''Perdita Durango'', released as ''Dance with the Devil'' in the United States, is a 1997

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

- horror film directed by

Álex de la Iglesia Alejandro "Álex" de la Iglesia Mendoza (born 4 December 1965) is a Spanish film director, screenwriter, producer and former comic book artist. De la Iglesia's films combine grotesque and very dark elements such as death and murder: most of his ...

, based on Barry Gifford's 1992 novel ''59° and Raining: The Story of Perdita Durango''. It stars Rosie Perez as the title character and

Javier Bardem Javier Ángel Encinas Bardem (; born 1 March 1969) is a Spanish actor. Known for his roles in blockbusters and foreign films, he won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance as the psychopathic assassin Anton Chigurh in ...

. It is a Spain–United States–Mexico coproduction.

Plot

Perdita Durango ( Rosie Perez) has gone to

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

to scatter the ashes of her dead sister. There, she is picked up by bank-robbing drug dealer Romeo Dolorosa (

). Dolorosa had robbed the bank to pay off his debt to loan shark "Catalina" (

Demián Bichir Demián Bichir Nájera (; born 1 August 1963) is a Mexican actor. After starring in telenovelas, he began to appear in Hollywood films. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in '' A Better Life''. Personal life Bic ...

). He also engages in scams in which he pretends to be a Santeria priest and hacks up corpses while snorting cocaine. Romeo's latest scam is working for gangster Mr. Santos (

Don Stroud Donald Lee Stroud (born September 1, 1943) is an American actor, musician, and surfer. Stroud has appeared in over 100 films and 200 television shows. Early years Stroud was the son of vaudeville actor Clarence Stroud (of "The Stroud Twins" team ...

) transporting refrigerated human

fetuses A fetus or foetus (; plural fetuses, feti, foetuses, or foeti) is the unborn offspring that develops from an animal embryo. Following embryonic development the fetal stage of development takes place. In human prenatal development, fetal develo ...

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

where they will be used to make cosmetic

moisturizer A moisturizer, or emollient, is a cosmetic preparation used for protecting, moisturizing, and lubricating the skin. These functions are normally performed by sebum produced by healthy skin. The word "emollient" is derived from the Latin verb ''m ...

. Perdita devises a plan that they should capture a gringo and eat him as part of Romeo's ceremonies. They kidnap randomly chosen geeky college student Dwayne ( Harley Cross) and his girlfriend Estelle (Aimee Graham). First, Perdita rapes Dwayne while Romeo rapes Estelle. They hold a ceremony to sacrifice Estelle while they force Dwayne to watch. Before the girl can be killed the sacrifice is interrupted by a gang of men led by Shorty Dee (

Santiago Segura Santiago Segura Silva (born 17 July 1965) is a Spanish filmmaker and actor. He also worked to a lesser extent as a television presenter, voice actor and comic book writer, as well as being a collector of original comic books. At 12, he began ...

), a betrayed former partner of Romeo. Romeo and Perdita escape with Dwayne and Estelle still their captives. The four go to the meeting with Santos' people to pick up the truckload of fetuses. Unfortunately, the hand-off is interrupted by drug enforcement agent Woody Dumas (

James Gandolfini James Joseph Gandolfini Jr. (; September 18, 1961 – June 19, 2013) was an American actor. For his role as Tony Soprano, the Italian-American Mafia crime boss in HBO's television series ''The Sopranos'', he won three Emmy Awards, five Screen ...

). Santos' men are all killed. Romeo escapes and drives to Vegas with Dwayne, while Perdita follows with Estelle. On the trip, Romeo finds out his grandmother's house was raided by some of Catalina's men as punishment for Romeo's unpaid debt. Romeo visits Catalina in a club, pretending to offer Estelle as payment. When he gets Catalina alone, Romeo kills him. Romeo, Perdita, Dwayne and Estelle finally get to Vegas. However, Dumas has been following them all the way. Moreover, the drop has become a trap for Romeo; Santos is upset about all the deaths at the pick-up so he has hired Romeo's cousin Reggie (

Carlos Bardem Carlos Encinas Bardem (born 7 March 1963) is a Spanish actor and writer. He is often cast in tough guy roles, if not outright villains. Biography Born in Madrid on 7 March 1963, he is the son of actress Pilar Bardem and brother of actors Mó ...

) to kill Romeo. Romeo and his one-armed ex- marine buddy Doug go to the drop, tipped off about the double-cross. Romeo leaves Perdita to watch the hostages, but Perdita's nervousness overcomes her. She lets Estelle and Dwayne go so she can check on her lover. Reggie kills Doug and Perdita arrives just in time to see Reggie shoot Romeo in the back, killing him. Perdita shoots and kills Reggie and then flees as the cops bust in, led by Dumas, intending to arrest the men but instead finding them all dead. Alone now, Perdita walks the

Las Vegas strip The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city ...

mourning Romeo.

Various versions

The original Spanish version runs 10 minutes longer and features more sex and violence and ends with some characters digitally morphing into the scene finale from '' Vera Cruz''. The film is available in the United States on VHS/DVD in two versions: the edited 115 min. R-rated version and a 121 min. unrated version. Both of these are shorter than the Spanish version which has gotten a Blu-ray release in the United States.

Cast

Awards and nominations

, - , rowspan = "4" align = "center" , 1998 , , rowspan = "4" ,

12th Goya Awards The 12th Goya Awards were presented in Madrid, Spain on 31 January 1998. The gala was hosted by El Gran Wyoming José Miguel Monzón Navarro (15 May 1955, Madrid), better known as El Gran Wyoming (''The Great Wyoming''), Wyoming or Guayo, i ...

, , Best Production Supervision , , José Luis Escolar , , , , rowspan = "4" , , - , Best Original Score , , Simon Boswell , , , - , Best Costume Design , , María Estela Fernández, Glenn Ralston , , , - , Best Makeup and Hairstyles , , José Quetglás, Mercedes Guillot , ,

References

;Citations ;Bibliography *

External links

* * * {{Álex de la Iglesia 1990s crime comedy films 1997 films Spanish black comedy films 1990s comedy horror films Spanish crime comedy films 1990s English-language films Films based on horror novels Films directed by Álex de la Iglesia Spanish road movies 1990s comedy road movies 1990s Spanish-language films Films scored by Simon Boswell Films set in Mexico Films set in the United States Films with screenplays by Jorge Guerricaechevarría 1997 comedy films 1997 multilingual films Spanish multilingual films 1990s Spanish films