2 Days in the Valley

Plot synopsis:
Two hitmen, Lee Woods and Dosmo Pizzo, walk into a bedroom where a sleeping couple, aspiring Olympic athlete Becky Foxx and her ex-husband Roy Foxx, are in bed. Lee injects Becky with a tranquilizer then shoots Roy in the head. Lee and Dosmo then drive to an abandoned area of Mulholland Drive, where Lee shoots Dosmo and blows up the car in order to set Dosmo up as the fall guy for the murder. Lee flees the scene with his girlfriend Helga.
Dosmo was wearing a bulletproof vest and survived the shooting and car explosion. He seeks shelter at the mansion of wealthy art dealer Allan Hopper, where he takes Hopper and his assistant, Susan Parish, hostage. Dosmo is unaware that Hopper has called his sister, Audrey Hopper, a nurse, to come to the house. On her way, Audrey picks up Teddy Peppers, a down-and-out TV producer contemplating suicide.
Meanwhile, Becky awakens and discovers Roy's body in bed beside her. She runs from her house and flags down two detectives, young, ambitious Wes Taylor and cynical veteran Alvin Strayer, who are driving by. Although he is sympathetic, Wes begins to suspect that Becky knows more than she is saying. Becky, who had hired Lee and Dosmo to kill Roy for $30,000, was unaware that they would kill Roy in her own house. Lee goes back to the house to get the money, encounters homicide detectives Creigton and Valenzuela working the crime scene, and kills them both. Wes decides to return to the crime scene to see if he can offer any insight on the case. Masquerading as one of the detectives, Lee lures Wes outside, intending to kill him.
Becky and Helga get into an argument which escalates into a fight. Becky shoots Helga in a confused scuffle and escapes. Helga finds her way to Becky's house, where Lee has knocked Wes unconscious. Lee reluctantly decides to kill Helga instead of taking her to the hospital, concluding that her wound is too severe to be treated, but his gun jams. He turns to retrieve Wes's gun but finds that Helga has escaped and has flagged down a passing car containing Dosmo and his hostages. Susan jumps out of the car and tries to help the dying Helga, but Helga dies on the roadside.
Wes is caught in the middle of a shoot out between Dosmo and Lee, and is shot in the legs. Just before Lee can kill Dosmo, Teddy shoots Lee, killing him.
A grateful Wes allows Dosmo to take the $30,000 and escape with Susan. The following day, Teddy shows up to an anniversary party that Audrey is attending. As Susan and Dosmo drive down a highway, Dosmo contemplates using the money to start a pizzeria in Brooklyn; Susan smiles and he kisses her.

Tags: comedy, suspenseful, neo noir, murder, suicidal, violence, revenge

Review:
The film is an ensemble piece that works on the same level as many others in the genre:  We're approached with a series of characters and as the story develops, we watch how the situations all interweave.
Jeff Daniels is beautifully cast and outstanding as his partner, who's been in the business for a lot longer, but is a loose cannon and will do absolutely anything--including exposing the masseuses of a Japanese parlor for alleged prostitution--to protect the dear "Valley."  James Spader has mastered the role of the yuppie serial killer, and reprises the role he was born to play.
In addition to the clever plot and delicious acting you get to see very early work by Charlize Theron and James Spader, either of which is worth your time.
The film has humor (a hired gunman that spends much of the movie looking for Italian seasonings while cooking for his captives), some sadness (a once successful director down on his luck,  ready for suicide, being ridiculed by a bit part actor), a very lush Charlize Theron, a movie mogul with "kidney stones", and an extremely competent killer that has a thing with his stop watch.
1st watched 2/5/2000 - (Dir-John Herzfeld): Interesting mish-mash of characters who all eventually fit together amidst violent crimes started by a man who seems to be used to this line of work.
(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon.)Yes. You've seen "grunge on the run" romantic comedies--Wild at Heart (1990), Natural Born Killers (1994) come to mind, and poor waitress/crazy old man romantic comedies, e.g., As Good As It Gets (1997)--well, this is a mousy secretary/aging hit man romantic comedy.Somewhat.
It's also a tongue-in-the cheek satire on all things that Hollywood thinks movie-goers crave: cute dogs, sexy women, good-hearted underdogs winning out, dumb cops, the ugly rich (Greg Cruttwell's wormy Allan Hopper fits the bill), shoot-outs, blood, dead bodies (enough to grace a Shakespearean stage) and that favorite of testosterone males everywhere: a good old-fashioned cat fight.Charlize Theron and Teri Hatcher provide the eye appeal as they slap and toss each other around; and to be honest I have to say they are definitely worth watching.
