NO WAY OUT. Directed by Roger Donaldson; written by Robert Garland; produced by Laura Ziskin and Robert Garland for Orion. Starring Kevin Costner, Will Patton, Sean Young and Gene Hackman. Rated R (sex, a little vulgar language and violence)
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No Way Out accomplishes a rare feat. It combines two different kinds of movies into one. And each part is not only good by itself, but also blends quite nicely into an entertaining, well-made, whole.
The first half or so of the movie is a nice, steamy romance, with a backdrop of political intrigue. Then, through events that I won't detail, it changes into an exciting, well-paced political thriller, played out before a background of failed romance.
Now, No Way Out isn't completely flawless moviemaking. A couple of the main characters—and their relationship—are a little sketchy. And the last of many plot twists, revealed in the final minutes, is probably a little too shocking. This finish is fiendishly clever, but it leaves some unanswered questions.
Farrell (Costner), a Navy commander who has worked in Washington and would like to do so again, sees gorgeous Susan (Young) at a party. They engage in some love-at-first-sight activities that, given the current concern with the health effects of promiscuity, look curiously old-fashioned, but are certainly entertaining.
The two seem really to be in love, but the picture is complicated by the fact that the rent on Susan's swank apartment is paid for by her other lover, Secretary of Defense Brice (Hackman). An extra complication: Brice is Farrell's new boss by this time, too.
Farrell is at the center of the action throughout the movie, and Costner'a portrayal never falters or fails to hold our interest. Farrell is smart, sexy and has a nice sense of humor. He's not a purely white knight, certainly, but we're on his side all the way.
Young looks great and acts the part of an oversexed party girl to perfection. But she also seems nice and fairly intelligent, too smart to enjoy being a "kept woman." If there are compelling reasons for her to stay with Brice, we're not told what they are. This omission doesn't interfere with the movie's plot too much. But Susan is an interesting character, and we'd like to know more about her than the movie tells us.
Hackman's role is relatively minor, in terms of screen time, but his character is pivotal. It's great to watch a pro like him in action. He makes the most of Brice's brief scenes, and makes us wish we knew more about this character, too. A scene or two with his wife would have shed some welcome illumination on his complex behavior.
The real star on the villainous side of No Way Out is Patton, as Brice's overly zealous assistant, Pritchard. He's as smart as a whip and charming when he needs to be, with an undercurrent of sleeze. It isn't too hard to imagine his like running a White House "plumbers" operation or organizing any manner of covert wheeling and dealing.
Most of the movie takes place in Washington, and real locations were used for almost all the scenes, including an inaugural ball in the Shoreham Hotel, where real Presidential inaugural balls have been held for more than 50 years. But the winding, endless corridors of the Pentagon are where the action really heats up and the movie's title seems very apt. Alas, it's not the real thing, since the Defense Department wouldn't allow filming inside the world's largest building.
The action in No Way Out is almost non-stop, but it's paced extremely well, with brief moments of relief provided by Farrell's humorous asides, little bits of stage business, searching looks into troubled faces, and so on.
It's a thriller for moviegoers who like to think on the run, so to speak—who like well-developed characters played by actors who know what they're doing. In other words, it's a winner.
NOTE: this movie made my 10-best list for 1987.
September 2, 1987