The Fugitive

The days when exciting thrillers like "The Fugitive" were a big deal in theaters are unfortunately long gone. And I seriously hope that this will change again at some point. These days, films of this kind tend to be released on streaming services, and I don't want to say much about their quality. Be that as it may, in the 1990s, Netflix and co. were still far away, so a movie like this could become one of the most successful of the year. And it achieves this with fairly simple means, above all with strong actors and a suspenseful cat-and-mouse game. The mystery surrounding the murder of the wife of Dr. Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford) falls a little short, but there is certainly a reason why the film was not considered for the screenplay category when it received seven Oscar nominations. However, the rather thin plot is hardly a problem at all because the tension is so high throughout that the viewer is never forced to delve too deeply into all the details. For me, "The Fugitive" is therefore definitely always a highlight.

A by-the-numbers plot is elevated to a much stronger film by the relentless pace and two great central performances. Harrison Ford can play this sort of everyman role in his sleep, sympathetic as the broken man wrongly accused of the murder of his wife, but convincing as the hero out to find the truth. Equally important to the film however is Tommy Lee Jones as the man assigned to chase him down and it is both men's relentlessness that form the backbone to the film and keep the tension levels high throughout. The resolution to the film is a little weak with a final reveal that is not really surprising and a last act sequence that cannot match the rest of the film. Still it is an above average thriller.