One Way Out

One Way Out (Thriller -- Color) An Arrow Pictures release of a 2 Planet Pictures production. Produced by Thomas Gallo, Kevin Lynn. Executive producer, Dennis Friedland, Jason Blum. Co-producers, John Bertholon, Dick Fisher, Marisa Polvino. Directed by Kevin Lynn. Screenplay, Jeff Monahan.

Frank Damico - Jack Gwaltney
Bobby - Jeff Monahan
Betsy Cavanaugh - Isabel Gillies
Eve Petrone - Annie Golden
Snooky Damico - Robert Turano
Walt - Michael Ironside

It's low-rent crime and several couples on the run in the indie "One Way Out." This is very, very familiar turf that, commercially, amounts to little more than fodder for the video shelf and off-hour cable viewing.

That said, and considering the economy of means, the picture is a quite enjoyable, if predictable, diversion. First-time feature director Kevin Lynn has assembled a solid cast and crew and runs them through their paces at a nice, even clip.

He demonstrates a cool professionalism, if not an inspired or eclectic vision, in what amounts to a calling-card film.

Frank (Jack Gwaltney) and Bobby (Jeff Monahan) are fresh out of prison, with the former hoping to put his criminal past behind him. Bobby, however, envisions one last bank job that will set him up for life. It's only when Frank decides to even the score with Walt (Michael Ironside), a brutish petty criminal who's done his family wrong, that he agrees to team with his former con cohort.

This setup virtually mandates the film's path. The stickup of Walt's garage goes awry and the grease monkey winds up in a pool of blood. Frank and Bobby take a hostage and go on the lam with Snooky (Robert Turano), Frank's brother, and Bobby's g.f., Eve (Annie Golden).

The ultimate destination is tragedy. But to the filmmakers' credit, the route is colorful, often amusing and suspenseful. Monahan's script is a surprisingly effective cut-and-paste job of genre conventions. Coupled with a cast that appreciates the story's underlying flakiness, it all works pretty well.

Camera (color) Dick Fisher; editors, Fisher, Lynn; music, Sean Murray; production design, Mark Coehlo; art direction, Jennifer Halpern; costume design, Melissa Toth; sound (Dolby), Coll Anderson; assistant director, Eric Klein; casting, Donna DeSeta, David Cady. Reviewed on videocassette, L.A., March 26, 1996. Running time: 106 min.

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