Bruno-Vision: Striking Distance

Welcome back to Bruno-Vision: A deep dive into the career of Bruce Willis by yours truly, Robert Jordan Hunt!

Last I left you, ol’ Bruno had once again bucked expectations by choosing a high concept studio comedy called Death Becomes Her instead of another action film even after audiences had made it very apparent they wanted their Willis fix in action mode. Thankfully, Bruce turned in not only one of his best performances, but he also managed to steal the show from Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn while he was at it. The film wasn’t as big a hit as many had hoped for, but it was successful enough that it kept the Bruce Willis brand intact. 

Now since big W had finally had some success by going left when everyone wanted him to go right, he knew it was time to enter the action ring again. This time he joined director Rowdy Herrington (Road House) for an action thriller called Striking Distance. In the film, Bruce plays a disgraced Pittsburgh detective that gets busted down to water duty after testifying against his partner (who was also his cousin) in a police brutality case AND voicing concerns that a local serial killer is actually a cop! Two years after the murder of his Police Captain father by said killer, Bruce’s character, Tom Hardy (no relation) gets a chance for redemption as the killer starts up again, this time targeting women from his past.

Returning to the action genre obviously makes sense for Bruce as I’ve already said, but it was equally important for him to not only rely on the Die Hard franchise. Sure, Arnold and Sly had the Terminator, Rocky, and Rambo franchises, respectively. However, they also had solo movies like Total Recall, Cobra, Cliffhanger, True Lies, Commando, Demolition Man, etc. So in that regard, Bruce doing Striking Distance makes perfect sense. 

So is it any good? Well, consider this a case of Your Mileage May Vary. For me, the tagline says it all: “They shouldn’t have put him on the water if they didn’t want him to make waves.”

Can’t you just imagine the voice over guy saying that tagline in the trailer? Actually, you don’t have to imagine it, because it’s real. It’s the perfect setup for this A+ trash 90s action thriller co-starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Dennis Farina, Tom Sizemore, John Mahoney, Brion James, Tom Adkins, and a baby-faced Andre Braugher (RIP). 

There is a very specific itch that Striking Distance scratches for me. A middle of the road ‘90s action flick that barely works as a narrative but stays afloat thanks to solid action (practical stunts and car chases go a long way in this house) and Bruce Willis playing in the wheelhouse he works best in: alcoholic cop actively living and loving being at rock bottom. My man sips whiskey shirtless while staring at the floor like nobody else, exuding the kind of self hate the rest of us can only dream of. For me, that’s one of my favorite things about the actor. He was never afraid to portray weakness or vulnerability. He brings that everyman quality that makes his characters seem slightly more realistic than some of Arnold’s and Sly’s more over the top action heroes, even if the movie wasn’t always rising to the level he was.  

Striking Distance also has one of the best exposition dumps of the ‘90s by way of a TV news report within the first five minutes. Just incredible. The whole thing has a real scummy vibe to it as well. Just about every character in the movie (save for Bruce, of course) is a liar or cheat of some kind, but everyone is definitely an asshole (including Bruce, of course). In short, this movie was made for me.

Unfortunately, most people didn’t feel the same, including the filmmakers themselves. According to an Entertainment Weekly article, the film had serious production problems and blame was placed largely on Willis’ shoulders. The piece states the actor would routinely have scenes rewritten on a whim’s notice, which in turn caused major shake ups for the plot, many of which turned out to be more confusing than helpful. Uh oh. Was Bruce starting to get in his own way? The actor had previously taken the reins of Hudson Hawk (although he helped develop that movie from scratch) to disastrous results, so why try again? I don’t have any kind of definitive answer for that, but it’s not totally surprising as it was quite common for big stars like Bruce to flex on their directors if they weren’t happy with the work being done (Sly in particular was notorious for overtaking productions he wasn’t even directing). After a terrible test screening, the cast and crew had to go back for reshoots that are all too painfully obvious to point out (the wigs are truly terrible). Critics didn’t care much for it either, as many thought it was just a much poorer rehash of Willis’ better work (precisely why I love it) and audiences mostly agreed, as the film topped out at $24 million domestically. 

There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it- Striking Distance was a straight up flop. This was his sole starring role in 1993 too, so it had officially been three years since his last full on hit with Die Hard 2 in the summer of 1990. Yikes! 

Thankfully, my man said “Fuck all them haters” and kept working. In fact, he would have four new releases in 1994, and Big Willie was dipping his toes in all the waters. A kids comedy, an erotic thriller, some movie by a guy named Quentin, and a supporting role opposite Paul Newman. 

Strap in, y’all. Shit just got real.