Desperate Measures Review
by Frederick Vallaeys (frederick AT vallaeys DOT com)March 7th, 1998
Desperate Measures
4 out of 5 stars
"Desperate Measures," a new film by Barbet Schroeder starring Andy Garcia and Michael Keaton, is an action-packed production from start to finish. While the screenplay is based on an unlikely sequence of events, the events are coherent enough to form a solid story that doesn't require desperate measures to retain the audience's attention.
Frank Connor (Garcia) is a San Francisco police officer who lives to uphold the law. However, when his young son Matt (Joseph Cross) is diagnosed with leukemia, his top priority becomes finding a bone marrow donor who can save Matt's life.
As it turns out, the only person with DNA suitable for the transplant is Peter McCabe, a sociopathic killer who is serving a life sentence (Keaton).
While McCabe appears to consent to the surgery in order to receive redemption for all his previous crimes, he really has ulterior motives.
After an ingeniously orchestrated escape from the operating room, McCabe starts ravaging the hospital, which happens to be connected to a prison ward via a pedestrian bridge. While the entire San Francisco Police Department's goal is to eliminate McCabe as soon as possible, Connor is actually trying to save him because bone marrow from a dead man is worthless.
Connor figures that the only way McCabe will survive is if he helps him escape the hospital. The unlikely partnership between Connor and McCabe and the interesting hospital / prison setting are the two elements that make this film so much fun.
Naturally, these two elements alone do not make an action movie and even though the scenes in the hospital include everything ranging from gun-fights to hostage situations, the movie would not have been complete without a thrilling car chase.
In one particularly spectacular scene, Connor jumps his police car over the median on Highway 101 and has to drive backwards to avoid a collision with a trailer that is sliding right at him.
The characters in this movie were well developed. Both the antagonist and protagonist invoke strong feelings of compassion because so much depends on their success. Both men's actions are driven by desperation, as each one is fighting for someone's life. Both Garcia and Keaton play their respective parts very convincingly.
"Desperate Measures" is a sensible movie pick if you are looking for action that is nicely packaged with an unusual story. Not too bad for a measly
Copyright (c) 1998 - Frederick Vallaeys
All Rights Reserved
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