John Travolta plays a social worker trying to save a kid from being a causality of the crack epidemic in Chains of Gold. New to Blu-ray from Kino Lorber.
The Film
This movie does not mess around. What starts as a social justice movie quickly turns dark in Chains of Gold. John Travolta plays a social worker turned unwitting action hero.
Scott Barnes (Travolta) is a social worker in Maimi contending with the crack epidemic with the people he’s trying to help. Smoking two packs a day and sweating like nobody’s business Scott holds dark secrets tied to his own addiction and it ties to a tragedy in his life. It’s the reason he’s so hyper-focused on helping Tommy (Joey Lawrence) stay on the straight and narrow. Of course, Tommy is already involved with drug dealing for Miami Kingpin Carlos (Benjamin Bratt). When Tommy goes missing Scott will do and does do anything to save Tommy who’s in too deep much to the chagrin of the narcotics Lieutenant (Hector Elizondo) who has too much politically and personally on the line.
I was not expecting the film to go fever-pitched and well-executed as Chains of Gold is. The film eschews the “message” aspect that many a film of the era attempts and for the most part fails miserably. By side-stepping that “after-school” aspect and going harder into the genre elements, Chains of Gold goes into a great overwrought crime thriller. This is the type of film that has multiple heated confrontations with authority figures Travolta’s character expounds on the dangers of not having social programs in place and having those not be a hotbed of paperwork and rules. However, if you can take your “veggies” you’ll be treated to some truly delicious desserts in the form of action set pieces.
Director Rod Holcomb directors the film above the normal DTV films of the era (it premiered on Showtime in the early 90s). That has to do with having not one but two great cinematographers to work with in Bruce Surtees and Dariusz Wolski. Additionally, the work by composer Trevor Jones makes sure there isn’t any of the sort of terrible choices that are made by composers in the DTV universe.
Chains of Gold is an elevated and surprising piece of social commentary that quickly turns into a heated B-grade crime thriller and is all the better for it. If anything, it’s worth it to see Travolta and Elizondo exchange screaming barbs at one another or to see Bratt’s character’s fate be the most Florida of Florida endings.
The Transfer
I’m betting that Chains of Gold has never looked better in any of its home video iterations. The image is a healthy sharp affair throughout. There isn’t a scratch or blemish present throughout the runtime. The transfer is gorgeously luminous showcasing the wonderful photography by Bruce Surtees and Dariusz Wolski. The Blu-ray is a showcase for the 35mm shot film and is beautifully representative of its origins no one would know that the film debuted on cable.
The Extras
They include the following;
- Trailers
The special features include trailers for Chains of Gold (2:39); Moment by Moment (1:34); Staying Alive (2:59); The Experts (1:32); Face/Off (2:07); Sunnyside (2:54)
The Final Thought
Kino has done it again… Chains of Gold is a surprising crime thriller. Recommended.