THE FUGITIVE. Directed by Andrew Davis; written by Jeb Stuart and David Twohy; produced by Arnold Kopelson for Warner Bros. Starring Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones. Rated PG-13.
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Boy! Have our tastes in filmed excitement (not to mention our standards of acceptable production values) changed in 25 years!
I happened to see this movie the same day that I saw the final episode of the TV series upon which it's based. Maybe in 1968 that episode was hot stuff, but it was a big yawn compared to even the tamest scenes in the movie.
The basic storyline is the same as the series—doctor Richard Kimble (Ford) is convicted of killing his wife, even though he's innocent and he even encountered the murderer on the premises.
A freakish accident while he's being transferred to prison allows him to escape, only to be doggedly pursued by Marshal Gerard (Jones). Will Kimble find the real killer before Gerard finds him?
The nightmarish premise of the story has plenty of potential for suspense, and director Davis and crew don't miss a bet. (His last movie was the nifty, but much more violent Under Siege, so you know he knows how to do suspense.)
In addition to the train wreck that frees Kimble, and the jump from the dam you've probably seen in the ads, there are pursuits in a courthouse and a St. Patrick's Day parade, and desperate battles on Chicago's El and on hotel rooftops.
Almost as much of a draw as the excitement, though, are the performances. The Gerard of the TV series was a colorless, humorless obsessive whom we grew to loathe as much as Kimble did.
Jones (and the movie's script) makes him a professional with pride in his work and a dead-on deadpan sense of humor. He also has a crew of underlings that play together well. Kimble still has our sympathies, but Gerard provides much more entertainment value than his small-screen counterpart did.
Ford, it goes without saying, is an appealing hero. Due to the plot constraints, he has to convey a lot of information about his character quickly (in between crises) and he does the job beautifully.
He allows himself just a ghost of a smile, for example, after taking a big chance at being discovered when he alters an injured boy's hospital chart so the youngster will be taken to surgery quickly and saved.
The only parts of the movie that might bother some viewers are slower-paced scenes which set up the elaborate conspiracy that eventually explains the murder. But this time needs to be taken, and the somewhat convoluted mystery is ultimately quite satisfying. Moviegoers who come for action alone, however, may find their attention wandering here, and will become quite confused later.
Pay attention, though, you and won't be sorry.
September 15, 1993