Best Seller

Director: John Flynn John Flynn

Overview

A police officer/successful novelist is approached by a professional hitman who was recently let go by his boss, a business executive who is above suspicion. The former boss is not pleased by the possibility of a tell-all bestseller mentioning him, so the writer may be next on the list.

Product Details

Release Date:	03/24/2015
UPC:	0887090092500
Original Release:	1987
Rating:	R
Source:	Olive
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital]
Language:	English
Time:	1:50:00
Sales rank:	27,316

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

James Woods	Cleve
Brian Dennehy	Dennis Meechum
Paul Shenar	David Madlock
Victoria Tennant	Roberta Gillian
Allison Balson	Holly Meechum
George Coe	Graham
Anne Pitoniak	Mrs. Foster
Mary Carver	Cleve's Mother
Sully Boyar	Monks
Kathleen Lloyd	Annie
Harold Tyner	Cleve's Father
E. Brian Dean	Taxi Driver
Jeffrey Josephson	Pearlman
Seymour Cassel	Actor
Edward Blackoff	Thorn
Peter T. Stader	Dock Worker
Branscombe Richmond	Longshoreman
J.P. Bumstead	Rothman
William Bronder	Foley
Jenny Gago	Woman in Laundry
Michael Crabtree	Man in Bar
Ted Markland	Man in Bar
Clare Fields	Bartender
Claudia Stenke	Woman at Bar
David Byrd	Quentin
Loyda Ramos	Female Officer
Obaka Adedunyo	Man in Car
Phil Hoover	Roud
David Ursin	Meechum's Lawyer
Jay Ingram	Turner
Daniel Trent	Jarvis
David Blackwood	Senator
Gary Kirk	Jason
Dean Abston	Cabot
David Cass	Cop in Depository
Bill R. Mitchell	El Paso TV Anchor,El Paso TV Anchor
John Howard Swain	Man at Airport
Mark Venturini	Bodyguard
Larry Holt	Bodyguard
Jeff Ramsey	Bodyguard
Dennis Acree	1st Bodyguard
James Winburn	Supervisor
Peter Stader	Dock Worker
Brian Gaffikin	Waiter
Michael White	Young Cop
Martin West	Mature Cop
Arlin Miller	News Reporter
Samuel V. Baldoni	Man
Sands Hall	Teacher
Hank Woessner	Man
Sydney Urshan	Drug Kingpin
Wally Burr	Talk Show Host
Jay Ferguson	Composer

Technical Credits

John Daly	Executive Producer
Carter DeHaven III	Producer
John Flynn	Director
Derek Gibson	Executive Producer
Peter Kunz	Special Effects
Steve Lambert	Stunts
Robert Olmstead	Special Effects
Ken Speed	Special Effects
Michael McLean	Casting
Diane Dimeo	Casting

Editorial Reviews

This terse, tense, no-nonsense collaboration between screenwriter Larry Cohen and director John Flynn parlays tough-guy attitude into true-crime thrills. The sort of well-crafted but unpretentious mid-budget cops-and-killers flick that seems to have disappeared since its '70s and '80s heyday, Best Seller features typically intense performances from stars Brian Dennehy and James Woods, the former as a hard-bitten cop turned author, the latter as an elegant, haughty hit man. Although the script is so soaked in testosterone that the only female presence of any note is the cop character's stupid, damsel-in-distress daughter, Cohen gives in to manly sentiment at the end; yet, the many well-wrought suspense sequences, strong lead actors, and literary plot hook elevate the material above its otherwise fairly typical crime-world scenario. Hardly a classic, Best Seller is still solid entertainment for genre aficionados. It might make a good video double feature with F/X, another gimmicky Dennehy thriller.