''Boiling Point'' is a 1993 American

action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...

starring

Wesley Snipes Wesley Trent Snipes (born July 31, 1962) is an American actor and martial artist. In a film career spanning more than thirty years, Snipes has appeared in a variety of genres, such as numerous thrillers, dramatic feature films, and comedies, th ...

and directed by James B. Harris, who was also the film's writer. The film co-stars Dennis Hopper, Lolita Davidovich, and

Viggo Mortensen Viggo Peter Mortensen Jr. (; born October 20, 1958) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received nominations for three Academy Awards, three BAFTA Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. Mortensen made his film debut with a small role in ...

. The film was released in the United States on April 16, 1993. It was James B. Harris' last film. It is based on the novel ''Money Men'' by former U.S. Secret Service agent Gerald Petievich, who co-wrote the screenplay.

Plot

The film opens with Treasury Agent Jimmy Mercer (

) and his partner Brady ( Dan Hedaya) doing some undercover work, when Mercer's fellow agent is shot and killed by a new man, Ronnie (

), whom criminal Rudolph "Red" Diamond ( Dennis Hopper) pulled out of jail. Now on a snap of anger and thoughts of revenge, Mercer wants to find the killer and take him down before he gets transferred to Newark. Although a cop and close colleague claims over dinner that Mercer must do it "by the book", Mercer replies with, "When I'm done with this motherfucker, I'm gonna put him in a box..... by the book." A background theme is the closing of a big band dance emporium called the Palace. Lonely, Red takes hooker Vikki (Lolita Davidovich) there for dancing. Vikki is also involved romantically with Mercer, who is estranged from his ex-wife. Red continues to try to build a relationship with his old girlfriend, waitress Mona (Valerie Perrine). Typically, he has manipulated and betrayed her in the past. Red is under increasing pressure to repay mob debts to boss Tony Dio (Tony Lo Bianco). He manipulates Ronnie into a crime spree culminating in the murder of the boss and ransacking his apartment. He tells Ronnie to meet him at the palace at 9 PM to split up the money. He asks Mona to meet him there as well. Mercer is building his case against Red and arrives at the murder scene seconds too late. Red is soon arrested and a net is laid for Ronnie at the club At the club Red again manipulates Ronnie in an attempt to escape, yelling gun as he ducks. Ronnie is shot and killed by Mercer in the exchange, but not before Ronnie manages to seriously wound Brady. In the chaos, Red almost manages to escape but he is blocked by cops stationed outside the club. As Red is taken away in the police car, Mona arrives and sees him pass by in the car. The epilogue reveals that Jimmy and Vikki moved together to Newark, New Jersey, while Red was sentenced to life without parole for his crimes.

Cast

as US Treasury Agent Jimmy Mercer * Dennis Hopper as Rudolph "Red" Diamond * Lolita Davidovich as Vikki Dunbar *

as Ronnie * Dan Hedaya as US Treasury Agent Sam Brady *

Seymour Cassel Seymour Joseph Cassel (January 22, 1935 – April 7, 2019) was an American actor who appeared in over 200 films and television shows, with a career spanning over 50 years. He first came to prominence in the 1960s in the pioneering independent f ...

as Virgil Leach * Jonathan Banks as Max Waxman * Christine Elise as Carol * Tony Lo Bianco as Tony Dio *

Valerie Perrine Valerie Ritchie Perrine (born September 3, 1943) is a retired American actress. For her role as Honey Bruce in the 1974 film '' Lenny'', she won the BAFTA Award for Most Promising Newcomer to Leading Film Roles, the Cannes Film Festival Awar ...

as Mona * James Tolkan as Senior US Treasury Agent Jerry Levitt *

Paul Gleason Paul Xavier Gleason (May 4, 1939 – May 27, 2006) was an American film and television actor. He was known for his roles on television series such as ''All My Children'' and films such as '' The Breakfast Club'', ''Trading Places'', and ''Di ...

as Michael, The Transaction Man * Lorraine Evanoff as Connie * Stephanie E. Williams as Sally Mercer *

Tobin Bell Tobin Bell (born Joseph Henry Tobin Jr.; August 7, 1942) is an American actor. Appearing in over 100 titles during a five-decade career, he is most recognized for his role as John Kramer / Jigsaw in the ''Saw'' franchise. Bell started his a ...

as Freddie Roth *

Bobby Hosea Willie "Bobby" Samuel Hosea, Jr. (born December 5, 1955) is an American film and television actor, and former professional gridiron football player. He played O. J. Simpson in the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox movie ''The O. J. Simpson Story''. a ...

as Steve * Al Guarino as US Treasury Agent Sal Russo * George Gerdes as Henderson * James Pickens Jr. as Prison Guard * Jophery Brown as Edmund, The Bar Backup Man * Rick Dean as The Bartender

Reception

Critical response

The film earned negative reviews from critics. It currently holds a 17% on

Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...

based on 12 reviews. Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...

gave the film an average grade of "C−" on an A+ to F scale.

References

External links

* * * {{James B. Harris 1993 films 1993 action thriller films 1990s crime action films 1990s American films 1990s English-language films 1990s police procedural films American crime action films American crime thriller films American action thriller films American films about revenge American police detective films Films directed by James B. Harris Films set in Los Angeles Films shot in California Warner Bros. films Films scored by Cory Lerios Films scored by John D'Andrea English-language action thriller films English-language crime action films