EXTREME MEASURES
A film review by Alex Fung
Copyright 1996 Alex Fung
(Columbia-Castle Rock - 1996) Starring Hugh Grant, Gene Hackman, Sarah Jessica Parker, David Morse, Paul Guilfoyle, Debra Monk, Bill Nunn Screenplay by Tony Gilroy, based on the novel by Michael Palmer Produced by Elizabeth Hurley Directed by Michael Apted Running time: 110 minutes
Me: ***1/2 (out of four stars)
Note: Some may consider portions of the following text to
be spoilers. Be forewarned.
The medical thriller genre has been fairly dormant in recent years, but Michael Apted's new film, EXTREME MEASURES, is a solid entry to the genre, and looks to have strong commercial potential. Making a halfhearted attempt to touch on moral issues, the film is by and large a thriller, and as such, a fairly good one.
Hotshot ER doctor Guy Luthan (played by Hugh Grant) is going places. The British doctor, working in New York under a work permit, is the star of Gramercy Hospital, and hobnobs with prestigous and brilliant doctors like the presidentially-acclaimed Dr. Lawrence Myrick (played by Gene Hackman). When a homeless man is brought into Luthan's ER, suffering from a multitude of convulsions, he is baffled by the patient's spontaneously changing conditions. Before dying, the homeless man gasps off a few revelatory sentences to Luthan.
While everyone else writes off the incident as a mildly unusual incident from a drugged-out homeless man (or not even that - "This is New York!" points out one character), Luthan is unconvinced, and begins to probe. Finding resistance from senior staff, he becomes intrigued and pushes deeper and deeper, even as obstacles and roadblocks are thrown up in front of him. Subtle and not-so-subtle threats are issued at Luthan.
It doesn't take a neurosurgeon to see where this is going. Tony Gilroy's screenplay adaptation (he last adapted DOLORES CLAIBORNE) isn't filled with innovative new concepts or clever banter, but it is well-paced and, despite the familiarity of the basic plot, engaging. One knows where EXTREME MEASURES is headed, but it doesn't really detract from the film.
The reason why is mostly the work of Hugh Grant in the leading role. Getting his first chance to show off his dramatic chops since his North American breakthrough in 1994 (supporting performance in SENSE AND SENSIBILITY notwithstanding), Grant is wholly convincing and credible as the young doctor whose life is torn apart around him. While some of the action scenes surrounding Grant may be difficult to swallow, his portrayal of the sharp and surehanded ER doctor are on the nose. Gene Hackman, despite his billing before the film's title, plays a supporting role (or even a glorified cameo), and Sarah Jessica Parker's character is really more of a plot device, so the weight of EXTREME MEASURES has to be carried by Grant, who proves to be up to the task.
In addition to its thriller elements, the film also attempts to deal with moral issues - namely, the cost (and price) one is willing to pay for medical treatment. Foreshadowed earlier in EXTREME MEASURES when Luthan is blasted by his supervisor for approving expensive lab tests on a patient with no medical insurance, this theme ends up casting a long shadow over the final third of the film.
Still, EXTREME MEASURES is not a wrenching drama, but a conventional thriller, with the requisite gunfire and chase sequences and mano-a-mano fisticuffs. Director Michael Apted's last foray into this genre was the little-seen BLINK (1993), and he proficiently handles this film, always keeping things moving and keeping the audience involved. With his solid direction and Grant's fine performance, Castle Rock may have another hit on their hands.
-- Alex Fung (aw220@freenet.carleton.ca)
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