He loses his hairpiece, finds redemption, true love, thirty thousand Big Ones, and presumably lives happily ever after on the lam with his unlikely moll (Glenne Headly) in this clever plot by coincidence from director and scriptwriter John Herzfeld.(By the way, what's with Hollywood and its perverse love affair with sympathetic hit men?
Also, like any good dark story, they all get involved with each other one way or another, would that be by being allies that we didn't know of, or simply people that cross the street at the same time and will just look at each other and go on with their lives.
Lee Woods (James Spader) is a cold-blooded hit man and Dosmo Pizzo (Danny Aiello) a soft-at-heart gangster; they've been sent to murder Roy Foxx (Peter Horton), the former husband of also-ran Olympic skier Becky Foxx (Teri Hatcher).
The feature film directorial debut of long-time TV movie creator Herzfeld, this crime thriller interweaves several related plot lines into one tongue-in-cheek noir tapestry.
There are some good performances too, notably from James Spader, returning to his roots as a slick, ice-cold heavy, newcomer Charlize Theron in a hilarious over-the-top sexpot role, and Paul Mazursky, who usually comes off as too precious, in the nicely modulated part of a suicidal pet lover..
In Los Angeles, the professional cold blood killer Lee Woods (James Spader), and his loser partner, the hit-man Dosmo Pizzo (Danny Aiello), are monitoring the house the aspiring Olympic skier Becky Foxx (Teri Hatcher) that is sleeping with her ex-husband Roy (Peter Horton).
Throughout two days, the lives of these characters are entwined and truth is disclosed."2 Days in the Valley" is one of the best unknown and underrated films that uses a sophisticated screenplay and many well-developed characters in the style of "Pulp Fiction".
2 DAYS IN THE VALLEY (1996) *** James Spader, Danny Aiello, Eric Stoltz, Jeff Daniels, Paul Mazursky, Teri Hatcher, Charlize Theron, Marsha Mason, Glenne Headly, Greg Cruttwell, David Carradine, Peter Horton, Louise Fletcher, Austin Pendleton.
"Pulp Fiction" meets "Short Cuts" best describes this fun, exciting and leisurely paced comedy/crime thriller with a dozen characters crossing over into each others' paths during 48 hours of murder, suicidal tendencies and the usual California angst of the San Fernado Valley.
The film is not great, it has some flaws in acting and a few scenes which just don't belong and are very cliché, however as a whole, i liked it, good cinematography and score as well as good performances for the most part, Herzfelds direction and writing was also good, a good debut for him.
Aping both Tarantino's "Pulp Fiction" and Bryan Singer's "The Usual Suspects", Herzfeld gets in some good, quick lines that raise a laugh or two, but the overall feel of the film seems like cinematic backtracking (it is knowingly recycled).
Stand-out performances come from Danny Aiello as a contract killer, Charlize Theron as a femme fatale, and filmmaker Paul Mazursky in a rare acting turn playing a suicidal movie director.
If you like interesting story lines accompanied by amazing performances by very talented actors/actresses then you should watch 2 Days in the Valley.
This movie packs a lot of star power with names such as Charlize Theron, Teri Hatcher, Eric Stoltz, Danny Aiello, Jeff Bridges and James Spader.
(Sometimes, it appears that the characters are explaining what's going on to the audience, rather than conversing with the other characters.) Nevertheless, this is a trite point, and distracts none at all from the movie's enjoyment.The cast, especially James Spader and Charlize Theron are top notch, but a crucial change made to "lighten" the movie tosses much of the plot out the window, robs one central character of his key motivation, and greatly hinders the film.
(Although some of these did come afterwards) Kudos for great performances by Danny Aiello, Eric Stoltz, Glenne Headly, Marsha Mason, Terry Hatcher, Charlize Theron, and in a smaller role, Ada Maris.
Wife arranges for baddies to top ex-husband (somewhat to her discomfort the hit-man and his sidekick shoot said ex in the hirer's bed - while she is still in it); sidekick gets set up to take the rap, encounters raving misogynist with kidney stones, falls in love with much derided secretary; failed film director contemplates suicide but is saved by a good woman; vice cop yearns to move to homicide and gets embroiled by accident in murder (see above); final denouement when all main characters arrive by chance in the same neighbourhood........
You get Danny Aiello as the framed sidekick to James Spader's truly odious murderer (he nearly shoots his badly wounded femme fatal girlfriend 'for your own good': more than a hint of Reservoir Dogs methinks), Teri Hatcher as the sport obsessed wife hiring the killers, Eric Stoltz as the wistful vice cop, Jeff Daniels as his partner, Louise Fletcher, Keith Carradine.and a whole slew of other faces you can recognise but not quite place.
