TROUBLED FAMILY GOES FOR BROKE IN FINELY ACTED `BLOOD & WINE'.

Byline: Rene Rodriguez Knight-Ridder Tribune News Wire

``Blood & Wine'' is film noir served straight up - steel-hearted, mean and dark as night. The movie is a simple exercise in genre, devoid of pretension, except that everyone really showed up for this one: It's acted to the skies.

The film marks a return to form for director Bob Rafelson, who has described ``Blood & Wine'' as the third part in his trilogy on dysfunctional families (after ``Five Easy Pieces'' and ``The King of Marvin Gardens''). There's a sly joke in there somewhere, since the family members in this one aren't just estranged: They're apt to kill each other.

Jack Nicholson stars as Alex Gates, a wily Miami wine merchant who is married to the convalescing Suzanne (Judy Davis), juggling an affair with a sexy Cuban maid (Jennifer Lopez) and trying really, really hard to get along with his stepson Jason (Stephen Dorff).

But Alex has overextended himself - he's one paycheck away from bankruptcy - so he's hatched a plan with the help of his safecracking pal Victor (Michael Caine) to rip off a diamond necklace from one of his Star Island clients.

The robbery goes off as planned, but nothing else does. Long-simmering resentment on the home front erupts at an inopportune moment, sides are drawn, and the movie begins to turn the screws. In typical noir fashion, greed is what drives ``Blood & Wine's'' plot - everyone ends up chasing after the stolen necklace - but when the characters lash out at each other here, they're also getting a thrill out of working out some deep-seated antagonism.

After the disappointments of ``The Crossing Guard,'' ``Mars Attacks!'' and ``The Evening Star,'' it's a joy to watch Nicholson connect so thoroughly with a role again. He's done some of the best work of his career under Rafelson's direction, and while ``Blood & Wine'' is a ``small'' movie, his performance here is anything but. Alex wasn't counting on the disastrous turn his scheme takes, but once it's started, he must see it through to the end. Nicholson, a pro at playing morally ambiguous characters, lets you see Alex relinquish his soul, piece by piece.

Caine almost steals the movie from him as the emphysema-stricken Victor, who just wants to sell the necklace and enjoy his cut before he drops dead of lung cancer. As the stepson who must grow up in a hurry, Dorff does more than hold his own against both Nicholson and Caine: He even manages to upstage them here and there.

Lopez gives the requisite femme fatale role a surprisingly tender soul. And Davis uses her innately strong presence to make Suzanne nobody's victim. The minute you see her hobbling around with a cane and gulping down painkillers, you figure Suzanne is a goner. But Davis won't go down easily: Like everyone else in ``Blood & Wine,'' she's a scrapper - and she fights dirty.

THE FACTS

The film: ``Blood & Wine'' (R; vulgar language, violence, gore, sexual situations).

The stars: Jack Nicholson, Stephen Dorff, Michael Caine, Jennifer Lopez, Judy Davis.

Behind the scenes: Directed by Bob Rafelson. Produced by Jeremy Thomas. Written by Nick Villiers and Alison Cross. A Fox Searchlight release.

Running time: One hour, 40 minutes.

Playing: Selected theaters.

Our rating: Three Stars.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

Photo: Jason (Stephen Dorff) and his stepfather, wine merchant-turned-robber Alex (Jack Nicholson) try to get along in ``Blood & Wine.''