A 1995 crime drama that became a box office bomb and a cult curiosity
In short: Gary Fleder’s Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead arrived in 1995 with a star-studded cast and a Warren Zevon-inspired title. Despite its pedigree, the film struggled to find an audience, famously dismissed by critics as a derivative attempt to replicate the lightning-in-a-bottle success of Quentin Tarantino’s earlier work.
The film follows Jimmy 'The Saint' Tosnia, a former gangster attempting to pivot into a legitimate business called Afterlife Advice, where he records messages for the dying. His path to redemption is derailed when his former employer, a quadriplegic crime lord known as 'The Man With The Plan,' forces him into a scheme involving the boss's son. The mission goes catastrophically wrong, resulting in an accidental killing that triggers a death sentence for Jimmy and his crew.
What follows is a grim, stylized descent as the crew faces 'buckwheats'—a term for a particularly gruesome and painful assassination. They are stalked by a relentless hitman named Mr. Shhh. As the narrative unfolds, Jimmy navigates a web of betrayal, eventually seeking vengeance against the crime lord’s son before accepting his own fate with grace. The film concludes with a surreal vision of the characters reuniting in the afterlife.
Upon its release, the film was a commercial failure, earning less than $530,000 against an $8 million budget. Critics were largely unimpressed, with many labeling it a 'Pulp Fiction clone.' Even Roger Ebert, while calling it an 'interesting miss,' suggested that viewers might only enjoy it if they were fans of Tarantino's dialogue. Despite this lukewarm reception, the film has persisted in the cultural consciousness, eventually receiving a 4K restoration by Kino Lorber in 2025.
The rights to the film have changed hands frequently, mirroring the complex history of the Miramax library. Originally distributed by Miramax, the title moved through various owners, including Filmyard Holdings and beIN Media Group, before landing with Paramount Pictures in 2020. This journey from a box office disappointment to a restored home media release highlights the enduring, if niche, appeal of 1990s crime dramas that once sought to capture the zeitgeist of their era.
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