| | | | To Live and Die in L.A.
(1985) |
omething shaky has happened in the City of Angels.
It is not an earthquake. It doesn't even have to do with destruction.
A cop was murdered... And now his partner is out for revenge.
It's 1985 and it's not looking good. William Friedkin, the man behind such classics as 'The French Connection', 'The Exorcist' etc. was in a bit of a lull. After drecting that terrible, terrible mess known as 'Deal of the Century' with Chevy Chase who would have thought that he was about to re-announce himself with a BANG!
"To Live and Die in L.A." tells the story of one of the most ruthless villains in 80's cinema. His name is Eric Masters (Willem Dafoe), a career counterfeiter who has managed to stay one step ahead of the law for a long time.
One day at his health club, a group of undercover agents arrive to make a deal with him. Masters says to them: "I've been coming to this gym three times a week for five years. I'm an easy guy to find. People know they can trust me."
Then later, one of the agents, Jim Hart (Michael Greene), is brutally murdered by Masters. This gets the attention of Hart's partner, Richard Chance (William Petersen), a down-and-out Secret Service agent who vows to get back at Masters for the murder, even if he has to break the law to do so.
With the help of his new partner, John Vukovich (John Pankow, "Secret of My Success"), Chance embarks on a non-stop manhunt to bring Masters to justice, whatever the cost.
Another important character in the movie is the beautiful ex-convict Ruth Lanier, who is stuck with providing information that helps Chance get the best of Masters. Darlanne Fluegel, who plays Ruth, gives her best screen performance in this movie.
One of the highlights of this movie is the big car chase that goes on the wrong side of the road. It is definitely one of the greatest car chases in cinema history and makes the film an 80's classic.
Working from the novel of the same name by Gerald Petievich, Friedkin and Petievich craft a sumptuous thriller where the only thing different about the good guys is the fact that they have badges.Sadly neglected and overlooked on it's release this is one of the 80's best. And with a great new DVD just released... Start saving now.
 Don't forget that To Live and Die in L.A. is now available to order on Widescreen DVD using our special 80s Retro Assistant...
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Fast-paced and full of intense action, "To Live and Die in L.A." is director William Friedkin's best work since "The Exorcist."
Excellent casting and a hot soundtrack by 80's new wavers Wang Chung (see the soundtrack section for more details) add to this urban thriller.
I mean, wow, I can't praise this film highly enough. The editing, the cinematography, the acting. The sheer amorality of it all. Marry this with a cracking soundtrack by 80's stars Wang Chung (what the hell ever happened to 'em?). Top it all with a nihilistic ending... what more could a person want? Did I mention car chases going the wrong way on a freeway?
Thrilling, sylish and brutal. This is one of the 80's best. Don't miss it.
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Despite critical acclaim, "To Live and Die in L.A." was a box office flop, bringing in only $16 million in the U.S. 
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William Petersen now stars in the t.v. series CSI as Gil Grissom. -Thanks to Brian Hill
A shot of William Petersen's face is shown after the closing credits.
Actor Robert Downey Jr.'s father appears in this film.
Willem Dafoe's character is referred to as "Rick Masters" by the characters in the film, however Dafoe is credited as "Eric Masters" -Thanks to Will Clark
Jane Leaves makes a minor appearance in the film as a dancer. Her best scene is near the end of the movie where she runs off in the Ferrari with Willem Dafoe's girlfriend. She is best known as Daphne on the TV show Frasier. -Thanks to Tom
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Rediscover your favorites! If you like
To Live and Die in L.A. or 80's Thriller classics, then be sure to
check out this list: ..... Hitcher ..... Thief ..... WarGames ..... Christine ..... Against All Odds ..... Blue Velvet ..... 8 Million Ways To Die ..... Fear City ..... Pulse ..... No Way Out ..... Blow Out ..... Class of 1984 ..... Contraband ..... Body Double ..... Firestarter .....[More]
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When Chance jumps on top of the moving walkway in the airport while chasing John Turturro, that caused a lot of problems with the airport. They had warned Friedkin and Peterson that they were not allowed to do that stunt because it was too much of a liability, Peterson asked Friedkin if he could do it anyway and Friedkin said all right but that he would have to do it in one take. He pulled it off, and they were nearly thrown out of the airport. -Thanks to Will Clark
At the beginning of the movie, Willem Dafoe is making counterfeit bills. A convicted counterfeiter was brought on the set to show him how it is done. Dafoe claimed that he did have a chance of getting arrested by police during the process.
Dafoe actually painted the painting he burns at the beginning, Friedkin sent him to paint with some German artist during preproduction.
The production manager's son was detained at a supermarket for passing off one of the phoney 20 dollar bills, and the secret service began investigating the entire production and hassling Friedkin--luckily Gerald Petievich was a long time veteran of the service and helped them wade the waters.
The cars in the film were rented from various L.A. county law enforcement agencies: The beige Chevrolet and two Dodges came from the LAPD, the midnight blue Plymouth came from the U.S. Treasury, the silver Malibu came from the California Highway Patrol, the black Malibu came from the L.A. county sheriff and the blue Pontiac came from the Orange County Police. The car William Petersen drives in the chase is a 1985 Chevy Impala F41 from the Los Angeles Police Department. The chase takes place on the 710 freeway which extends from downtown L.A. south to Long Beach. Peterson was actually driving the getaway car for 90 f the chase. -Thanks to Ahmed Burson
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|  |  |  | | To Live and Die in L.A.
Locations |
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The majority of the movie was filmed in San Pedro,CA - the Harbor area in the Port of Los Angeles. In fact the neighbornood and the specific loction of the main house featured in the movie at the West end of the Vincent Thomas Bridge is now in transition and becoming part of the port itself. [Thanks to John Di Leva]
Can you help? Do you know any of the Los Angeles, S. California filming locations used for To Live and Die in L.A.? [Please send them in]
|  | | | | ![[16:9 -Widescreen Enhanced]](16_9.gif) | ![[5.1 CH SURROUND]](dd5.gif) | Trailer, Commentary, OutTakes |
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80s new wavers Wang Chung composed and recorded the music for the movie and its soundtrack. The track listing is as follows:
1. To live and die in LA
2. Lullaby
3. Wake up stop dreaming
4. Wait
5. City of angels
6. Red stare
7. Black blue white
8. Every big city
9. Dance hall days (this is on a CD re-issue and didn't feature on the original release)
Wang Chung, who recorded the film's soundtrack, would later have a chart hit with "Everybody Have Fun Tonight."
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Soundtrack Available:
On CD
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