THE FUGITIVE
A film review by Chad Polenz
Copyright 1997 Chad Polenz
**** (out of 4 = excellent) 1993, PG-13, 133 minutes [2 hours, 13 minutes] [thriller] starring: Harrison Ford (Dr. Richard Kimble), Tommy Lee Jones (Deputy Sam Gerard, U.S. Marshall), Joe Pantoliano (Cosmo Renfo), Daniel Roebuck (Biggs), written by Jeb Stuart, David Twohy, produced by Arnold Kopelson, directed by Andrew Davis.
"The Fugitive" is probably one of the greatest thrillers ever made. It takes realistic, believable characters and tells an exciting story that's totally believable throughout. This isn't an over-the-top action flick for the sake of action, this is an intelligent adventure story with a real sense of mystery to it and it works perfectly.
Harrison Ford stars as Dr. Richard Kimble, a man who is wrongly accused and convicted of murdering his wife. The entire premise of the story revolves around this murder, but is not told in a straightforward manner. We constantly see flashbacks to the murder from Kimble's perspective. Hints are dropped from various times of the night Kimble's wife, Helen (Sela Ward) was murdered. We don't get to see who the killer is until much further into the story. In fact, we might even have a little doubt about Kimble's innocence ourselves.
The film doesn't spend much time on the details of Kimble's trial and conviction as it is not the point of the story. One of the greatest action scenes ensues as we get a botched escape attempt by his fellow inmates which leads to a fantastic train wreck. But it does not at all seem gratuitous or formulated, it is actually suspenseful to watch. This movie is so incredible because it's able to take elements like these and make them wholly original and believable.
Tommy Lee Jones almost steals the show as Deputy Sam Gerard, a U.S. Marshall who is an expert in hunting fugitives. From the moment he appears we know a huge game of cat and mouse is about to occur. Kimble and Gerard are equally matched as there is no way to tell how one is going to outsmart the other.
Most of the film deals with Richard's complex investigation as he tries to find the one-armed man who killed his wife. Ford does not have a lot of lines here, so it is Stuart and Twohy's script and Davis's outstanding direction that make the film as great as it is. Just watching Richard use his keen intelligence and wits, disguising himself, and doing his own detective work is very interesting. We know just as little as he does as to why his wife was killed, so as he learns more so do we.
Meanwhile Gerard and his staff are using all their skills to hunt him down. At one point they run into each other and a great chase ensues, but Richard is just too smart for them. He leaves clues for Gerard to show his innocence and to help him solve the mystery.
One of the greatest charms to the film is its sense of humor. There is a great sense of comradeship between Gerard and his two closest deputies Cosmo Renfo (Pantoliano) and Biggs (Roebuck). They are trying to catch what they believe to be a dangerous murderer, yet they constantly start up small talk with each other, making funny wisecracks and one-liners, but not in any kind of distracting manner.
The final act concludes with another terrific chase. Richard figures out who the killer is and confronts him, and although we get a typical fight scene, the case is far from solved. The man who ordered the murder has been under our nose all along, and we don't realize this until the end when both Richard and Gerard put the pieces together. Maybe the finally scene is a bit much, but it still has a believable atmosphere to it. We're so relieved when justice is served.
It's not the plot is that makes "The Fugitive" great, it's all the motions the characters go through to make for an intriguing story. Watching a seemingly average man go through as much as this is what makes the movie so adventurous. If only Hollywood could produce more movies like this.
(10/31/96) (1/29/97) (6/13/97) [see also: "Nick Of Time"]
please visit Chad'z Movie Page @ http://members.aol.com/ChadPolenz/index.html
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