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Rating:  - Twisty and complex Moscow mystery
When 3 bodies are discovered in Gorky Park,Moscow ,minus faces ,teeth and fingers the case is assigned to Inspector Arkady Renko(William Hurt).The trail leads to a Moscow based US businessman a fur trader named Jack Osborne (Lee Marvin).Osborne is a well connected man knowing ,and enjoying a great deal of influence with, key people in political and police circles to the extent that Renko finds his investigataion being hampered at every turn.Are the deaths related to Osborne's somewhat shady business dealings ? Or might there be a link to espionage activity ?
Also caught up in the matter is a dissident, Irena ( Joanna Pacula) , a friend of one of the victims ,and an American lawman (Brian Dennehy)whose brother was among those killed
The plot is twisty and at times confusing and the problem lies with the Dennis Potter screenplay which never satisfactorily resolves the problems of adapting a complex novel to the screen .The movie thus plods when it should run and the climax lacks impact .
The acting is excellent however .Marvin is his usual reliable self while he is matched stride for stride by Dennehy and Hurt .The location shooting -in Helsinki as the Soviets refused permission to shoot in Moscow-is evocative and suitably wintery
This is too long, too convoluted and lacking real excitement but as long as you dont expect a masterpiece it is reasonably satisfying entertaainment that benefits from its relatively unusual setting -in the heart of a workaday Soviet Union
Rating:  - Nostalgia for the USSR
I rate this as one of the best thrillers ever filmed, a marvelous evocation of the USSR. The story itself is well-known and, although not entirely forgettable, not what made this such a great film. Here one finds, in addition to its compelling plot, a loving depiction of Russia. Were it not "just" an entertainment, the film would have been Oscar material like the esteemed "Doctor Zhivago." William Hurt does his best work here. Something about his boyish anti-sexuality works here, as he plays the "good" communist, a loyal subject of a corrupt system. Lee Marvin is superb, turning in one of the best performances of the decade as a decadently evil American capitalist and murderer. Together they offer a mismatch and conflict equal to Jack Nicholson's famous conflict with John Huston in the incomparable "Chinatown." The author succeeded beyond reason in capturing the seediness of Communism on its last legs; the movie does the book one better, showing in stunning photography the gorgeous Russian winter, the fabulous comforts of communism's insiders and the despair and desperation of those not invited to the party. I've seen the film numerous times. It holds up, even after the fall of the grand hoax. Evil, we learn, is a universal that will never seem dated.
Rating:  - Glasnost and Gorky Park
The movie "Gorky Park," released in 1983, was based on Martin Cruz Smith's phenomenally successful novel of the same name. It was made well before "glasnost," the Russian willingness to open up; therefore, although set in Russia, it was actually filmed in Finland. Never mind: Finland looks every bit as cold and snowy to most of us. "Gorky Park" was written by the highly-acclaimed British screenwriter Dennis Potter("Singing Detective," "Pennies from Heaven"), and its director, well-thought-of Briton Michael Apted (the "Seven-Up" series). The film stars the Americans William Hurt, Brian Dennehy, and Lee Marvin; the usual suspects among able British supporting players (including Richard Griffiths, who just recently, suddenly, achieved stardom in late middle age with "The History Boys," play and movie). It introduces the former model Joanne Pacula.
Cruz Smith's novel, a police procedural, was quite an achievement: in those days before glasnost, and before the Internet, he had to research it in various hard-copy libraries without ever going to the U.S.S.R.; yet it read as if he knew the country, its police procedures, and its internal politics well. (Nor has he ever written anything else, before or since, that sold as strongly.)
The plot concerns three bodies found in the snow, in central Moscow's Gorky Park, near the skating rink. The faces and fingertips of the bodies have been skinned, making them difficult to identify. The case falls to Moscow police detective Arkady Renko, who'd rather not have it: its got fingerprints of the KGB, reputedly brutal Russian secret service, all over it. And though he is lauded as the most successful of Moscow detectives, his independent ways, particularly in regard to the skirt-the-law murderous KGB, have gotten him into trouble before. It's likely that, if he weren't the son of a celebrated general, his troubles might have been deeper: they might yet, still, be.
Hurt plays Renko with a noticeable degree of formality; he's not the all-American boy next door here. The case brings him into contact with the lucrative trade in sable furs, a profitable Russian monopoly. He also meets Brian Dennehy, playing an American policeman with a much harder edge than we're accustomed to seeing on him. And Lee Marvin, handsomely tanned and grey-haired, looking every inch the successful American businessman, giving one of his typical highly-mannered performances; that actor never walked when he could strut. Hurt/Renko also finds Pacula, playing a beautiful young script girl willing to die to get out of Russia. She looks Slavic. Also sexier, all bundled up for the cold, than she has any right to, and is adequate to the demands of her part. (Still, her acting career never went much further.) The Brits, Griffiths, Ian Bannen, Rikki Fulton, Alexander Knox, Michael Elphick, play all the Russian parts without a hint of a Russian accent. Go figure.
The movie is strong on the ambiance of life in a cold climate. Also life as it had to be lived for the masses in Russia then, and perhaps now. Plenty of vodka. A scene of an open-air do-it-yourself used auto mart. Scenes of people standing on long lines for whatever meat or fresh produce was available, then sitting down to eat, inside a restaurant, in hat and coat. "Gorky Park" also gives us a look at the life of the privileged, then and now. The greatly desired dachas, weekend country houses. An elegant imperial era mens' bathhouse. A grand hotel. It moves fast, and maintains suspense to the end. Its underlying theme, the desire for freedom inborn in every living creature, has emotional resonance. In these post glasnost days, anyone who can raise the fare is welcome to Russia, but a lot of Russia is still to be found in this picture, no matter where it was filmed.
Rating: - An International Thriller Without Comparison
I've seen movies that treat the Russians as the villains and the Americans as the heroes. I've seen movies that treat Russians as the heroes, and those that treat us as the bad guy. This one is all of the above. Actually, the problem is not the governments in this movie. An American, played by Lee Marvin, is the main villain, and a Russian, played by William Hurt, is the main hero. However, there are Russians conspiring with Marvin, and an American is an ally to Hurt.
I compare this movie to "Blade Runner", though the other is a futuristic sci-fi movie, in that both are violent R-rated movies with minimal nudity, but both have endings that are excellent and thought provoking.
One warning for fellow Christians reading the review: There is a negative stereo-type of a born-again Christian in this movie. This is a minor part of the story, and I would not consider it the worst part of the movie. The sex and violence can be more of a problem for some. But I still enjoyed this movie, and would recommend it to those who can handle that sex and violence.
And by all means, watch the credits. That is the best footage of the movie. I won't say anything more to keep from revealing any surprises, but it is both fun and gives a message.
Rating: - A classic -- get it
Great movie, great actors, what more can be said? It's a classic movie you'll watch more than once!
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