Sea of Love (1989)

When this erotic mystery was first released in the Fall of '89, it was looked upon as a comeback vehicle for legendary actor Al Pacino who stars as beleaguered NYPD detective Frank Keller who is struggling with both alcoholism and the fallout from his recent divorce.  And then Frank unearths a new case which catches his interest.....a series of murders which are all linked to dates set up in personal ads AND the classic '50's song, "Sea of Love."  He teams up with a fellow detective played by John Goodman to set up a sting to catch this killer....but setting up a series of dates answering similar ads.  And wouldn't you know it, Frank meets some one who catches his fancy.....the mysterious Helen played by Ellen Barkin.  Only she might be a suspect too. :o And further intrigue results within this generally well-liked throwback thriller directed by Harold Becker (Malice) and written by Richard Price (The Color of Money).

Host & Editor: Geoff Gershon
Producer: Marlene Gershon

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Transcript

SEA OF LOVE – 1989

Directed by Harold Becker

Starring Al Pacino, Ellen Barkin, John Goodman, Michael Rooker, William Hickey, Paul Calderon, Gene Canfield, Larry Joshua, John Spencer, and Richard Jenkins

Genre: Stalker Thriller (Audio clip)

Is there a female protagonist who has had WORSE taste in men than Ellen Barkin's Helen in this movie?!? 😱 She goes from racist, homicidal Michael Rooker's stalker to various would-be stalkers including a creepy wanna-be poet who's cheating on his family....to finally landing Al Pacino's barely functionally alcoholic, fully codependent burned-out cop who's ALSO stalking her!

I get the sense that if this film was entirely told from her POV ("That Frank dude is calling me AGAIN at 3 am?? AND he sounds shit-faced....AND he's asking me to get a babysitter??"), it wouldn't be nearly as entertaining as it turns out to be. It helps to have a strong journeyman director like Harold Becker of Vision Quest and Malice fame...both films I thoroughly enjoy. It also helps to have a screenplay by Richard Price who can write these down-and-dirty city crime dramas in his sleep apparently...over the next 15 years after this film, he wrote Mad Dog and Glory, Kiss of Death, Clockers, the GOOD reboot of Shaft from John Singleton, and....several episodes of The Wire. 😉 So it helps for a '80's NYC-set thriller like this to have such a strong pedigree.

But even moreso, it helps to have the triumphant '80's return of PACINO still in the sweet-spot of playing well-meaning but morally compromised urban cowboys on both sides of the law – Pacino’s Detective Frank Keller just looks and sounds like a walking carton of Pall Malls soaked in Dewar's and you just can't take your eyes off him! Pacino's not quite in his "Hoo-Hah" phase yet though there are some early hints of it ("I'm EVERYBODY'S daddy!!!") and he gives a very lived-in performance that I think ranks up there in the 2nd Tier of Top Pacino alongside And Justice For All, Any Given Sunday, and Glengarry Glenn Ross.

Barkin also brings a lot of spark and energy to a character who - as noted above - shouldn't really work on paper and Goodman completes the hat trick of appealing lead performances doing what he does best: being the good-natured partner who is always better at being the voice of reason for others than for himself. It's probably a GOOD thing that they don't make films like this anymore - all the single ladies out there clearly deserve better - but it's always fun to revisit the better ones like this. :)

Best Needledrop (best song cue or score used throughout runtime of film): 

Of course it should go without saying that the titular song casts a shadow over the rest of this movie…..and for good reason, it’s actually a pretty great song in itself.  The original classic ballad which we hear throughout the movie playing as a ’45 record was first written and performed back in 1959 by Crowley, Louisiana’s own John Phillip Baptiste…..otherwise known as a Phil Phillips.  The single was a Top 40 smash and would remain his only hit….it fits pretty well as a hook for the overall story as it just has such SMOOTH, easily repeatable lyrics and a lovely gentle tempo. (Audio clip) 

