LeoGlossary: Heart Condition (1990 Film)

Heart Condition is a 1990 American comedy film directed by James D. Parriott and produced by Steve Tisch. The film stars Bob Hoskins, Denzel Washington, and Chloe Webb. The plot revolves around a racist LAPD officer, Jack Moony, who receives a heart transplant from a black lawyer, Napoleon Stone, whom he hates. After the lawyer is murdered, his ghost returns to ask the cop to help take down the men who killed him.

The movie's reception was largely negative, scoring a 10% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 10 reviews. Roger Ebert gave the film two stars. In 2021, Vulture ranked 47 Denzel Washington movies, with Heart Condition coming in last place at number 47.

The film is caught somewhere between seriousness and cheesy exploitation, and its features are punishingly standard.

Plot

The plot revolves around a racist LAPD officer, Jack Moony, who has a vendetta against Napoleon Stone, a charismatic black lawyer who is sleeping with Jack's old flame Crystal Gerrity. On the same night that Moony suffers a heart attack, Stone is killed in a car accident and, the world being an extremely small place, it's Stone's heart that saves Moony's life.

Stone's ghost returns to make sure his heart is being well cared for and to help Moony solve the mystery that caused his death. Stone is all too happy to give Moony advice on how he should do his job and live his life. The two rivals compete in the same workforce area in their community to help bring down the drug rate. Their goal would be to find the mysterious men who shot and killed Napoleon Stone.