Review of Tightrope (1984) by Jason J — 06 Jun 2011

Totally different territory for Eastwood in this very slow and sordidly, dark thriller. It's maybe nothing new (and been repeated quite a bit) in its genre but because of first-rate performances and it being sinisterly edgy it lifts the movie above the rest. Or maybe it's just my Eastwood fan-boy nature kicking in? Anyhow, this lowlife thriller is high on atmosphere, with it having an overwhelming sense of gloom and intrusion. This is because most of the picture takes place during the nightlife, amongst the sleazy locations of New Orleans with indistinct lighting and prowling figures hanging around in the shadows. There's a great eye for detail in capturing the seedy lifestyle, with a lot of sexual desire, tension and gratuitous nudity flowing.

The cast are at the top of their game. Eastwood plays a laid back detective and a father. He brings to his character a man that's fighting the two different traits of his life. He portrays this insecure character superbly that you truly care for him and feel his pain and effort to be a perfect father figure to his two girls after the divorce. Genevieve Bujold is excellent as a crisis counsellor Beryl Thibodeaux. There are strong support roles from the likes of Dan Hedaya, Alison Eastwood and Jenny Beck also. This movie starts off good enough, but you could say it probably does goes on for too long and head into familiar territory. It doesn't reach any great heights, but I kept on watching and I was rather entertained. So, it did its job. In my opinion it's an above average, on the edge thriller, despite it's formulaic plot.