AGAINST ALL ODDS. Directed by Taylor Hackford; written by Eric Hughes; produced by Taylor Hackford and William S. Gilmore for Columbia. Starring Jeff Bridges, Rachel Ward and James Woods. Rated R (some nudity and a lot of vulgar language).
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Odds are you'll like this movie. It's entertaining and attractive. Although the script tried to pack in a little too much, Against All Odds moves pretty well. And you get a vicarious mini-vacation in Mexico besides.
The story is very complicated. But the plot's one of the best things about it. It's fun to watch connections develop in unexpected places and see minor characters end up playing major roles in the unraveling action. The basic story involves Jessie (Ward), a beautiful, rebellious heiress, and Terry (Bridges), a pro football player out of work for "disciplinary reasons."
They fall in love in Cozumel, which is a perfect setting for such goings on. But no one else is happy about their affair—not Jessie's boyfriend Jake (Woods), a sleazy but engaging gambler, or her mother (Jane Greer), or the team trainer (Alex Karras). Hence the title of the movie. Terry's and Jessie's struggles to stay together and to be rid of the powerful Jake make up most of the movie.
Unfortunately, the good romantic story and the suspenseful adventure story don't always "interface" too well. So the movie is a little out of focus, unable to settle on exactly what it wants to be. Compounding the problem are a lot of little sidelights. There's a developers versus environmentalists subplot, a corrupt politicians subplot, and a "football isn't what it used to be" subplot. This is all very interesting, but the movie ends up a bit cluttered as a result.
Bridges and Ward make a very appealing couple. Besides being good actors and attractive people, they generate a fair amount of on-screen electricity. This is a rare phenomenon in the movies, and good looks and talent aren't always enough to pull it off.
The whole cast of Odds is good as well. This goes for minor characters like Swoozy Kurtz' secretary and Karras' trainer. And, of course, Woods, who is a truly delightful villain—rotten to the core but almost likeable in spite of it all.
Most reviewers have compared Odds unfavorably to its original, a 1947 Robert Mitchum movie called Out of the Past. So if you've seen the older version, there's a chance you'll be disappointed in the remake. But since I haven't, I'm blissfully unaware of how Against All Odds falls short. I enjoyed it.
March 21, 1984