Whoever came with the idea to put Sylvester Stallone and Kurt Russel together is brilliant. They both have great chemistry and elevate the viewing experience to the maximum.
But next to it has good direction, cinematography and more important it has great action and spectacle. Good old stunt work and practical effects without a hint of CGI. Director Andrey Konchalovskiy also directed Runaway Train. And he had managed to put tension in the action scenes with very minimal buildup and setup. He does this in Tango and Cash as well. The film for the most part doesn't take itself too seriously. But is when it needs to be. You buy it that our main characters are in trouble and you don't want to see them get hurt. Not many directors can achieve this with such a simple script.
Apparently Andrey was fired in a dispute over the ending and the tone of the film. Producer Jon Peters wanted more comedy and basically wanted to make a spoof. While Andrey and Stallone wanted to make it a little more serious. Andrey however refused to make it silly. So he got fired. Albert Magnoli took over directing and filmed all the chase and fight scenes in the ending. I always wondered about this since it fell out of place compared to previous events. Well, to put it more bluntly. The ending sucks. I am sure had Andrey still been onboard we would have had one hell of an ending. But now it just one big giant mess where at one point you just want it to end. The super RV that got built up before the scene is used in the most generic way ever. It was filled with all kinds of neat stuff and gadgets but we barely get to see those. Why build up to something and then let it fizzle out before it even started?
Another element that made Tango and Cash so much fun is the musical score by Harold Faltermeyer, You know the one who composed the Axel F theme. His sound almost can be seen as a pivotal character since it helps generic scenes be more than they are. Plus it manages to add to the tension if the scenes alone don't make it clear what is at stake. BTW Sly ripped of a sequence from Jackie Chan's Police Story. The one in the opening scene where he shoots at the truck. I guess it was to pay tribute to Jackie Chan since Sly is a big fan.
Overall Tango and Cash is fun, fun and more fun! Anyone who says otherwise don't know what they are talking about. Even with all it's faults and flaws it's one that can be enjoyed over and over again.
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