Mad Dog and Glory

This intriguing but not wholly successful blend of thriller, comedy and romance is essentially a buddy movie. It's concerned more with the friendship between Chicago forensic detective Wayne 'Mad Dog' Dobie (De Niro) and loan-shark Frank Milo (Murray), than the feelings between De Niro and Glory (Thurman), a salesgirl sent by the gangster as a gift after the cop saves his life. Just as Glory is merely a prize to be won, so Richard Price's script and McNaughton's direction relegate her to the function of a catalyst. Sexual politics aside (the film also avoids acknowledging its gay dimensions), it nevertheless exerts a quirky charm. Back on form, De Niro seems committed to the part of the sensitive loner, while Murray all but succeeds in mixing smooth and sinister, heartfelt and hot-tempered. But the film's real strength lies in incidentals: marginal characters; Dobie's love of photography and Louis Prima records; the drugs-murder which gets the whole thing started. Here, Price's street savvy and McNaughton's taut pacing bind the disparate elements impressively.