Crime Zone

• Also known as Calles Peligrossas in Peru
• Directed by Luis Llosa
• December 13, 1988

A mysterious stranger recruits young lovers to commit a series of crimes in an authoritarian state with the promise of escape.

Another low budget film that is another Roger Corman produced discovery. I went into this wannabe Blade Runner with only the knowledge of the biggest name in the film and that it was cheap. I have a certain love of low budget movies (done well) and Crime Zone is a low budget movie done right. Certainly no classic but it does manage to entertain from the start even if it is objectively not a well-made film.

Set in the near future (maybe) in the nation of Soleil, it portrays life in a heavily regulated authoritarian police state. There is no indication when or where this story really occurs. For all the viewer knows this may be an alien planet or even a parallel reality. We just know there are aspects of the society different/more advanced than an our own mixed with stuff very relatable to today that a Corman level budget could not afford to portray as futuristic.

Filmed largely at night to cover the cheapness, there are flashes of neon present enough to communicate ‘future.’ For that extra razzmatazz, director Luis Llosa visually stole from other properties like dressing the police in the things very reminiscent of the OCP police officers from RoboCop. Just close enough to make you think about it but not so close that it risked Corman a lawsuit.

The major harm to this is not the weak budget but as usual in cheap movies the acting. David Carradine as the mysterious Jason and Sherilyn Fenn in striking platinum blonde as government sanctioned prostitute Helen do fine but the rest like Helen’s lover Bone (Peter Nelson) or Bone’s friend Creon (Michael Shaner) leave something to be desired. Like an attempt at a performance that does not hint at disinterested.

At the center of the story is our eventual Bonnie and Clyde like couple of Bone and Helen going around the dystopian country committing crimes at the behest of the enigmatic Jason who dangles the promise of escape to the neighboring (and freer) Frodan with which Soleil has long been at war.

Crime Zone takes its time trying to develop the central characters and expand up the desires for a better life earned one crime at a time. Helen is a prostitute in one of a string of government brothels while Bone was a security guard fired from a high-end cryogenics facility for not showing the proper respect to the clients given his low social status. This pairing’s romance is illegal because it is unsanctioned as such things must be for subgrades like them.

Carradine may have been a producer of this, but his casting was like a late addition to the process. The performance possesses the vibe of someone who showed up at the last minute and never really had a time to get a feel for his character. Jason is always chomping on a cigar and uttering lines that are supposed to be menacing with no more of a threatening tone than you could get from the ingredients on a cereal box. Jason is an important figure yet poorly defined. He is more plot device than story participant.

This hints at the forms of control that authoritarian nations may use on its people. Media manipulation is demonstrated as well as this giving us a few glimpses of show trials meant to intimidate the population into submission. Better than expected touches from a movie that you would not expect such things in.

I have trouble with the title. ‘Crime Zone’ speaks of something this is not. It is catchy but not a good fit even in hindsight. There is a ‘plague zone’ but that as a title would have the same issues. I would’ve called it something a little more apropos. It’s not a RoboCop satire or a witty commentary, but it’s more intelligent than the name suggests.

There are intriguing twists and dashes of artistic style. Shots in the rain and the reveal of Jason’s true role are noteworthy if occasionally derivative. Jason it is revealed works for the government of Soleil recruiting people to commit crimes to justify the state’s power. The government has effectively squashed all crime yet still need something for the populace to fear or show there is no going against the government.

Given the poor acting what saves the movie for me was the climax. Our heroes with a little help manage to cross the border of Soleil into Frodan. What they find is that the oft mentioned war was won long ago. Soleil realized this war not only fueled their economy but helped keep the people in line. For me it was a complete yet intelligent twist.

What I don’t get is why Jason allowed Helen and Bone to live after confronting them in Frodan. It’s satisfying to give the characters a happy ending but once they’re out of the country he doesn’t need to let them alive because the threat of them being out there is what he is really after. That they could come back and create more chaos will help to keep the public in line. He shot his police officer cohort so word never leaked, so why not shoot those two as well? He even shot the pilot who got the couple there so why keep the couple alive? It has stuck in my craw.

Even with a lackluster title, Crime Zone is a good movie. No classic but it entertains and does a sufficient job with what it has. An enjoyable guilty pleasure that may have a smidge of appeal to a broader audience.