Good concept, poorly executed.

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

Unshakable, witty and deeply felt, the film will be paying emotional dividends for a long, long time.

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

Black Ice (the original title) aspires to being a really good B movie. It is basically a film noir and was shot mostly at night. I found it quite enjoyable. There are some plot continuity problems with characters moving 1500 miles in a few hours in a car.Ironside plays his character perfectly and has the usual terminator capability to find his targets when there is no discernible way that he could have done so. The most egregious example of this is when Pacula and Nouri buy a used car in the middle of nowhere and Ironside winds up on the car lot nearly immediately after they leave.Pacula is perfect. Nouri less so. As the film was shot in the current time about 1991 it's now retro. I like it a lot.

Ben Shorr (Nouri) is a destitute cab driver with plenty of debts. He's an aspiring author eking out a living. One night, Vanessa (Pacula) gets in his cab. Due to some political intrigue, she's on the run from the murderous Quinn (Ironside). She tells Ben to drive her from Detroit to Seattle using "only the back roads" and she'll give him thousands of dollars for his effort. Naturally, the worldly Belgian woman and the low-class shmoe forge an uneasy relationship, while dodging Quinn and getting into a few scrapes. Will they make it? Equal parts 90's Skinemax "erotic thriller" and supposed "neo-noir", seemingly very influenced by the show Taxicab Confessions, Black Ice is serviceable, but nothing more. Its look screams "CANADA!" even though the plot takes great pains to prove otherwise. (It was, indeed, shot in Canada).Michael Nouri, sporting some utterly ridiculous long hair, is not particularly likable as the motormouthed Ben. That's an impediment to the movie. However, he does put in an energetic performance, much more so than he did in Overkill (1996). We also felt Michael Ontkean could have played this role. Interestingly, there's a shot early on in the film of Nouri at a typewriter, with a rotary dial phone and a cigarette. Those three things alone would not be seen in a film today, much less all together. Strictly for preservation reasons alone, we felt that was the best shot of the movie.Michael Ironside does what he does best - be sinister. He plays almost the exact same role here as he does in Watchers. Joanna Pacula provides the eye candy, and we can certainly sympathize with her having to put up with Ben, who frankly can get kind of annoying.Aside from the prerequisite barfight, there isn't a lot of action. Not that there's necessarily supposed to be in a movie like this - but it certainly would have picked things up more. Where some scenes are needlessly talky, they could have put in an action scene of some kind. Sadly, they did not choose that route.While it's nice to see the three leads doing their thing, Black Ice is just a bit too bland to warrant a screaming recommendation.NOTE: The VHS was released in both a rated and unrated version.For more action insanity, check out: www.comeuppancreviews.com

Seductive undercover FBI agent Vanessa (well played by the strikingly lovely, sultry, dark-haired knockout Joanna Pacula) is having an affair with an adulterous married up and coming politician. The sleazy politico wants to terminate the relationship. Vanessa and Hiz Honor the scumbag have a fight, which accidentally results in the jerk's untimely demise. Vanessa hires the chatty, gregarious Ben (a solid and charming performance by Michael Nouri), a down on his luck aspiring novelist who just barely ekes out a living as a cab driver, to haul her to Seattle. Vanessa offers Ben five grand and since Ben's up to his eyeballs in debt he gladly obliges. Naturally, there's a serious glitch: Vanessa's shady, ruthless superior Quinn (a typically steely and redoubtable turn by the always commanding Michael Ironside) doggedly pursues the pair with the sole malevolent intent of killing them both.Neill Fearnley's sturdy, capable direction ensures that "Black Ice" is a perfectly enjoyable and entertaining chase thriller. The pacing drags at first, but thankfully picks up speed and momentum once Quinn decides to give chase, with expertly sustained tension and the taut, compelling narrative successfully holding the viewer's interest throughout. Moreover, the chemistry between Pacula and Nouri is warm, funny and appealing, scoring points with some fine, witty dialogue and several cool quirky touches of offbeat humor. Technically, the film's up to par: David Geddes' crisp, smooth cinematography and Amin Bhatia's moody, bluesy, liberally laced with scintillating saxophone score are both quite tasty. Mickey Jones cameos as Nouri's cranky foul-mouthed boss; he gets wasted by Ironside. (Jones and Ironside previously acted together on the short-lived "V" TV series.) Although nothing truly special, this admittedly modest little item still cuts it as a nicely satisfying and proficiently executed diversion.

Good and strong performances from the three leads, holds up a rather weak script. This is certainly no thriller, but more like a chase movie. The fanciful plot, or lack of it, needed a bit more construction on the bones. It just could have been a lot better.