One False Move
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| One False Move | |
|---|---|
 DVD cover for One False Move |
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| Directed by | Carl Franklin |
| Produced by | Jesse Beaton Ben Myron |
| Written by | Billy Bob Thornton Tom Epperson |
| Starring | Billy Bob Thornton Bill Paxton Cynda Williams |
| Music by | Peter Haycock Derek Holt Terry Plumeri |
| Cinematography | James L. Carter |
| Editing by | Carole Kravetz |
| Distributed by | IRS Media |
| Release date(s) | May 8, 1992 (USA) |
| Running time | 105 min. |
| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
One False Move is a 1992 movie co-written by Billy Bob Thornton. The film, also starring Thornton, Bill Paxton and Cynda Williams was directed by Carl Franklin. The low-budget B-movie was to be released straight to home video when it was finished. The film became popular through word of mouth, convincing the distributor to send it to theaters. Film critic Gene Siskel voted this film as his favorite film of 1992.
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[edit] Plot summary
The film opens with three criminals - Ray (Billy Bob Thornton), Fantasia (Cynda Williams) and Pluto (Michael Beach) - committing six brutal murders over the course of one night in Los Angeles, all to find a cache of money and cocaine. Ray is a loud-mouthed violent criminal; Fantasia, a light-skinned African-American woman, is Ray's girlfriend, and like him, is a cocaine addict; Pluto is an intelligent yet sadistic madman. The trio leave town for Houston to sell the cocaine to a friend of Pluto's.
The LAPD coolly arrive on the scene and get to work on the case, with two detectives taking the helm. After getting a few good leads, they discover that the criminal trio are possibly headed for Star City, Arkansas. The LAPD contacts the Star City sheriff, Dale "Hurricane" Dixon (Bill Paxton; he earned the nickname 'hurricane' because of his frantic energy), in an effort to work together. Dixon is not what they expect. A small-town guy who became a small-county sheriff, Dixon oftens talks too much, listens too little, uses strange colloquialisms ("that'll put a stopper in the bottle") and takes things for granted. Truthfully, Dixon is excited about the case, as it gives him an opportunity to do "some real police work" with big-city cops. Dixon is well known throughout the small county and says hello to everyone - except one five-year-old African-African child whom he sees here and there and immediately gets quiet when confronted with.
The detectives travel to Star City and meet up with Dixon. In one scene that emphasizes the difference between big city and small city cops, Dixon is alerted to a domestic disturbance in the county. When he and the LAPD officers arrive, a man is trying to break in his own door with an axe, as his wife has locked him out following his night of heavy drinking. The LAPD detectives draw their guns and stand behind cop car doors. Dixon, who is no stranger to the man or his episodes like this, confronts the man verbally, then at the best opportunity tackles the drunken husband and calmly tells him to apologize, which the drunken man then does (as he always does, as this happens multiple times per week).
The three sit down with Dixon's wife and daughter that night for a country dinner, which the detectives seem to enjoy very much. As the booze continues to flow, Dixon continues to buddy up to the two big-city cops, who he reveres as modern day cowboy heroes. (In this scene, Dixon relates that "My momma always told me I was born under a lucky star" - the quote exposing his small town naivete and the theme of luck in the movie).
Meanwhile, Ray, Fantasia and Pluto are headed to Houston when they realize that the LAPD has identified them and has alerted other state police jurisdictions. The trio buy a car in New Mexico to conceal their identity and continue on, only to run into bad luck in Texas. A state trooper, acting on a hunch, pulls the car over - believing that the passengers may indeed be the Los Angeles murder suspects he was told about. Acting cautiously, he orders Pluto and Ray out of the car and keeps them at gunpoint. With the drop on both Ray and Pluto, the jig is about to be up, but Fantasia sneaks up behind the trooper and shoots him in the head. The three peel out and leave. As Ray and Pluto argue over whether to switch cars or change directions, Fantasia is lost in a distant trance, overwhelmed by the gravity of what she has done.
