The Fugitive (1993)

 [4.5] I am proud of where I live now because of this film
The Fugitive is a great thriller of a movie, but holds a special place with me. Part of this film was shot in my hometown of Sylva, NC plus many of the other surrounding areas. This is a small town not many have heard of, small enough to be used in this film as a small town somewhere in backwoods Illinois. I didn't know there were mountains in Illinois anyways? The train wreck scene, which is one of the most spectacular action sequences of the film, I have had the enjoyment of seeing the preserved wreckage in person on a train ride that you can take in the area. The scene where Harrison Ford jumps from the dam is actually Fontana Dam, located about 45 minutes west of Sylva. Anyways, enough of the details about those scenes, but in case you were wondering, thats where they were shot.

As a whole this movie is extremely well crafted. You've basically got an edge of your seat thriller, updated from the 1960's tv series. Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones both deliever first rate performances and have great chemistry, something that keeps this movie strong till the very end. The story is well written and executed, and is complex enough to keep you thinking on your toes, but not too complex to ever feel left out. The action scenes are wonderfully shot, and the chases and elements of suspense are tight.

There's little more to say about this film, it is very good in all areas. It doesn't contain the best story written, the best cast of characters, or the greatest action scenes of all time. But it does have a dose of all of that, and with a very solid feel in the end.

Acting - 4.5
Action - 4
Characters - 4.5
Story - 4.5
Overall - 4.5
January 20, 2008

 The Fugitive
Excellently done! I would highly recommend this DVD. The drama is well acted and the finale is worth watching. December 25, 2007

 Always exciting
No matter how often you watch this it is always exciting. One of the greatest movies ever made... October 17, 2007

 Excellent film on the way to becoming a classic
An excellent version of the original David Janssen character and story. Tommy Lee Jones and Harrison Ford are both terrific in their respective roles of hunter and hunted. As an added bonus (for Chicagoans or people who love Chicago) the film provides a realistic view of the city where most of the story unfolds. This should be in most action/drama/suspense fan's flim collection. October 3, 2007

 The Fugitive Revisited...
1993's "The Fugitive" stars Harrison Ford as the title character in a very worthwhile movie remake of the 1960's television series that starred David Janssen.

As in the TV series, Dr. Richard Kimble (Ford) is falsely convicted of having murdered his wife but escapes from custody during a spectacular train wreck. Kimble returns to Chicago to seek the one-armed man who really killed his wife, while trying to stay one step ahead of his relentless pursuer. Tommy Lee Jones reprises the role of Gerrard, the obsessed detective of the TV series. Kimble's search for the real killer will end in a dead heat with Gerrard's pursuit of the runaway doctor inside a Chicago hotel.

Although obviously lacking the extended suspense of the four-year TV series, the movie captures the essential elements of its predecessor. The Fugitive tracks the real killer through a thin string of clues. At the same time, he must stay on the move and off the grid to avoid his relentless police pursuer. Along the way, his random acts of kindness for total strangers convince the viewer of his real innocence.

Harrison Ford is entirely credible as the doctor on the run, in a more emotional portrayal than the stoic David Janssen. Tommy Lee Jones as the pursuing U.S. Marshal is a more complete and sympathetic character than Barry Morse's grim, humorless rendition in the original series, enough so to rate a OSCAR and his own sequel (U.S. Marshals).

The availability of modern special effects and the need to pack the story into a feature length movie makes for breathless pacing, as the Fugitive makes a series of spectacular escapes from the law, beginning with the train wreck that saves him from the death house. Of necessity, Kimble's trail of clues is fairly intact and leads him fairly quickly to the one-armed man, and to an unsuspected and deadly conspiracy.

Fans of the 1960's TV program will enjoy this well-done movie if they can handle the time compression; viewers arriving fresh to the story will find this a breathless and thrilling chase with a surprising ending. September 13, 2007

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