Walking the Edge

Summary

“We’re going to find that lady and cut her up into tiny little pieces. Then we’re going to find out if that cabbie likes Chinese food.”

Fun City Editions is a new film label that has partnered with Vinegar Syndrome for distribution of their line. I purchased and enjoyed their release of Alphabet City, so when I saw they were releasing a revenge thriller starring Robert Forster, I couldn’t resist picking it up. Walking the Edge was last released on DVD for Anchor Bay in a special edition twenty one years ago. This release gathers up the commentary track from that release and adds a couple new special features while providing a fantastic looking new transfer from a 4K scan.

As the film begins, in Los Angeles, Jerry is driving home to his large house. At his house, Brusstar (Joe Spinell) and his henchmen – Jesus (Luis Contreras,) Tony (A Martinez,) Jimmy (James McIntire,) and McKee (Wayne Woodson) – have let themselves into his house. They hold his wife Christine (Nancy Kwan) and their teenage son hostage. Brusstar tells Christine that they were there because Jerry had crossed Mr. R. Jerry enters the house and is killed by the gang. When the teenager stands up, he is shot and killed. Christine runs outside and hides herself during the chaos as her drug smoking pursuers search for her. Across town, cab driver and debt collector Jason Walk (Robert Forster) is having a very bad day. He is having difficulty collecting the full fees for a gangster he runs numbers for. Talking with “the Fat Man,” he is told that he won’t get paid on what he has just collected because of the amount of bad debt on his books. The Fat Man tells him that he can keep half of all the bad debt he collects on his books with the biggest offender owing a couple grand. His salary in other words will be based on collecting from the numerous hard nosed people that have not paid. Returning home, Jason’s girlfriend is in bed with another man. Jason’s nosy neighbor comes out of her downstairs apartment and confirms that his girlfriend has been running around on him. Jason goes to a local bar where he knows the bartender (Aarika Wells.) She offers her bed and he takes her up on it. Despite his best intentions he is unable to perform and asks her for a rain check. Jason feels diminished. He used to be a fastball throwing baseball player and his prospects were much better. The next day, at the mechanic’s shop where his friend Danny (Doug Toby) works, Christine offers Jason money to give her a ride in his cab and then to wait for her while she has a meeting. He gives her a cab ride to an office building. Inside she talks with Jerry’s former business partner who she accuses of being Mr. R. She kills Mr. R by shooting him to death. Jason has no idea that this has occurred. They drive to an auto mechanic garage where all of Brusstar’s crew works. Christine shoots and kills Jesus. Jason, seeing this occur, attempts to get Christine away from the men. She is lightly wounded and Jason is nearly shot. He drives away with Christine and takes her back to his apartment. As the newsmen discuss the Asian woman and cabbie involved in the murder of Jesus, Jason tries to figure out the best way to protect Christine. Meanwhile, Brusstar wants revenge for Jesus.

Walking the Edge is a good low key revenge film. While I don’t feel that the film offers as much to enjoy as Vigilante, it benefits from an interesting script by Curt Allen. Curt Allen would later pen the Robert Forster directed film Hollywood Harry. The dialogue has some comedic notes that felt surprising within a fairly serious revenge film. One line of dialogue I really enjoyed occurs when Robert Forster opens a bottle of wine. He quickly says, “Alright… Let it breathe. That’s enough,” before pouring himself a glass. This line took me off guard with its sly humor and timing. I was surprised by other elements of the script also, such as the sequence where he goes back to the apartment of a well endowed female bartender but can not perform sexually due to his mind not being up to the task. I think those little moments make the film feel a little bit different from the average vengeance thriller. As far as the acting goes in the film, Nancy Kwan is suitable for her role, but this is Robert Forster and Joe Spinell’s show. Spinell had already shown his capabilities as a maniac in prior films, and he brings a commanding sense of menace to the role. Spinell was consistently able to make interesting choices as an actor that helped his performances and he is a lot of fun to watch here. Robert Forster has long been one of my favorite character actors and he is believable as the down-on-his-luck former baseball player Jason. He brings a lighthearted side to the character that I am not sure would have worked as well with other actors. The film was directed by Norbert Meisel effectively within the confines of the budget. Norbert was married to Nancy Kwan who starred in the film. The film also benefits from a fun synth-heavy score by Jay Chattaway.

Overall – Walking the Edge is a crime thriller that never reaches the intensity of Vigilante, but still has plenty to enjoy for fans of Robert Forster and Joe Spinell.

Video

Walking the Edge arrives on Blu-ray with a brand new 4K transfer from the original 35mm print that looks exceptional on the Blu-ray format. I had been impressed by Fun City Editions’ Alphabet City release, and they have shown here that they are no one-trick pony. Walking the Edge is presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio and the print seems to be in great shape. Grain is very well resolved and colors really pop. Fans of the film should be very impressed by how strong it looks on the format. This earns a rare perfect score for the video presentation on Blu-ray.

Audio

Fun City Editions has provided a DTS-HD MA 2.0 Mono track in English. The track features some fun music by Jay Chattaway that comes through really well. As you would expect, range is limited. The dialogue comes across without notable issues. Fans should be pleased with the efforts put in to clean up the track.

Supplements:

• Commentary #1 features film historian Chris Poggiali and film producer Matt Verboys.
• Commentary #2 features director Norbert Meisel and actors Nancy Kwan and Robert Forster.
• “Scoring the Edge” – composer Jay Chattaway discusses his career in music scoring, his roots in jazz, and how the electronic sounds for the music on Walking the Edge were created. This is a brief and enjoyable piece.
• “Det. Jurgensen Remembers Forster and Spinell” – retired NYPD officer Randy Jurgensen, known to many for his work on The French Connection, gives an excellent interview where he discusses his start in films, his work with William Lustig, guerilla filmmaking, and his relationship with both Robert Forster and Joe Spinell. This is well worth watching.
• Video Essay – an appreciation piece by Chris O’Neill.
• Still Gallery 
• Theatrical Trailer

Overall Scores:

Video – 5/5

Audio – 4.5/5

Supplements – 4/5

Overall – 4/5

Walking the Edge is an enjoyable low-key revenge drama that benefits from an interesting script by Curt Allen and strong performances by both Robert Forster and Joe Spinell. The film never reaches the heights of Forster’s work on Vigilante, but it will definitely please fans of Spinell and Forster. Fun City Editions have done an exceptional job on the Blu-ray release with a perfect video presentation and some solid special features. I look forward to seeing what films the label will release in the future.