Sensing camaraderie between the two LAPD detectives and himself, Dixon opens up and says that he wants to move out to Los Angeles and join the force, hoping to form a three-man partnership with them. One detective says it's an "interesting idea," but later retells the story and laughes hysterically at the idea of Dixon as an LAPD cop. Unbeknownst to him, Dixon is actually in the room when this happens and is deeply hurt. Word of the trooper's murder gets to the detectives in Star City, and the trio look over surveillance photos of Ray and Fantasia in a convenience store before the murder. Dixon's face changes when he sees Fantasia, and he informs the cops that her real name is Lila Walker. Lila grew up in Star City, Dixon says, and was a slightly troubled youth who left for Hollywood with dreams of acting.
The detectives sense there is more to the story and inquire about several things, but the still-hurt Dixon angrily replies and avoids their questions. Determined to prove himself as a true cop, Dixon tells his wife that he'll start to watch Lila's house many hours of the day. The detectives stop by Lila's relatives' house, and see a young boy (the young boy who Dixon gets quiet around) who lives there - who is revealed to be Lila's young son. The detectives get the feeling that Lila is coming home to see her son.
Ray, Lila and Pluto arrive in Houston to sell the drugs as planned. At this point, Fantasia says that she only agreed to partake in the murders and journey because she wanted to see her son in Star City and provide money for him (and, although she does not say it, she is dependent on Ray's care and his drug supply). Lila takes a bus ahead from Houston to Star City to see her boy while Pluto and Ray stay behind to work the coke deal. Unbeknownst to Pluto and Ray, Lila has taken all the money they stole (about $15,000) in order to make sure they pick her up later rather than leave her. The Houston coke deal goes terribly sour for Ray and Pluto, who then have to kill three more people and flee the city. Pluto, fed up with all the bad luck, tries to split ways with Ray, but is incensed to find out that Lila has the money. The two drive from Houston to Star City to meet up with her and plan their next move.
Lila arrives in town and hides out at a rural house; she gets to see her son for one night of happiness before she must flee. Dixon witnesses Lila's arrival, but stays quiet and does not alert his fellow officers, for fear of breaking up Lila's short time with her son, who she seems to love and miss dearly. When Lila's time with her son is up, Dixon confronts her, and the audience finally learns what is suspected: That the boy is Dixon and Lila's son, from an affair he and Lila had years before. Dixon continues to verbally deny this fact (although he knows it to be true) because he cheated on his wife when Lila was 17 and is scared to confront such memories. Dixon says he will not take responsibility for the boy but instead send some anonymous money to the boy each month. After much tense conversation about their past and present, they make a deal. Lila will bait Ray and Pluto in arriving to ensure their capture. In exchange, Dixon will help Lila escape town uncaptured; after that, she's on her own. As Ray and Pluto arrive into town (and into Dixon's trap), the detectives learn that Lila has entered town thanks to help from her brother, but they don't know her location. The pair - along with a local deputy and Lila's young son - try to find the rural house where she's staying.
Pluto and Ray arrive at the house, and are immediately confronted by an armed Dixon. Pluto uses a moment of distraction to stab Dixon, who then shoots Pluto at point blank range, killing him. A wounded Dixon and a now-armed Ray exchange gunfire, and in the chaos, Ray errantly shoots Lila in the head before shooting Dixon in the shoulder. Dixon, though, steadies himself and kills Ray with three shots. He calls for help with his police radio and the LAPD detectives finally arrive, amazed at the work he has done. As they survey the scene and an ambulance is on its way, the movie ends with a quiet, tender, conversation between Dixon and his son, who he now seems to accept and wishes to know better.
[edit] Critical reaction
Hal Hinson, writing for the Washington Post July 18, 1992, praised the film: ""One False Move" is a thriller with a hair-trigger sense of tension. Directed by newcomer Carl Franklin, its power comes from the stripped-down simplicity of its style and the unblinking savagery of its violence." Film critic Roger Ebert praised the film's director in his review: "It is a powerful directing job. He starts with an extraordinary screenplay and then finds the right tones and moods for every scene, realizing it's not the plot we care about, it’s the people." the credit for location was given to little rock ar that is incorrect the correct location is cotton plant,ar.
[edit] Trivia
- According to Billy Bob Thornton, when he was still working as a struggling actor, he'd made the film for nothing with the intention of landing more acting roles. When the film was finally released, he got a call from his agent who said that Columbia Tristar Pictures wanted to buy the movie and remake it with stars. Thornton was furious when he heard the news and refused, as he said that they missed the point.
