the party, Sunny introduced him to three other central characters:
  • Willie 'Chance' Walker (Randy Brooks) - the mansion owner, a black boxer turned after-hours pimp and gambling club owner (with hostesses); he was one of Scudder's ex-vice busts in the past when he was a criminal
  • Angel Maldonado (Andy Garcia) - a pig-tailed, debonair and sleazy Cuban crime boss/drug lord pusher living in Beverly Hills (playing a role similar to Pacino's Scarface); with a volatile temper and obscene mouth, and a lover of sno-cones served from his car's trunk
  • Sarah (Rosanna Arquette) - Angel's moll, and Sunny's blonde co-worker, a high-priced hooker who was originally an aspiring dancer from Minneapolis before coming to LA to make "easy money" in "the life"

(l to r): 'Chance' Walker (Randy Brooks) - Gambling Club and Mansion Owner, with Sarah

Angel Maldonado (Andy Garcia) - Cuban Crime Boss

Sarah (Rosanna Arquette) - Angel's Girlfriend, and 'Chance's' Hooker

• later, Sunny wished to entice Matt away ("You wanna go for a ride"), but then left separately and met him later at a local El Segundo bar known as The Keg (to order banana daiquiries); she asked: "What are you doing in a bar if you are trying not to drink? Do you like making it hard on yourself?"; she then invited herself to his apartment within walking distance closeby, and revealed she knew he was a cop (or ex-cop); she offered him $5,000 for access to influential people that he might know that could help her; when she asked if he knew what she did, he bluntly stated: "You're a hooker"
• after stripping naked in his bathroom and snorting some lines of cocaine (and also high on booze), she offered him her full-frontal nudity and the bold line as she stood with her left leg up on a toilet seat: "I wanna show you something. The street light makes my pussy hair glow in the dark. Cotton candy, the glow. I'll show you"

After Sunny Revealed Herself to Scudder in His Bathroom: "You're not only a whore, you're a dumb whore"

• but Matt was intimidated by her and suspiciously refused her typical come-ons for drugs and sex, unsure of her motivations: ("You're not only a whore, you're a dumb whore"); he lectured her: "What in your experience tells you a man is more reliable because he's going to f--k you?...Predictable is not reliable...Whether it's for money or not, getting f--ked is usually getting f--ked"
• when he threatened to throw her out unless she leveled with him, she expressed desperation and fears of being harmed by her pimp 'Chance' if she told him that she wanted to quit the hooker business; she asked for Scudder to speak to him on her behalf and protect her, in exchange for the money
• Scudder immediately returned to the mansion and negotiated with 'Chance' to release Sunny from her obligations to him for $2,500, but 'Chance' was insulted by the idea; he refused to be paid off because he insisted that he wasn't her pimp, and that what she did was "her business": ("Sunny may be a high-priced whore, but who, when and for how much it's strictly her business....I am not her pimp, I'm nobody's pimp and if I was a pimp, I'd be the most pussy-whipped pimp in this town. No one pays me for the privilege of being a whore. Anybody around me wants to sell themselves, they do it strictly on their own"); 'Chance' was amused when Scudder mentioned how Sunny's excuse was that she and Scudder were getting married; on his way out, Sarah told Scudder: "Tell Sunny she is no different than the rest of us"
• once Scudder arrived back in his El Segundo home by early morning, Sunny still didn't trust that she was freed from 'Chance': ("Can't you see through him? It's all an act. He's gonna hurt me, I know it"); on the way to take Sunny to the airport in the afternoon, Scudder briefly stopped in a store to buy a birthday present for his daughter at a western shop, and realized that when he returned to his car, Sunny was missing; she had been kidnapped in a brown van; he attempted a pursuit, but his right front tire had been flattened and he was driving on the rim; shortly later, he discovered that she had been savagely killed (shot in the back and thrown off a bridge onto a storm drain below)
• after Sunny's death, Scudder went on a harmful drinking binge and blacked out for three days; he had been admitted unconscious for two days to a drug detox-rehabilitation hospital ward; after leaving the ward, he recovered his car at the office of the Sheriff's Department where Sunny's case was being investigated as a homicide, Scudder seemed more upset about missing his daughter Laurie's birthday
• Matt was left with some of Sunny's possessions inside her navy-blue zippered duffel bag in his trunk - all items pointed to Sunny working as a drug-runner/pusher for Angel, and she appeared to be in the midst of fleeing town with his drug money:
  • a rumpled brown paper bag with Sunny's address-telephone book inside (with evidence of male clients and various drug deals or payoffs)
  • inside the address book's zippered pouches were a diamond necklace (with green sapphire cat charms, although one was missing), and a paper-wrapped ounce of cocaine with a name and phone number on it - identifying Jaime as the manager of a PoBoys Market
  • a rectangular-shaped PoBoys Market brown paper-wrapped package (containing $250,000 of drug cash, in $100 dollar bills that flew up in the air when he ripped open the box)
• in the rear warehouse of a local PoBoys Market, Scudder watched as Hispanic workers piled up compressed fire-wood logs; they were ordered by 'Chance' to move them and stack the logs upstairs with unsold Christmas decorations so that they would be out of the way (and not sold) - a major clue (the store was a front, possibly used for laundering drug money and for pushing drugs); in the back of the store, Scudder spoke briefly to 'Chance' parked in his car, who stated that he was the owner of the PoBoys market; 'Chance' complained that he had been investigated as a suspect after Sunny's death
• at the mansion, Scudder befriended Sarah to find out why Sunny was "scared," and to learn about Sunny's past and her criminal associations; at first, she was wary of him: "I think you're a f--kin' freeloader, a lush and you got Sunny killed"; he learned that she also feared that she was closely being watched by Angel
• during his visit to the gambling club, as Angel stroked Sarah's hair, Scudder realized that Angel had the tell-tale missing jewel cat-charm from Sunny's necklace on his ring finger - marking him as the prime suspect for her murder; he extracted Sarah from the mansion to save her from Angel's control by "roughing" her up, kidnapping her and taking her away
• on the way down the tram elevator, he accused Angel of being Sunny's killer: "It was Maldonado...He was afraid she was gonna talk"; he also explained why Angel was threatened by Sunny: "Sunny was getting ready to leave town. She gotta bunch of stuff out of a safe deposit box"; on the drive to his place, she told how Angel was pressuring 'Chance' to go into business with him "to use the club, to sell drugs"

