HARD RAIN 1998
A film review by Timothy Voon
Copyright 1998 Timothy Voon
1 :-) for lot's of water over the dam
Cast: Cristian Slater, Morgan Freeman, Randy Quaid, Minnie Driver, Edward Asner, Mark Rolston, Richard Dysart, Betty White, Henry Sears, Wayne Duvall Director: Mikael Salomon
Too much rain and too much water almost sinks this armoured car heist. Nevertheless, one has to compliment the production team for playing with water and attempting to create a feel different from the mundane dry land bank robbery. Add water, lots of water, so much so that everyone needs to have a grade A certificate in water treading and a breath span of 2 minutes. Following in the footsteps of TWISTER and DANTE'S PEAK we watch nature wreak havoc on a small town. Although the special effects are not as spectacular as the aforementioned, there is something special about water not found in wind or lava. The level of destruction lies on a slowly rising exponential curve and drowning is so peaceful.
I started out desperately wanting to hate this movie for the very reasons it stared Christian Slater (armour car guard) and Morgan Freeman (robber) - two actors who I don't particularly enjoy watching. You wouldn't guess, by watching Slater on screen that he's the problem child he is in real life. Freeman on the other hand is totally miscast as the outlaw. His demeanour is entirely too dignified and controlled for a man desperate to secure his retirement plan. Slater's onscreen love interest is Minnie Driver (stain glass window expert) who is over the top pouty and far too concerned about her glass windows than staying alive. The attempts to generate heart felt emotion between the couple Driver and Slater fails miserably. They take turns rescuing each other from drowning, but tense life threatening situations does not equate to long lasting love relationships. It's Randy Quaid (Sheriff) who by far gives the best performance amongst this bunch of wet actors.
As I watched this movie from start to conclusion, the more I was able to forgive its annoying flaws. The only reason for this is purely philosophical and not theatrical. As I left the cinema I asked myself this question - If I was in a flooding town excommunicated from the rest of the world, would I kill for three million dollars tied to a tombstone? My concluding thought was …… no. I can't swim and I can't shoot and I'm way too generous.
Timothy Voon e-mail: stirling@netlink.com.au http://us.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Tim+Voon
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