Well of course as they would so frequently do back in the ‘80’s to sell soundtracks and hell – Hollywood in tandem with record companies STILL does this today decades later – they HAD to feature an updated remake of it to play over the closing credits.  It’s cynical sure, but here’s the thing…..this was NOT some radio-friendly poppy version, modern update of the song.  No THIS version was actually an off-tempo roots rock version performed by a renowned singer/songwriter with one of THE most distinctive raspy voices EVER recorded….yes that would be Pomona, California’s OWN Tom Waites.  You can’t mistake his voice as he positively GROWLS through every lyric to the point of almost making them unintelligible…..and this is the “rousing number” which kicks off the closing credits as we see Pacino and Barkin walking down the street in Manhattan, a pretty funny send-off in itself as not only does a take involving an oncoming pedestrian bashing into Pacino stay in the cut – with Barkin’s PRICELESS laugh resulting - but the height difference between the two actors becomes comically obvious. (Audio clip) 

What’s ironic and kind of funny in retrospect is that apparently upon release, no one particularly LIKED this grungy version of the song, the single never charted, and the soundtrack never really sold either.  Me personally, I happen to love it and find it quite catchy…..the whole tone and setting of the movie leading UP to this point has been gritty, so why NOT end it this way? One of the more underrated soundtrack songs of the ‘80’s…. (Audio clip) 

Wasted Talent (most under-utilized talent involved with film):

While I don’t think he’s particularly wasted here as an actor, I would just like to give a special shout-out to John Goodman for bringing both unassailable intelligence, warmth, and humor to what on paper is a pretty thankless role.  He plays Sherman, another detective from I believe another jurisdiction in Queens who teams up early on with Pacino’s Frank to solve this ongoing murder case as victims have popped up in both of their jurisdictions.  They have fun chemistry, they go through the motions of BOTH participating in the blind date set-up sting to smoke out the killer…..but throughout, this just remains Frank’s story and that’s fair because it IS also Pacino’s movie.  Regardless, Goodman is never less than engaging all the way to a touching last scene where they sit at a bar – he makes this whole sidekick role look easy even though it’s not.  I LOVE Goodman here as I have with notable supporting roles in SO many other films over the past 35 years…..Flight, Argo, Barton Fink, The Gambler, Arachnophobia, and of course previous episode The Big Lebowski where he KILLS it as Walter!  Here’s hoping he gets more recognition some day……  

Trailer Moment (scene or moment that best describes this movie):

Of course it HAS to be Frank and Helen’s controversial second date which occurs roughly around 45 minutes into the movie….and NO not for the reasons fans of this movie suspect, that sex scene is….INTERESTING but just weird overall.  No what I’m talking about is the tense misunderstanding which occurs BEFORE that…..when they go back to Frank’s apartment and things start to escalate.  Helen goes to the bathroom, tells him to get into the bed….JUST as he looks down into her purse where he sees what LOOKS like a gun….could SHE be the killer?? Uh-oh! (Audio clip) 

Watching Pacino’s freaked out back-and-forth and he figures out what to do it just sublime…..and then how he reacts when she steps out….both a funny and tense sequence which feels very authentic and sets the tone for the high-wire relationship these two are both about to embark on together. (Audio clip) 

MVP (person or people most responsible for the success of this film):

Back in ’89 when this was released, it was looked upon as a comeback vehicle for Pacino as his 1980’s was VERY spotty….Scarface was controversial but ended up being QUITE the cult hit still decades later looked upon as a pretty seminal crime drama.  But the rest?  OUCH….bad comedies like Author Author, bad historical epics like Revolution, and just BAD all around like Cruising.  But THIS performance was received as a TRUE return to form….back in his wheelhouse albeit somewhat more weathered than he was as a fresher face back in the ‘70’s. And all of those crinkles on his face serve a purpose…..this is a guy on the precipice who has been drinking himself into oblivious for YEARS and it’s a rewarding albeit tense journey watching his character dig his way out of that.  For delivering what I believe is his best overall performance of the 1980’s – SORRY Scarface, even if that might be a better movie overall – Alllll Pacino is the MVP. 

Final Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Happy 35th Anniversary to a somewhat dated but still ENDURINGLY entertaining thriller featuring several top-flight actors delivering top-flight performances….most notably Pacino and Barkin! 

Streaming on Apple TV Plus

And that ends another WET-ASS HOUR review!