Just before directing his masterpiece Walker (1987) Alex Cox helmed this typically offbeat revival of the Spaghetti Western. The film is the product of a failed charity concert film Cox was to direct. But since all the acts had allotted the time in their schedules for the concert, Cox decided instead to make Straight To Hell. This accounts for the rather unorthodox cast which includes Joe Strummer, Courtney Love, Elvis Costello, Shane MacGowan, Grace Jones as well as actors Dick Rude, Sy Richardson, Dennis Hopper, Miguel Sandoval and a guest appearance by film director Jim Jarmusch. The film has the kinetic energy and sense of danger of a lost weekend. Along with deconstructing the Western genre at every turn, Cox also imbues the film with some of his own obsessions including coffee, wieners, and hardware stores. The bizarre mix of talent and obsessive thematic plotting make this film the stuff of hipster heaven, but without any sort of legitimate following.
