Bullet Points: Shotgun
In this edition of Bullet Points, I am going way back into the PM Entertainment catalog and review 1989’s Shotgun.
Shotgun is one of the earliest PM Entertainment productions. So early, they didn’t even have the majestic PM Entertainment logo in the sky yet. The movie did not star any known actors or kickboxers. And there was no over the top, vehicular mayhem on the streets of Los Angeles.
- Tag Teams: Ian Jones (Stuart Chapin) and Rif Hutton (Max Billings) are two LAPD detectives that find themselves embroiled in an investigation involving prostitutes who are being severely beaten (and in some cases killed) by a mysterious S&M masked man. Spoiler alert… the masked man is actually a high profile lawyer named Mr. Rivington. Rivington employs a right hand man named Rocker, who serves as Rivington’s muscle and is the guy who solicits the prostitutes for Rivington so the women never actually see him. To add to Rivington’s bad guy credibility, he’s also a drug kingpin.
- This Time It’s Personal: Ian and Rif are beating themselves up after Rhonda, a hooker with a heart of gold, becomes a victim of the vile masked Rivington. But things get even worse when Ian’s own “working girl” sister, Tanya, is killed by Rivington. Ian and Rif find themselves at a bar drinking their sorrows away when two armed robbers find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time… Ian and Rif identify themselves as police and the proceed to empty their weapons into the men… this gets them in some hot water with Internal Affairs, more specifically Riley Simms (played by James Baker, not be confused with Wrangler Jim Baker, who was one of the movie’s stunt performers). Simms seems to have a personal hardon for Ian Jones and vows to have his badge.
- By the Book: Fortunately for Ian and Rif, their boss doesn’t pull them from their ongoing investigation, despite the conflict of interest, but does tell them they have to do everything by the book or he won’t be able to help them… there seems to be a big break in the case when the guys manage to pick up Rocker and he is identified by one of the prostitutes that survived her night with Rivington… but before they make too much progress, Rocker’s lawyer (you guessed it, Mr. Rivington) swoops in and Ian and Rif are no closer to solving the case than they were at the start of the movie. And that’s about the time, Simms sets up Ian and Ian is suspended for six months.
- My Good Friend, Skip Tracer: Needing a job, Ian Jones applies for a bounty hunter position as he effectively trades in his badge for a shotgun. In fact it isn’t long into his bounty hunter run (his boss Barbara Devlin prefers the term skip tracer), that Ian earns the nickname “Shotgun” on the streets and suddenly the title of the movie makes perfect sense… (Side note: While Ian excels in his new line of work, Max finds himself getting promoted to sergeant. Maybe that IA weasel Simms did these two guys a favor?!?) …Word of Ian “Shotgun” Jones gets back to Mr. Rivington, who wisely decides to take his boy Rocker and spend some time at his “fortress” in Mexico… but things like an international border and a well guarded narcotics operation isn’t going to stop “Shotgun” Jones from avenging the death of his sister!
Watching Shotgun was like taking a trip back in time to PM Entertainment’s humble beginnings. There were some glimmers of what was to come from the company, but it was also obvious they had not yet perfected the PM Entertainment formula.
The cast was a veritable who’s that, the story and the characters were about as one dimensional as you could get, the acting was pretty rough but if you are a PM Entertainment completist it is still a must watch.
Let’s complete this review with some Bonus Bullet Points…
- Familiar Face: Paulo Tocha of Bloodsport and Stone Cold fame, played the desk clerk at the cheap motel that the prostitutes take their johns to.
- Favorite Quote: “There was so god damn much gunfire, most of those people didn’t hear their own shit drop into their pants.” – Ian Jones
- Montage Alert: After Ian “Shotgun” Jones makes his way south of the border he meets up with his old buddy Sam Butler. That leads to an A-Team like welding montage featuring Ian and Sam creating an assault vehicle to storm Rivington’s “castle”.
- Missed Opportunity: I was disappointed that Shotgun did not feature the classic Jr. Walker and the All Stars song, “Shotgun”. However, I was impressed that the movie did have an actual “Shotgun Jones” theme song. The song was written by Jastero Coviare, who would go on to work on other PM Entertainment films like L.A. Vice and Quiet Fire. Coviare pulled double duty on Shotgun when he played Johnson Coolidge or as anyone who has ever seen will better remember, the guy that Jones shoots in the ass.
