Spun

Mickey Rouke, battered by years of substance abuse, returns to the silver screen as 'The Cook' in this dark, screwball comedy about the recreational drug, speed.  'The Cook' is so named because he takes enormous quantities of non-prescription pills as his ingredients and creates drugs.  He then passes these to Spider Mike (Leguizamo) who sells these and other drugs to people who usually can't pay him, leading to a lot of scenarios in which bodily harm is threatened.

Also involved is Nikki (Murphy), the girlfriend of 'The Cook', a relationship based on her need for a lot of drugs for not a lot of money.  When society drop-out Ross (Schwartzman) sets off to score some speed, but his usual supplier, Spider Mike, is empty, Nikki takes him to see her other half.

Soon, Ross is running errands for the drug-generator, chauffeuring Nikki everywhere in his battered car, sometimes taking off on long missions through the city.  All the while, Ross has left his stripper girlfriend handcuffed to bed...

Rouke is in his element, putting in a gritty performance to match the gritty storyline, lending his real-life experiences to provide a suitably heavyweight performance.  Leguizamo also shines, continuing to display the alarming levels of energy and enthusiasm last witnessed in his performance as Toulouse Lautrec in 'Moulin Rouge'.

Worth a viewing!

Chi-Chi Rodriguez