THE QUICK & THE DEAD: Sharon Stone’s Western Gamble | Sam Raimi: The Entertainer

2022-12-20

After the cult success of ARMY OF DARKNESS, Sam Raimi took a sharp stylistic detour — straight into the sun-drenched, bullet-riddled world of the American Western. Released in 1995, THE QUICK AND THE DEAD brought Raimi’s hyper-stylized camera work and comic-book energy to the genre, complete with whip pans, POV bullets, and a rogue’s gallery of gunslingers. It was also a star-studded affair: a pre-TITANIC Leonardo DiCaprio, a pre-fame Russell Crowe, a grizzled Gene Hackman, and producer-star Sharon Stone, who fought to get Raimi hired in the first place. In this episo...

After the cult success of ARMY OF DARKNESS, Sam Raimi took a sharp stylistic detour — straight into the sun-drenched, bullet-riddled world of the American Western.

Released in 1995, THE QUICK AND THE DEAD brought Raimi’s hyper-stylized camera work and comic-book energy to the genre, complete with whip pans, POV bullets, and a rogue’s gallery of gunslingers. It was also a star-studded affair: a pre-TITANIC Leonardo DiCaprio, a pre-fame Russell Crowe, a grizzled Gene Hackman, and producer-star Sharon Stone, who fought to get Raimi hired in the first place.

In this episode, we explore how Raimi’s Western homage got made, why it was overlooked upon release, and how it’s since become one of the more fascinating oddities in his filmography — as well as a key pivot point toward his blockbuster future.

The Playboy Interview with Keanu Reeves: https://www.playboy.com/read/the-playboy-interview-with-keanu-reeves

GoFundMe for Alyssa Fowler: https://gofund.me/60e5d127

The Love-Alive Charity: https://love-alive.org

Theme Song: "There's Still a Little Bit of Time, If We Hurry and I Mean Hurry" by Slasher Film Festival Strategy.

This episode was written, produced and edited by Gary Horne, Justin Bishop, and Todd A. Davis.

Comments (3)