Stephen King’s particular genius is to bring horror out of its Gothic clime and into the banal, everyday setting of contemporary America. Dolan’s Cadillac, based on a King short story, is a dark tale of crime and punishment, obsession and vengeance—a page from Edgar Allan Poe set in 2010 typeface. The direct to DVD (and Blu-ray) movie will be released on April 6.
Like any good B-picture, Dolan’s Cadillac views social problems (in this case: illegal immigration) from an acute angle and an unfussy sensibility. Director Jeff Beesley keeps it straightforward: Dolan (a maniacal Christian Slater) is a trafficker in human lives, selling women (“units” he calls them) to the sex trade. His sophism and rationalizations can’t disguise the profit motive of this heartless entrepreneur. He is in essence a demon in human guise, and like the demons, he believes in God. When Elizabeth (Emmanuelle Vaugier) witnesses one of Dolan’s murders in the desert, she decides to do the right thing and testify. But as her school teacher husband Robinson (Wes Bentley) learns, the American legal system moves slowly and witness protection isn’t bulletproof. After Elizabeth’s murder, Robinson sinks into a druggy blur of anti-depressants washed down by beer. And then he begins a vengeance quest that takes an imaginative turn.
There is little doubt that Dolan, who rides in a black, armored Cadillac SUV, will receive justice. But along the way, as with many too Hollywood villains, he gets the best lines and leaves a more vivid impression than the ostensibly good protagonist.
