Modus Operandi (Frankie Latina, 2009): USA

Reviewed by Lea Encarnacion.  Viewed at the Mann Chinese Theater 6 in Hollywood during the AFI Film Festival, 2009.

Modus Operandi is a funny and thrilling ‘70’s exploitation film about a CIA spy agent on a mission to find the murderer of his wife, set in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  Directed by Frankie Latina and featuring Mark Borchardt as Dallas Deacon, Randy Russell as Stanley Cashay, and Danny Trejo as Director Holiday (from Devil’s Rejects, Grindhouse, Grand Theft Auto, Once Upon a Time in Mexico).  I have never seen a blaxploitation film before (which, according to Wikipedia, refers to “‘exploitation films from the ‘70s that targeted urban black people”) and took a chance with seeing this film since the trailer looked different from all the other films and it made me curious.  It stood out from the rest of the films I saw at the AFI Film Festival because of its low budget, art-house, underground, vintage and grainy look.  The film was surprisingly interesting, exciting, bizarre, cheap, cheesy and hilarious.

Stanley Cashay, a former CIA agent, is a drunk and balding middle aged bum who, after the murder of his wife, was about to shoot himself in despair in his small apartment, when he gets called by his old agency to duty.  The task is to retrieve two briefcases that were stolen from Squire Parks, a presidential candidate.  He calls for his two assistants, Black Licorice and Casey Thunderbird to help him, where they follow the briefcases to Tokyo, Taipei and back to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  In a bizarre shootout sequence, scenes full of scantily clad women, blood, guns and violence mash together, where numerous people are killed and the briefcases finally get back to the rightful owner.  But that’s not the end, and Stanley Cashay’s plot for revenge leads to an outrageous and hilarious climax led by Director Holiday.

The acting and special effects in this film are terrible, the humor is very gory (like Quentin Tarantino’s style), and the soundtrack is funky and whimsical like in 007 James Bond films.  The editing and cinematography is similar to Alejandro Jodorowsky’s The Holy Mountain.  The movie is very fast paced, which makes it exciting and fun to watch.  If you like Grindhouse or Pulp Fiction or Quentin Tarantino, there’s a good chance you’ll like this film.

Director Frankie Latina said this film took four years to make because of money issues, and had about ten producers on and off.  It is clear that he is passionate about this genre and told the audience at the AFI Film Festival that he grew up watching these kinds of films from his grandmother’s living room on a shag rug.

I would recommend this film to adults who are into movies like Grindhouse or Pulp Fiction or just Quentin Tarantino’s style and humor, and to those who don’t mind the ethically questionable, sexist and violent themes, and the hardcore exploitation and nudity that fill the whole film.  For me, it was worth seeing and definitely was one of the most entertaining films I saw at the festival.

Modus Operandi Trailer