From the bald bad guy (Danny Aiello with his head shaved) to the suicidal writer/director who becomes a hero to the cat-fight of the two delicate leading ladies that makes the Ali-Foreman heavyweight battle look like a walk in the park; you know your not in Kansas anymore.
Then as the movie started and I saw  Danny Aiello(Desmo)and James Spader (Lee) staking out a house I thought it had to be cops checking out drug dealers or something along that line and I was wrong.
Then as the other characters appeared in the movie and the story started going in a different direction then I figured it would I was shocked by the way things came out and knew this was one of the best Dramas I've seen in years.
Writer-director John Herzfeld's mining of the multi-layered, heavily populated neo-crime genre sparked by the popularity of Pulp Fiction is an above average, if workmanlike, movie that should satisfy most aficionados of the style.
Weaving together the stories of more than half a dozen interesting denizens of the San Fernando Valley, Herzfeld makes the most of his situations, allowing talented performers like Danny Aiello, Eric Stoltz and Jeff Daniels to show-off their chops.
The technique has been done before: "American Graffiti" (1973) and "Pulp Fiction" (1994) come to mind.Two hit men, cold-blooded psychopath Lee Woods (James Spader) and faded Dosmo (Danny Aiello), are hired to kill for insurance money the womanizing ex-husband (Ray Foxx = Peter Horton) of scheming Olympic skier Becky Foxx (Teri Hatcher).
I too thought of "Pulp Fiction" when I first saw this terrific film, in the sense that this was the anti-Tarrantino principle, a crime drama/comedy with a great deal of heart and soul.
Jeff Daniels as the cop on the verge of flipping out, Eric Stoltz as his virtuous partner, Glenne Headley as the woman who Aiello's character brings to life and feeling, all are very good.
Fans of the "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" game can get a real kick out of the cast of this movie--Aiello and Daniels appeared in Purple Rose of Cairo together; Eric Stoltz and James Spader appeared in that Sean Cunningham opus THE NEW KIDS together, etc.
The plot, acting and directing are outstanding in John Herzfield's "2 Days In The Valley." Brilliant performances by Paul Mazursky as a widower who is simply trying to "off" himself but wants to make sure someone takes care of his dog.
A tip, see "reservoir dog", "amorres perres" or "Pulp fiction if you want a really good short cut, dark gangster film.
The film also made me angry, and when that happens no good review for you!If you happen to like bad Pulp Fiction knock-offs you'll eat this crap up.
Breaking into the home of Olympic woman skier Becky Foxx, Teri Hatcher, these two hit men Dusmo & Lee, Danny Aiello & James Spader, start to work over Becky's husband Roy, Peter Horton, about the truth of him ever having slept with Lee's girlfriend Helga, Charlize Theron.
The film "2 Days in the Valley" then begins to go off in a number of different directions with some four stories that at first seem to have nothing to do with the plot, the murder of Roy Foxx by the two hit men.
There's a lot to write about "2 Days in the Valley" but the less the better so not to spoil the movies very good story or story-lines.
Charlize Theron shows Barbie Doll where to get off.But all entangled, they have to dance to a story written and directed by John Herzfeld that reminds us of those terrible times in CLUE when THAT talented cast is literally sliding across the floor, trying to apply their brakes before they crash into each other or the thin partitions of the plot.I enjoyed this more the second time through--especially the performances of Danny Aiello and Glenne Headly who are supposed to be "like us", the "good guys".Nah; we aren't really that noble and good.
Maybe it was the promise of a 'Pulp Fiction-style story' or 'a movie in the vein of Short Cuts' that disappointed me about this film, Im not sure.
It's a pity because, with a cast consisting of Spader, Mazursky and Aiello, this had a promise of greatness...If u want to see a good movie about intersecting lives over a one day period, look no further than the excellent Magnolia.
And although there is plenty of violence to keep anyone who likes this sort of stuff interested, there were plenty of laughs.I need to watch it one more time to help me along in deciding if this is a really good "bad" movie or something else.
"2 Days in the Valley" is another one of those movies that were made in the 90s during a not-so-mini-fad of multi-character crime dramas, inspired of course (do I need to say it?) by "Pulp Fiction".
