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.)

Coming from a hit television series, this film tells of Dr. Richard Kimble's quest for the truth behind the murder of his wife, a crime for which he is accused. The film is a classic police thriller, with an innocent running away from a police officer who pulls his booties to pick him up. The thrill of the film lies in this game of cat and mouse and the mystery surrounding an unresolved crime. Harrison Ford gives life to the doctor trapped in this trap, while Tommy Lee Jones is the investigator whose mission is to catch him. Both actors are at their best and both are able to do a masterful job in this film at what they have done best to this day. There are no great special or visual effects. This film is worth the story that counts and the talent of its central actors. And that was definitely a good bet.

Most of us remember David Jansen as the fugitive, Richard Kimble. Every episode was another hiding place, another near escape. Barry Morse's Gerard was tireless, obsessed. So now we have Harrison Ford, whose facial expressions of pain and anguish are priceless. He is the perfect victim of a crime he did not commit. He is formidable, like Indiana Jones, but always looking over his shoulder. Tommy Lee Jones as Gerard has that itch he needs to scratch. He is utterly determined to get Kimble. He continually puts himself in danger, risking his life for his cause. He is like Javert in "Les Miserable," where the job supersedes all else. The close calls and the gyrations Gerard must perform to continue his pursuit are almost superhuman. Kimble is left with only one option. He must find the one-armed man and prove he committed the murder. This is a marvelous adventure film which should appeal to nearly every taste.

The Fugitive provides the perfect combination of enticing 'behind the scenes' location shots and flawless character portrayals. The film establishes itself by maintaining a consistent level of high anxiety, turmoil and tension.The Fugitive is a highly acclaimed successful feature film starring Harrison Ford as Dr. Richard Kimball, Tommy Lee Jones as Deputy US Marshall, and Jeroen Aart Krabbé as Dr. Charles Nichols.The story is of vascular surgeon Dr. Richard Kimball who attends a large fundraiser with his wife one evening. Driving home he accepts a hospital emergency call and he joins her at home after performing life saving surgery.As he relaxes he spirals towards a violent intruder encounter when he discovers his wife has been mortally bludgeoned and is dying in their upstairs bedroom.Dr. Kimball engages with the intruder in a deadly dream like sequence. The intruder quickly disappears and Dr. Kimball is taken away for police questioning.During the invasion Mrs. Kimball dialed out for emergency assistance when she was incapacitated but her call inadvertently inferred Richard assaulted her.Richard is presented at court for trial in the homicide of Mrs. Kimball. He is given the guilty verdict and sentenced to death.As Richard is nearing arrival at his place of execution inside of a convict transport an escape is launched. In the melee the bus driver is killed with a shotgun blast. The moving bus edges off a turnpike and rolls down an embankment landing squarely on rail tracks. Survivors inside flee the wreckage before an oncoming train engine. Richard delays to save a life by dragging a wounded guard out of the bus and jumps from the wreckage at the point of impact with the engine. The train slips the tracks in a massive derailment.Richard is surprised when a convict survivor contacts him and frees him from his shackles. He gets to a local hospital and accesses a treatment room and a private room, cleans up, dresses as a staff physician and eats fast next to a sedated hospital patient.He leaves the hospital as police arrive with wanted information. He meets an ambulance carrying the same wounded guard he threw out from the bus and advises of the injury. He hops into the ambulance and speeds away. Deputy US Marshals are in pursuit and trap him inside a highway tunnel. Richard is pursued inside a storm drain tunnel and is trapped on a outflow ledge onto a towering spillway dam. He leaps into the deep chasm in what is described as a Peter Pan. Dogs are called in to locate any trace of Richard.Richard gets to Chicago and begins investigating his wife's murder using a prosthetic limb/cosmetic hand clue referred to as 'the one-armed man' and makes contact with friend and associate Dr. Charles Nichols as a disguised fugitive from the law. He gains prosthetic patient details posing as a hospital janitor and locates the correct suspect in his home slaying case.Richard is found at hospital by police and makes a very difficult escape. He break and enters at the suspects residence and makes an out call to police from there. Police investigate this while netting Richard inside a subway train. But out comes the one armed man attempting to assassinate Richard who miraculously reverses the score.Richard has uncovered a plot between pharmaceutical giant Devlin McGregor, Dr. Charles Nichols and the one-armed man. Richard arrives at a sponsored event: the promotional address of Dr. Charles Nichols. He accuses Charles of secretly falsifying research in order to capture medical investor funds from the release of a new drug wrongfully proved 100% safe and effective with no side effects.Dr. Nichols is first seen at the initial fundraiser when he returned keys from a car loaned to him by Richard. These same keys were used in the home invasion later that night. Dr. Nichols is thrown from his address and meets Richard in a hotel antechamber where they engage in a violent dance of death that takes them into the inner recesses of the grand hotel followed by police. Charles echoes "You never give up, do you Richard?"Richard has gained in his quest and is able to outsmart Charles who closes the gap on Richard. Charles is clubbed and defeated before he guns down the Deputy US Marshall and Richard is able to grab badly needed credibility before the law.Resourceful, noteworthy and polished performances, including the tender-loving Dr. Charles Nichols. The Fugitive offers consistent dramatic shock value inside of 130 minutes.