"I don't care!" In "The Fugitive," when, after Dr. Richard Kimble (played by Harrison Ford) insists to the Federal Marshall (played by Tommy Lee Jones) chasing him -- over a levelled-at-him gun, no less -- that "I didn't kill my wife!" he gets a response along the lines of: "Good for you! Tell it to the judge! Sadly, that's not my job." The look on Harrison Ford's face is priceless -- this is what's been consuming his life, after all, and it's not the response he's expecting -- and the whole movie taking a double-antagonist, "chase him!" "now, run away!" position where you're rooting for both the two main characters -- they each have their reasons -- is very curious and a weird place to put the audience in. One of the best blockbuster movies of the '90s, and sadly neglected, though it's a lotta fun (great train wreck) and periodically very funny (never mind it's an apt pairing, for once, of two giants of the screen against each other -- isn't this what we go to star-driven movies *for* ... ?).

I'd only seen snippets of this movie in the past but never the entire picture until the other evening. I thought it was a well plotted thriller with only a couple of minor quibbles that distracted from the main story. One was when Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford), on the run from Deputy Marshal Samuel Gerard (Samuel Gerard), committed an unforced error by responding to the sound of his name on the staircase. The other was during the St. Patrick's Day Parade, Kimble sheds his heavy topcoat and when he heads out of the parade route, Gerard appears to have been walking closely behind without realizing it. My question would be - how and where would Kimble have discarded the coat without anyone noticing? Otherwise, the film's story line was well scripted with tantalizing details regarding the villains of the piece dispensed like crumbs to help the viewer follow Kimble's progress in solving the crime of his wife's murder. But aside from Kimble, it's Tommy Lee Jones's character, Samuel Gerard, that keeps the story crackling with beat pounding forensic work and deftly inserted humor to sharpen the suspense. I liked the idea that Gerard slowly but steadily brought his own way of thinking around to consider that Kimble might be innocent, something you don't see very often when authorities think they have an open and shut case. And in this instance, the case had already been decided once, so Gerard and the rest of his team were more or less involved in a deadly cat and mouse game until the pieces with Dr. Charles Nichols (Jeroen Krabbé) and security expert Sykes (Andreas Katsulas) began to fall into place. I guess the biggest downside to the picture if there is one, is that we didn't get to see Sela Ward all that much. As Mrs. Richard Kimble, she wasn't on screen very long, nor was Julianne Moore, who shares top billing as the doctor who smoked out Kimble's ruse at the hospital. Both were fine in limited roles, along with Joe Pantoliano as Gerard's second in command. But gee, who names their kid Cosmo?

Roy Huggins' original 1960s TV series gets reinvented for the big screen, with engaging results. The premise is that an esteemed vascular surgeon, Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford), is tried and convicted for the murder of his wife Helen (Sela Ward, in a pretty thankless role), despite his claims that he'd tussled with the REAL killer, a one-armed man (Andreas Katsulas). On his way to prison, Kimble seizes a chance to escape, and takes it on the lam. Naturally, he's determined to solve the crime, but almost always manages to stay one step ahead of the equally determined Federal marshal (Tommy Lee Jones) on his trail.While the story is not a great one (and won't bear a lot of scrutiny), it's still a solidly entertaining one. Director Andrew Davis ("Code of Silence", "Under Siege") does a masterful job of directing this chase thriller, guiding us towards some pretty impressive set pieces, such as an amazing bus crash / train wreck, and a VERY long dive off of a dam. Davis and company hit the ground running, and even though their film runs two hours and 11 minutes, the pacing never drags. Every scene serves a purpose, and commands ones' attention. Great music by James Newton Howard and superb location shooting in Chicago are all part of the slick and stylish package.Of course, one of the most compelling facets to the film is the cat and mouse game between two very strong personalities, and both Ford and the Oscar winning Jones are extremely well cast. Not all of the supporting actors & actresses get a lot to do (Julianne Moore is only around for one section of the story), but the other roles are also nicely cast: Joe Pantoliano, Jeroen Krabbe (in a role originally intended for the late Richard Jordan), Daniel Roebuck, L. Scott Caldwell, Tom Wood, Ron Dean, real life Chicago cop Joe Kosala, etc. Jane Lynch can be seen in one of her earliest film roles."The Fugitive" holds up pretty well almost 25 years later. It's just good, straightforward entertainment all around.Eight out of 10.

I feel like all the Oscar love gives this film a strange reputation. Did it deserve them? In hindsight, probably not. Does that somehow make this a lesser film? Of course not.This is an entertaining thrill ride but lacks the subtlety, character nuance or social/political relevance to leave a lasting impact. Does anyone really remember the plot? Or just the chase scenes and waterfall dive and insane train crash and the two great actors facing off in what is basically their movie star personas perfected?(How did Tommy Lee win for this? I don't know what his perception was at the time but this is a straight Tommy Lee perf. I love him and all but there was also Fiennes and Postelthwaite that year. Just saying.)