Bound (1996)

After their excellent original script for the Richard Donner movie Assassins was significantly altered by re-writes, The Wachowskis (Andy and Larry (now Lana)) were given the chance to write and direct a movie of their own, and not only that, but with free-reign as well.

The result is this nifty little convention tweaking neo-noir crime thriller Corky is a tough ex-con who, newly released from prison, begins work as a painter and plumber working out of her new apartment she's renovating. She lives next door to Violet, the disgruntled and fed up girlfriend of psycho sleazeball mobster Caesar. Violet dreams of leaving her current life and starting over. After beginning a clandestine affair with Corky, the two hatch a plot to steal $2 million from the mob and make Violet's dream a reality.

Despite the superficiality of the plot, this is a slick and clever little thriller that takes something old and puts a nice twist on it. The action is intense, the atmosphere great, and, best of all, there's great characters who are wonderfully developed, and the way that the affair between Violet and Corky is handled is one of the best and most realistic lesbian relationships ever done in a mainstream film. Bravo.

Strong writing only takes a character so far, but thankfully, these characters are brought to life by solid, believable performances from a stellar cast which includes Jennifer Tilly as Violet, Gina Gershon as Corky, and Joe Pantoliano as Caesar. The actual heist plot gets rather involved, but it's fairly easy to follow, and there's an unbelievable amount of suspense going on as things progress, and I found myself on the edge of my seat more than once.

Give this one a watch. It's a snazzy genre film that tweaks formula, is quite tense, and handles lesbianism in a way that unfortunately isn't done as often as it should be. Also, the Wachowski's original script for Assassins can be found online. I highly recommend reading that as well.