DJ: For this edition of our famed movie column "Spoiler Warning," Trevor will be the DeNiro to my Grodin as we chat up the 1988 bounty hunting romp Midnight Run.

Trevor: Fuck! Fuck! Fuckity Fuck! They use that word a lot, you know.

DJ: Fuck yeah, they do. If I had a nickel for every time someone said "fuck" in Midnight Run, I'd have somewhere in the neighborhood of... lemme do the math... Fuck, I dunno... a million dollars.

Trevor: You'd have nine dollars and thirty-five cents, I think. Which is the entire wardrobe budget for this movie. Not to knock it, though. I think only Dennis Farina got any real deal duds.

DJ: Yeah, Grodin, as informer mob accountant Jonathan "The Duke" Mardukas seems to be sporting some of Bill Cosby's left over clothes from an early season of The Cosby Show.

Trevor: And not only that, but DeNiro looks like... Never mind, I don't have anything. But, I would like to point out that this flick started DeNiro's last round of good movies.

DJ: It's pretty much the classic mismatched "buddy movie" formula here, but done really well. DeNiro is, of course, the tough guy: former cop Jack Walsh, who's now a bounty hunter. He gets assigned to a "midnight run" (easy job) by a bail bondsman played by a young yet still bald Joey Pantoliano (acting himself in my imagination of Joey Pants’ life) to snag Grodin's mob accountant character who has skipped bail. Not surprisingly to anyone who’s ever seen a movie, this "easy" job becomes anything but, with the mob, the feds, and another bounty hunter all after the Duke, too. If that wasn’t enough, the mobsters have ties to Walsh, and... well, late 80s action comedy hijinks ensue.

Trevor: I think Grodin and DeNiro's chemistry was on point. Who'd ever thought Grodin could hold his own against such a heavy weight? IMDB tells me Robin Williams was up for the part. Could you imagine Mork and Travis Bickle?

DJ: Really? I didn't know about Williams being up for it. To me, Grodin's slightly off kilter, deadpan delivery makes this movie. I miss the Grodin. Was he eaten by sharks or something? What the fuck happened to that guy?

Trevor: I would also like to point out that, while I do enjoy the two leads, Dennis Farina as Jimmy Serrano and “Taggart” were my favorite characters. They seemed to not only enjoying using "fuck" the most, but they did it with the most flair. Well-delivered foul language gets me every time...

DJ: This is true. There's a poetry to it. But who was Taggart, though? My mind's fucking gone.

Trevor: Taggart was the character in Beverly Hills Cop, the wise old Sergeant, reborn as Marvin Dorfler the punk ass bounty hunter in this flick. Played by... Anybody... anybody...

DJ:Oh-- John Ashton? The rival bounty hunter?

Trevor: John Ashton! Yes!

DJ: BOO YAH!

Trevor: They should have had Rosewood show up, circa Beverly Hills Cop 2, with all kinds of ammo and wild mercenary shit!

DJ: Must be a Martin Brest regular...

Trevor: Speaking of Martin Breast, did you know he's only directed like, four movies? And only two of 'em are worth a shit? Sad, my man. Sad indeed.

DJ: It's weird... he does take his time. He got strong with Beverly Hills Cop and Midnight Run... I dig Scent of a Woman, too, but then...w hat the fuck happened?

Trevor: Shit, I totally forgot about Scent of a Woman. So, three out of five. Not bad. But Meet Joe Black? Gigli? Which, admittedly, I have not seen, and could be just as clever in their use of foul language. Anyway, do you think Dennis Farina sort of skewered his own performance in this movie with the Ray Barboni character in Get Shorty?

DJ: Hm... I don't know. Haven't seen Shorty in forever, but I'm imagining that they're, you know, pretty much the same characters. More a "type" than a fleshed out character.

Trevor: Very good point. So, are the people that populate this movie types? Or characters? I felt like they were mostly thought out, but the scene where Walsh goes to visit his daughter was a bit forced.

DJ: I think that the leads are characters, especially Walsh and Duke, but the smaller the part, the more it becomes a "type." But even in that, with movie, I think they all have their quirks. I mean, Yaphet Kotto as FBI agent Mosely-- that'd have been a pretty easy character to make generic, but with the scary as all shit Yaphet playing him, as well as the banter with him and Walsh, it becomes something more than just a "type."

