Bullet Points: Hard Bounty
Director Jim Wynorski has dabbled in many genres over the course of his career. From the comic book action of The Return of Swamp Thing to the sci-fi horror of Chopping Mall. From the sword and sorcery of Deathstalker II to the mobster mayhem of Big Bad Mama II. So it was really no surprise when I stumbled upon a western that Wynorski directed, 1995’s Hard Bounty.
- Cashing Out: Matt McCoy plays bounty hunter Martin Kanning. After he realizes a bounty he is about to collect is for an innocent man, a weary Kanning decides he has had enough of the bounty hunter life so cashes out and ends up owning a saloon. But it is not just any saloon, it is the same saloon that Kanning’s lady, Donnie (Kelly LeBrock, Hard to Kill), works as a prostitute. Donnie is the madame of sorts for three other women who work at the saloon… Glory (Kimberly Kelley), Rachel (Felicity Waterman) and Jess (Rochelle Swanson, Cyberzone). Chasing bounties or working with a bevy of buxom beauties every day? Seems like Kanning made the right call, but that’s about the time the past comes back to haunt him.
- Powder Keg: Just about the time Kanning calls it quits on bounty hunting, one mean hombre rolls into town by the name of Carver (John Terlesky, Damned River). Carver and Kanning are no strangers to one another… the two worked together as Texas Rangers five years earlier. An incident where Carver displayed a warped sense of justice would mark the end of both men’s careers as Texas Rangers. Kanning went the aforementioned bounty hunter route, while Carver started working for the Bartell Mining Company. As an employee of Bartell Mining, Carver takes care of Mr. Bartell’s dirty work… like shooting the competition and taking their mining rights by force so Bartell could expand his mining empire. The town’s lush of a sheriff put it best when he likened a guy like Carver being in town to a powder keg.
- Stranglehold: One night Carver decides to visit the saloon and it isn’t long before Rachel gets to work and spends some time with Carver at his table drinking whiskey. Carver and Rachel end upstairs in her room… Carver starts asking her about her new boss and his old friend Kanning. Next thing you know Carver has his belt off and he strangles Rachel to death. Despite having damning evidence that proved Carver killed Rachel, the sheriff does next to nothing… basically saying that nobody cares that a whore was killed, without saying nobody cares that a whore was killed. Donnie turns to Kanning… but he reminds her he is retired.
- A Woman Scorned: Donnie is pissed… she is not going to allow Carver to get away with murdering her friend, so she convinces Jess and Glory to mount up and go on the hunt for the scumbag. Kanning tries to talk Donnie out of it, but she is not hearing it… which forces Kanning to trail behind the ladies and go into guardian angel mode as the trio of vengeance seeking vixens get closer and closer to their goal of avenging Rachel’s death.
No matter the genre there are some things you can expect from a Jim Wynorski film… large breasts on display (in this case those of Kimberly Kelley and Rochelle Swanson) and an overall sense of frivolity. Quite simply, Wynorski knows his audience and gives them what they want.
If I know my audience, I know you want some Bonus Bullet Points…
- Familiar Face: The bartender in Hard Bounty was played by none other than George “Buck” Flower, who appeared in the Jim Wynorski directed Demolition High and a role I’ll always remember him from in John Carpenter’s They Live.
- If You Ever: …wanted to see Kelly LeBrock give Matt McCoy a bath, then this is the movie for you.
- Memorable Quote: “There’s only two things I can’t do. One is make love to a woman, the other one is piss up a wall. And right now there’s only one of those I regret not being able to do.” – Donnie
