Wrongfully Accused Review

by Susan Granger (Ssg722 AT aol DOT com)
August 28th, 1998
Susan Granger's review of "Wrongfully Accused" (Warner Bros.) Writer/director Pat Proft is an advocate of the "non-stop jokes" school of comedic film-making. Problem is: they're not very funny. Amusing, perhaps, but really funny? No. Straight-faced Leslie Nielsen's game, though. In this parody, he's the stripped-to-the-waist acrobat from "Lord of the Dance" and an aging wannabe Leonardo Di Caprio from "Titanic," whose high-on-the deck love scene in the mist and the rain culminates in a slapstick twist. The story begins like "The Fugitive," as Ryan Harrison, a superstar classical violinist (Nielsen) - "Lord of the Violin" - becomes romantically involved with the sexy, socialite wife (Kelly LeBrock) of his pretentious benefactor (Michael York). When the tycoon is fatally shot, he's found holding the gun and wrongfully accused. But, on his way to death row, the prison transport bus crashes into a train and Nielsen runs for his life, spewing likes like, "My head is spinning like a dreidel in a sandstorm." He knows he must track down the one-armed, one-legged, one -eyed real murderer in order to clear his name. And he's doggedly pursued by a United States Marshal, Richard Crenna, whose Tommy Lee Jones imitation is relentlessly dead on. There are giggles - like the "Baywatch" life guards who spring into action when he's in danger of being water-logged, the "Braveheart" battle make-up, the "Field of Dreams" baseball players disappearing into the mist, the "Mission Impossible" high-wire suspension, and the "ER" public address system bleating out messages for Drs. Ross, Green, Benton, et all to pick up their checks, plus evocations of "North by Northwest," "Casablanca" and other classics. But what Pat Proft really misses are his previous "Naked Gun" collaborators, Jim Abrahams and David Zucker, who could put some punch into his scenes and sight-gags. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, "Wrongfully Accused" is a silly, flimsy 4, consisting of loosely strung-together movie allusions, cliches, and quotes.

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