jed-estes I was scrummaging through my local dirt mall VHS bins one day just trying to kill time before I went to see some flick. I can't remember what it was right now. But in the bin which I was not even really looking through as I had already discarded most of my own VHS collection in favor of DVDs but something caught my glaze. It was picture of James Le Gross who I love from his role in Phantasm II and who was beside him on the case than none other than QT himself. I had to have this and for three bucks in a bargain bin it was somewhat worth it. No the film will never set the world on fire, but i don't think that was the point of this film either. The point of this was to try and make something small and personal. As I don't know the director of this and have never watched any of his other films I can say through my eyes he failed. the films story if there is one moves so slow that Bush would have had time to respond to the Katrina disaster before this film came to head. Le Gross is the main reason to watch this if you must and not QT as he just lies around sulking up the scenery, same as Jim Belushi. While Le Gross is wily and dirty looking in this film just like a latter film he did Highway Hitcher he just looks bad but really hes not and it's shame his one claim to fame is Phantasm II. Even though Mike Baldwin did a better job Le Gross worked well with what he had in that film. He deserves better than this, so I will give the film three stars because I feel sorry for him.

The_Void You know those really stupid ideas you get sometimes when you wake up in the middle of the night? Well, you can imagine the scene: the man who would later have the idea for Destiny Turns on the Radio is asleep in his bed. He wakes up in a cold sweat one night; "A magic swimming pool!", he exclaims, "..and a cool guy can come out, and this guy be the illusive one, who holds it all together", he's really sweating now, "and we'll get Quentin Tarantino to play him!". After seeing the movie, it's safe to say that it was an extremely stupid idea.As mentioned, Quentin Tarantino plays a man that comes out a swimming pool. Yes, you heard me right; in an absolutely ridiculous sequence, Tarantino actually rises from an electricity-ridden swimming pool. The only thing more ridiculous than that sequence in this movie is Quentin Tarantino's actual performance. Tarantino has proved, time and time again, that acting isn't his forte, but he puts it beyond a shadow of a doubt here. He tries to look cool with his swagger and slow moving voice, but he actually just looks pathetic. One good thing is that he doesn't get a lot of screen time; but the mere fact that he's in it loses the movie some of it's credibility, and this is a movie that doesn't exactly have credibility to burn. It's a shame that this movie is so terrible really, as it does have quite a good cast. Dylan McDermott, one of stars of my guiltiest pleasure, 1999's rom-com; Three to Tango takes the lead role, with Nancy Travis (So I Married an Axe Murderer) as his girlfriend, James LeGros as his friend and David Cross, who I actually like a lot, is in the movie as an agent of some sort.The stupid plot isn't helped at all by a lacklustre script. Modern crime movies have become known for snappy dialogue and offbeat characters, and this movie has both; albeit both badly done. The dialogue has some truly ridiculous lines and most of the time they are delivered badly, too. This is most probably due to the fact that most of the cast were probably cursing their agents while making this film, and have probably spent the last ten years trying to forget that Destiny ever turned on the radio. As you, the viewer, will no doubt do; but it certainly won't take ten years. My advice? Watch something else.

gavinesque Aside from an earlier comment written about this movie, I happen to believe that DESTINY TURNS ON THE RADIO is a fine indie film. The dialogue is actually quite pungent with one-liners and gritty 'over-the-top' tough-guy-ness which makes it rather enjoyable. The story takes place in Las Vegas where an animistic spirit in the form of a man, Johnny Destiny (played by Tarantino), brings luck and good fortune to whoever he comes into contact with. The cast is idealistic and sparked with character, especially in the cases of wacky Thoreau and angry Julian (played respectively by James Le Gros and Dylan McDermott), and in a surprise casting move with comic veteran James Belushi as Tuerto, casino manager of The Stardust and new lover of the befallen Lucille (Nancy Travis of 'SO I MARRIED AN AXE MURDERER'). Johnny Destiny is the somewhat loose glue binding all of these characters together, which is a far stretch I'll admit, but the fun is in how it plays out, the excessive Las Vegasy overacting (which shouldn't be mistaken for real acting) and the quips of the dialogue. The only problem with this film, however, is that Tarantino's acting is horrid and somehow his association with this movie lumped it into a generic Tarantino-esque category, making its viewers somewhat upset due to the overwhelming lack of F-words, point-blank gunpoint stand-offs, and bloody faces. What DESTINY TURNS ON THE RADIO does offer, however, is a magical, mystical feel in a city where lady luck is prayed upon every second, and characters who obviously take themselves too seriously only to learn that success and fortune can fade in the flash of a lightning bolt. Other interesting and great casting mentions go to Bobcat Goldthwait and David Cross.

trevorten This film seems like a Tarantino-sponsored "mind altering" party, complete with improvisation and wit that ultimately seems to fall flat. I laughed hysterically at how embarrassingly poor a movie with this great of a cast was turning out. It certainly entertains though, in a train wreck sort of fashion. Who knows, maybe that was the point. As far as the performances go: McDermott was sort of underwhelming as the lead but it was funny to see him pre-"Practice" wearing tacky royal blue dress pants throughout. James LeGros gave his usual steady performance as a neurotic-type. Tarantino is WAY better off behind the camera but his acting performances in Pulp Fiction, From Dusk 'til Dawn and Desperado were all oscar-worthy compared to this one, although he didn't have much to work with here, script wise. Always great to see Richard Edson in the small but memorable role.