Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- sultry
- paranoid
- sun-baked
- late night noir viewing
- adult movie night
What critics said
Critics broadly found Dennis Hopper's stylish, sunny neo-noir an engaging if uneven revival of classic B-movie crime traditions.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Harry is pulled between Dolly's coercive affair, Gloria's vulnerability, and the leverage each relationship creates.
The Texas town and Ueli Steiger's bright cinematography contrast sharply with the film's arson, robbery, blackmail, and betrayal.
Harry arrives as an outsider, adopts a used-car-salesman identity, and rapidly constructs a robbery scheme and new romantic prospects.
The small Texas town, oppressive sensuality, arson, blackmail, and grotesque interpersonal behavior create a hothouse Southern Gothic atmosphere.
Films like The Hot Spot, and why
Body Heat
shared neo-noir atmosphere, criminal protagonist, sexual manipulation, and morally compromised characters
The Last Seduction
shared erotic thriller structure, adulterous desire, small-town corruption, and fatalistic crime plotting
The Grifters
shared sunlit neo-noir style, amoral drifter protagonist, bank robbery scheme, and erotic entanglements
U Turn
shared Southern Gothic setting, erotic danger, criminal intrigue, and heightened noir fatalism
Movie Details
- Director
- Dennis Hopper
- Release Date
- 1990-10-12
- Runtime
- 130 min
- Rating
- 6.3 / 10 (314)
Cast
- Don Johnson
- Virginia Madsen
- Jennifer Connelly
- Charles Martin Smith
- William Sadler
- Jerry Hardin
- Barry Corbin
- Leon Rippy
- Jack Nance
- Virgil Frye
Common questions
- What is The Hot Spot about?
- A seductive Texas drifter turns a bank robbery, an adulterous affair, and a blackmail scheme into a volatile neo-noir descent.
- What is The Hot Spot like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Hot Spot as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Hot Spot violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Hot Spot as mild.
- What did critics think of The Hot Spot?
- Critics broadly found Dennis Hopper's stylish, sunny neo-noir an engaging if uneven revival of classic B-movie crime traditions.
- Which films are like The Hot Spot?
- Films with a similar feel include Body Heat, The Last Seduction, The Grifters, and U Turn.
- How long is The Hot Spot?
- The Hot Spot runs 130 minutes.
