Atemlos (1983)

Atemlos: Directed by Jim McBride. With Richard Gere, Valérie Kaprisky, Art Metrano, John P. Ryan. When Jesse Lujack steals a car in Las Vegas and drives down to LA, his criminal ways only escalate – but when will it end?

“To me Richard Gere carried the movie–he managed to make Jesse LuJak a character both repulsive and likeable. LuJak is a petty criminal, car-thief and then a murderer, not very bright (he reads comic books and seems to model himself on The Silver Surfer). LuJak moves in a world of cheap motels and seedy bars, and has a torrid and obviously doomed affair with an art student. But in the end he comes off as somehow admirable–we believe that he loves the Kapinsky character, that he might even be a good father to her child, given the chance. LuJak comes mighty near what I would call a tragic hero–flaws and all.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAs for the look of the movie, I find that equally well done–just for example, at one point the hero and heroine make love in torrid red lights, with a black-and white 30s movie in the background, also dealing with doomed lovers. The juxtaposed images were very nicely handled.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003enBoth thumbs up!”