Scudder Kidnapped Sarah and Brought Her to His Apartment to Interrogate Her About Drug Lord Angel
Scudder Kidnapping Sarah from 'Chance's' Gambling Club-Mansion	Sarah Drunk and Nauseous in Scudder's Place
Sarah After a Chaste Night's Sleep	The Next Day, Sarah After Cleaning His Kitchen

• before ending up in his apartment, they entered The Keg bar after hours where he plied Sarah with Stolli vodka (to get her to talk); after entering his place, she told him that she was jealous about his love-making with Sunny: "I'm gonna f--k you so good"; as she attempted to remove his pants to pleasure him, due to being intoxicated and nauseous, she threw up into his groin area; he helped her take a cold shower followed by a chaste night's sleep, and his statement: "I never touched you"
• during the day, she cleaned his kitchen and the two became better acquainted - and inevitably more romantically interested in each other; he had convinced her that her boyfriend Angel was imminently dangerous, and the two began to work against him
• in a tense face-to-face meeting between Scudder and Angel at the LA Coliseum in the afternoon, while eating Angel's shaved ice sno-cones prepared from his trunk, Scudder accused him of murdering Sunny in revenge for her theft of his $250,000 of drug money (that was now in Scudder's possession); Scudder also suspected that Angel was moving drugs ("stuff") through 'Chance's' PoBoys supermarket operation (without his knowledge), since 'Chance' had refused to get into the drug-pushing business with him; feeling like he had won the argument with Scudder, Angel drove off with Sarah for an afternoon of shopping and love-making

A Tense Discussion Between Angel and Scudder Whle Eating SnoCones at the LA Coliseum