Trevor: Yeah, Alonzo Mosely. Great name.

DJ: I don't know if the script to this movie would be a very entertaining, or funny read, but the direction and acting make it work -- at least for me.

Trevor: There should be a litmus test for the "type" and "character " scenario (or the litmus configuration, as they say in the movie), all you'd have to do is compare it to the THREE, count ‘em, 3 made for TV sequels.

DJ: This sounds scientific. Let me get on my white lab coat...

Trevor: And I'll put on my black leather blazer, and go all bounty hunter on that ass.

DJ: Remember to smoke at least one cigarette every five minutes-- doesn't matter if it's on a bus, a plane, an airport, a diner-- smoke it up Jack Walsh style!

Trevor: Yeah! Really, this movie wasn't that long ago, and dude smoked everywhere! I never, ever remember people smoking on buses and planes. Sounds like some Hezbollah mastermind shit to me.

DJ: DeNiro can do what he wants. The movie is dated, though. Aside form the smoking EVERYWHERE, I kept thinking that a cell phone would've saved these bastards a lot of trouble.

Trevor: Or a goddamn competent person working for American Express. Taggart seems to be able to cancel a stranger's card rather easily. But, of course, there would be no buddy banter, without the buddy situations.

DJ: I forgot about that! Canceling other people's credit cards with a simple, "I'm [insert other person's name here]" over the phone. That was some silly shit. I guess this movie isn't the smartest or most logical one, is it? I mean, when it comes to the real world and whatnot. But it's a late 80s action/comedy/buddy flick, right? That's how they roll.

Trevor: Hell yeah, that's how they roll. Here's another odd fact: I learned what Chorizo sausage was from this movie.

DJ: I love that scene. That's the type of quirky shit that makes the movie for me, and I wonder how much of it was really in the script, because it almost feels like Grodin being his weird ass self. The part where he decides whether he wants the coffee or the tea with what little change they have left at that point-- the words and situation aren't that funny, but his off-kilter delivery makes me laugh every time.

Trevor: You're right. His interaction with the waitress, when she's describing the dish for him is excellent. At that point, I also think they were pretty much ensconced as buddies. And, I might add, I actually made some Chorizo and eggs not so long ago.

DJ: It's a fucking delicious combo.

Trevor: Awesome. Though I can't imagine eating it regularly.

DJ: I can, and that's why my chest hurts and my pants don't fit.

Trevor: Ahh, you must be doing the "method", a la DeNiro in Raging Bull. I commend you, dear sir. And I suggest everyone scramble up some Chorizo and eggs, pour a nice glass of orange juice, pop this flick in, and watch it with a good buddy...

DJ: While smoking a cigarette every time someone lights up or says "fuck." One quick shout out to an actor featured in a small, seemingly inconsequential part: Phillip Baker Hall. I love that droopy eyed, old school talking dude, and here he plays a character named Sidney, who works for the Farina's character. Now, he plays a character named Sydney in P.T. Anderson's first movie <I>Hard Eight</I>, which Anderson wanted to call "Sydney." Coincidence? Does it matter at all?

Trevor: I say it does. And not only that, but I think you have bested me in the Midnight Run pointless knowledge contest! Chorizo for you!

DJ: Chorizo for EVERYONE! So, my chorizo loving friend, what's your final verdict on this action packed, character-based comedy of errors, smoking, and f-bombs featuring the least likely duo since DeLuise & Reynolds?

Trevor: Watch it! Or I swear to god I'll get bury this fucking computer right in your fucking head!

DJ: Fuck, hold on, let me put on my sunglasses and light up a cigarette first...

Trevor: Alonzo Mosely, Fool!!!! Damnnnnn!

DJ: I'M MOSELY! Hijinks. Oh, before I forget, one thing that I HATE so much I LOVE about this movie is the curse of most movies of this genre and time: the score. Holy shit that's some bad horn and guitar music. And the kicker? Fucking Danny Elfman. I couldn't believe it. How did he write that music?

Trevor: With Chorizo, of course! And lots of cocaine. It was, after all, the eighties. Which, in my opinion, is a much better combo than Chorizo and eggs, or Grodin and DeNiro. Long live the Mexican Sausage.

DJ: Yes, I think that can sum up our chat about Midnight Run: Long live Mexican Sausage. And... I'll have the tea.