Review of The Fugitive (1993) by John P — 10 Sep 2010

It really is quite good.

Quite awesome, too. It's 130 minutes, but it's some action-packed, dense 130 minutes. It's a simple story which in turn yields simple sequences. Now, "simple" is not supposed to be a pejorative. On the contrary, it's the biggest compliment I can give this movie. It's straightforward as all hell, and not once does it make things overcomplicated. This is a movie that knows what it is, which is a human drama/adventure/police procedural.

Harrison Ford's role is interesting. It's fantastic, and on par with Indiana Jones and Han Solo in terms of Ford's excellent leading guy roles. However, unlike Solo or Jones, Dr. Richard Kimble isn't the type of guy to shoot an alien in cold blood (and then 20 years later claim it was "self defense") or climb under trucks to ambush Nazis. Kimble never kills anyone in this. His pursuit is one of justice, not of revenge. In fact, one might see his lack of any flaws as a flaw of the film. I, however, think it reflects the nature of the film quite well. I also have no problem with Harrison Ford embodying absolute good because he is, in fact, absolute good.

But as amazing as Ford's performance is, Tommy Lee Jones is the real draw here. He's funking electrifying. The script does a great job of balancing the two leads. Jones plays a wonderful antagonist, despite the antagonist not being evil. Jones's character comes from a different place than Ford's, and thus is not afraid to get his hands dirty (as you'll see with his devil-may-care attitude). It's a damn awesome dichotomy between the two main characters, and it makes the movie even more exciting.

The way the film is laid out, there are about four plot elements whose existence is to excite and entertain us. They are:

1. Harrison Ford trying to find out who killed his wife.

2. Tommy Lee Jones being a badass.

3. Ford and Jones's cat and mouse game.

4. Ford narrowly escaping Jones's clutches.

That is the exact structure of the movie. There is not a single moment where one of those four elements is not happening. Perfectly structured.

So, yeah, it's one of the best films of the 90s, and if you haven't seen it, do so. It's basically the last truly great Harrison Ford movie.