It's an uneven movie: for every character that works (Spader as an icy, high-precision killer, a stunningly sexy Theron (in her film debut) as his accomplice, Hatcher as a professional athlete (good casting!), Stoltz as an earnest cop), there is one that is just a waste of space and time (Aiello as a pathetic ex-hit-man, Crutwell as an arrogant prick, Headly as his "homely" assistant, Mason as the nurse who likes war movies).
A unique movie experience that has some very likable and loathsome misfits that feel as real as they do surreal.Some hilarious bits and gritty stuff going on here and may not appeal to all tastes, but lovers of cutting edge, experimental, although slick, productions will find some very creative turns and an artsy attempt at a combination of touching and heartfelt characters brought together by a psychopathic villain with a very sexy partner.Made just after the mega-hit Pulp Fiction, it inevitably invites comparisons.
If anyone can tell me with a straight face that any movies like this would be made today if it was not for "Pulp Fiction", than they are giving the makers of this film and others like it a whole lot of undeserved credit.That's not to say "2 Days in the Valley" is a pale rip-off and a bad film.
The movie makers cannot decide whether the film is a comedy, a thriller or something else...A pity, the cast is phenomenal but nothing transpires, other than Charlize Theron showing how stunningly beautiful she was as a young girl...
Like so many 'Pulp Fiction'movies this was just one more attempt to open eyes to someones idea of reality in the Valley- Maybe,but surely even great art show be at least stimulating and give rise to one wondering - too much?
A movie that had concentrated on the characters of Spader and Theron exclusively would have been many times better than this sad excuse for a film.Spader, as always, is great to watch.
Spader and Theron are outstanding together and with all the other characters and plot in the movie.
Hatcher's character and Aiello's character are significantly less interesting, and then all the other characters that take up lots of time in the movie get less and less interesting the further one gets from the Spader/Theron core.
There were, however, a number of better acting contributions, notably from Danny Aiello as Pizzo, surprisingly sympathetic for a man whose occupation is killing people, Greg Cruttwell as the irascible Hopper, James Spader as the ruthless Woods, whose failure to finish off Pizzo shows that "ruthless" and "efficient" are not necessarily synonyms, and Jeff Daniels and Eric Stoltz as the two cops, Alvin Strayer and Wes Taylor.
"Two Days in the Valley" is not a great film, but it is refreshingly different enough from most run-of-the-mill Hollywood productions to make it worth watching.
It's cast includes Jeff Daniels, Eric Stoltz, Charlize Therone, James Spader and Teri Hatcher, just to name a few.James Spader tries to emulate this cool talking bad-ass who gives his victims one minute to think about their life before they die.
First of all, in 2 Days in the Valley, the stories and the people's lives are completly different than they are in Pulp Fiction.
They all do OK but really they don't have the dialogue to feast on like the Pulp Fiction cast had.Overall this is OK if you come at it as a film  it's not great but it's slick enough to entertain.
I expected this to be a violent and sexy movie, and at the beginning it was.For example the scenes with Charlize Theron and James Spader, but then Dosmo (Danny Aiello) take hostages and believe it or not, the film becomes sweet, and you get kind of happy when you watch.
After Pulp Fiction, about a hundred movies came out with twist endings and a billion characters and jumps in time and all of that stuff.
This film only grossed $13m at the box office and I don't see why.All the actors performances were exceptional (in particular Teri Hatcher and Jeff Daniels) and the story worked well.
Director John Herzfeld delivers with *2 days in the valley* one of his finest movies.The plot is smart,efficient and have a lot of funny moments.There is also a little piece of violence, sometimes bloody,but I don't care.
I saw this movie for the second time when they showed it on USA about a week ago, and having sat through it twice I can make this claim:  Two Days in the Valley is absolutely NOTHING like any of Quentin Tarantino's films.
While an suicidal TV Producer Teddy Peppers (Paul Mazursky) is trying to himself unsuccessful but in these two days in the San Frenando Valley nothing is what it seems.Written and Directed by John Herzfeld (The Death and Life of Bobby Z, 15 Minutues, Two of a Kind) made an entertaining Black Comedy that is sometimes very amusing but what makes the movie highly watchable is thanks to a sharp cast.
I don't think you can make comparisons between this film and the likes of Pulp Fiction .
This is a crime movie which features an unusual mixture of violence, romance and comedy as well as a large number of characters who are all eccentric, dangerous or troubled in various ways and it's these characters that make this film so compelling and entertaining to watch.Lee Woods (James Spader) and Dosmo Pizzo (Danny Aiello) are the professional hit men who break into the home of sleeping Olympic skier, Becky Foxx (Teri Hatcher) and after giving her an injection that knocks her out, kill her unfaithful husband Roy (Peter Horton) who was lying in bed next to her.