Next of Kin

1989

Action / Crime / Drama / Thriller

39
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 47% · 10 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Spilled 47% · 5K ratings
IMDb Rating 5.9/10 10 13498 13.5K

Plot summary

Truman Gates, a Chicago cop, sets out to find his brother's killer. Meanwhile, another of his brothers, Briar (a hillbilly) decides to find the killer himself.

Director

John Irvin Photo
John Irvin

Top cast

Liam Neeson Photo
Liam Neeson as Briar Gates
Vincent Guastaferro Photo
Vincent Guastaferro as Paulie
Del Close Photo
Del Close as Frank
Ben Stiller Photo
Ben Stiller as Lawrence Isabella
720p.BluRay 1080p.BluRay
810.30 MB
1280*720
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 48 min
Seeds 1
1.8 GB
1920*1072
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 48 min
Seeds 9

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by utgard14 6 / 10

"You ain't seen bad yet. But it's comin'."

Hillbilly-turned-Chicago cop Patrick Swayze sets out to find his brother Bill Paxton's killer. His other brother Liam Neeson comes to the city to find the killer himself -- hillbilly style! It's hillbillies vs mobsters on the streets (and a cemetery) of Chi-town. I'm sure whoever did the casting on this movie had a brief career. I can buy Swayze and Paxton as hillbillies but Neeson? Also, Ben Stiller as a Sicilian mobster?Swayze is a citified hillbilly. We know they've civilized him because he pulls his mullet back into a fashionable ponytail. Neeson is not civilized. We know this because he wears a dirty baseball cap at all times, even when he has on a suit. Helen Hunt is Swayze's city wife. She plays the violin, which Swayze's hillbilly kin refer to as the fiddle. Rest assured, this movie never misses a chance to traffic in clichés.The action is so-so and the performances are about what you would expect. Swayze takes his part very seriously. Adam Baldwin seems to know the score and hams it up appropriately as the villain. There are many quotable lines, which is the mark of a good cheesy action movie. It's not at the top of my list of great '80s actioners but it's worth checking out anyway.
Reviewed by hitchcockthelegend 6 / 10

Appalachian Clan vS. The Chicago Mob

Patrick Swayze stars in an action revenge thriller in the same year that he also made Road House, the following year he made Ghost, these were two years after he had made a sensual splash with Dirty Dancing. Thus it's safe to say that Patrick did not pigeon hole himself. Next of Kin holds no great hidden gem rewards, but it's a rock solid thriller boasting a splendid cast list featuring Liam Neeson, Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Adam Baldwin, Andreas Katsulas, Ben Stiller (in a serious role), Michael J. Pollard, Ted Levine and Paul Greco.Plot finds Swayze as a Chicago cop who after the murder his younger brother desperately tries to uphold the law while one of his brothers from the "sticks" would rather enact all out revenge on the mobsters that killed the younger sibling. Suffice to say things go pear shaped and blood, loyalty and life altering decisions do follow.The trajectory is simple , honest cop tries to do the right thing by the law in spite of the hurt in his heart, hillbilly brother (Neeson getting the best role in the film) would rather deliver some "deliverance" type justice - all while the rest of the "Gates" family clan await the call to come wading down from the hills to aid the retribution flow. The action scenes are well enough staged by director John Irvin, there's a whole bunch of fun in the characterisations - even if they are standard 101 scripted - while if you can get past Swayze's ponytail you will find a very restrained and cool performance.Hardly a must see, but definitely no stinker and worth your time as a time filler, if only to see such a fresh faced young cast of well knowns turning tricks before bigger things awaited. 6/10
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