Cadillac Man

Directed by Roger Donaldson, Cadillac Man follows a womanizing car salesman (Robin Williams’ Joey O’Brien) as he attempts to fast-talk his way out of a hostage situation. Filmmaker Donaldson, armed with Ken Friedman’s script, delivers a briskly-paced comedy that benefits substantially from Williams’ compelling, entertaining work as the motor-mouthed protagonist, and there’s little doubt, certainly, that the picture, particularly in its opening stretch, gets plenty of mileage out of Joey’s amusing efforts at schmoozing his way through a series of precarious (and/or lucrative) scenarios – with Williams’ top-notch efforts matched by an eclectic assortment of periphery players (including Fran Drescher, Annabella Sciorra, and Lori Petty). It’s clear, too, that Cadillac Man‘s shift from the comedic to the (comedically) tense with its hostage-situation-focused second half is hardly as jarring as one might’ve anticipated, with the impact of this portion of the proceedings undoubtedly heightened by Tim Robbins’ terrific turn as the dimwitted, gun-toting jealous husband – which, when coupled with a satisfying climax, ultimately does confirm the movie’s place as an engaging (albeit awfully slight) endeavor that seems to have been undeservedly forgotten in the years since its 1990 release.

*** out of ****