• in a further discussion with 'Chance,' Scudder confirmed that 'Chance' was completely unaware that Angel's drug-shipments were already being moved through his chain of PoBoys supermarkets; Scudder coordinated with 'Chance' to set up a drug deal by providing $250,000 of his funds (to be added to other drug money) to meet Angel's demands of $500,000 - it would also serve as a bargaining ploy for Sarah's release
• shortly later, Scudder visited with Angel again - this time at his recently-purchased, uniquely-designed 12-room Beverly Hills home (on N. Rodeo Dr.) in the midst of renovations; now that Scudder had the money to enter into a drug "franchise" with him, Angel was reluctant; the uncaring, cold and heartless Angel also explained how Sunny's death sent an example: "What happened to her, is people think that if you have to kill somebody in the course of doing business, sometimes it pays to advertise. You know, make it messy. Remind people that they bleed when they die. It might even prevent some more killings"; Scudder replied with sarcasm: "You are really a humanitarian, aren't you?"
• as the film-noirish story wound to its complex conclusion, it became clear to Scudder that Sunny hadn't been afraid of her pimp 'Chance,' but she was mostly fearful of "wacked-out" Angel even though she was dealing drugs with him: ("She wanted out, that's why he killed her"); Scudder explained to 'Chance' why Sunny had earlier sought Scudder's protection - and how Angel had already infiltrated into 'Chance's' chain of supermarkets with drug shipments and workers, and not into his gambling club: "It's a hell of lot easier to get somebody to protect you against a pimp than a bunch of whacked-out drug dealers that hack you up.....'Chance', you might not be in business with him. He's in business with you...Not your club, the markets, your vans, your managers, the box boys. That's how he was using Sunny. She was getting his guys into your operation"
• 'Chance' and Scudder drove to his PoBoys supermarket warehouse, where Scudder showed the unaware 'Chance' that stored logs in his upper supermarket warehouse were concealing Angel's stashes of cocaine; he was flabbergasted when he was shown the logs holding bags of white cocaine powder worth thousands of dollars; 'Chance' and Scudder loaded up their cars with 150 of the logs, to use as a bargaining chip against Angel
• as expected, Angel turned on Sarah; he suspected that Sarah had allied herself with Scudder and had told him about the hidden cocaine, and that she believed that Angel had murdered Sunny; the film's tagline came into play: "He's already failed as a cop. If he fails again, it's her life"
• the film concluded with two shootouts:
  • Scudder had phoned Angel and demanded an exchange at Pier # 20 in San Pedro inside Warehouse #154 (a precursor of the same scene in Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992)) - Angel was to exchange Sarah for the stolen stash of his own 150 logs filled with cocaine; meanwhile, Scudder had notified officers in the Sheriff's department to provide backup reinforcement and support with flak jackets and smoke grenades, as well as Scudder's own molotov cocktails
  • the confrontational stand-off turned ugly with lots of threats, expletives, accusations, and repeated shouts "Cut her the f--k loose" - referring to Sarah's release who was brought in blindfolded and leashed; Scudder increased pressure by burning the bags of drugs one at a time; in the end, Sarah was released and rushed into 'Chance's' arms, but then 'Chance' fired at Angel and wounded him, and Angel shot back and killed 'Chance'; meanwhile, Scudder incinerated the entire lot of cocaine-filled logs, as his backup Sheriffs killed Angel's henchmen both inside and outside the warehouse, although Angel was able to escape
  • Scudder drove off with Sarah - and was tempted but then didn't swig from a bottle of whiskey after he had stopped and purchased one at a liquor store; the two arrived at 'Chance's' mansion where a second shoot-out occurred between Scudder and Angel on the elevator tram-trolly; the gunfight ended with the crime lord's death

The Tense Shootout and Standoff in San Pedro Warehouse
2nd Lethal Shootout on Tram-Elevator with Angel

• in the film's unusual happy ending, Scudder was again sober (now for five weeks) and happy to be in love with Sarah; he addressed a beach-side AA meeting with a newfound realization - and then walked along the water's edge with Sarah in his arms:
  • "I'm Matt Scudder, I'm an alcoholic....Feeling pretty good today. When I first came to this program about a year ago. I didn't really believe this stuff. I didn't think any of it would really work. I wanted to believe it, but I couldn't. I, uh, I live in a world I didn't make. I know that now. It took me a long time to come to that realization. I had to be really beaten into that reasonableness. When I first came here, I was too smart for this program. I thought I had all the answers. I had to keep coming back here, time after - again, I failed the program 3 times. But I've been dry a month now or is it a month and, no, it is 5 weeks now. This time, I may do it for good. I feel a new strength now. This is a gift, this is really a gift, man. I'm not gonna look a gift horse in the mouth. I'm just gonna ride that sucker. When I put my head on that pillow at night, man. When I fall asleep, I don't pass out. When that sun comes up, I wake up. I don't come to. I'm in love, what can I say. It's a great feeling, man"