An Occasional Hell (1996)

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This preposterous thriller stars Tom Berenger (Platoon) as Ernie Dewalt, a drug-addicted ex-cop with a catheter, and that isn't the worst of it. Ernie teaches creative writing at a small college where prominent professor Alex Laughton (Stephen Lang) has been blown apart with a shotgun while groping… More This preposterous thriller stars Tom Berenger (Platoon) as Ernie Dewalt, a drug-addicted ex-cop with a catheter, and that isn't the worst of it. Ernie teaches creative writing at a small college where prominent professor Alex Laughton (Stephen Lang) has been blown apart with a shotgun while groping the frequently nude Jeri Kari Wuhrer in a car on Lover's Lane. Laughton's widow, Elizabeth (Valeria Golino) drags the reluctant Ernie out of retirement to clear her name, as she is the prime suspect. When he's not mainlining drugs or trading japes with investigating detective Robert Davi, Ernie is haunted by visions of Jeri, taunting him about his incompetence. It's not really Jeri, of course, and may even be the spirit of his former alcoholism, but the plot is so muddled that it's hard to tell. Ernie has a vision of himself snapping nude photos of Jeri and Laughton having sex in a field; Elizabeth is loudly whispered about in the local supermarket; and the ridiculous resolution will please no one. Bad film buffs should get a kick out of Ernie weeping to Elizabeth about his catheter, but other viewers should avoid this jaw-dropping stupidity at all costs. ~ Robert Firsching, Rovi

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