The enigma of 1993's "The Fugitive"

What is the fugitive? It's not purely a thriller, though it’s not purely an action piece either. It’s not what you would typically label an intentional blockbuster, (though it did in fact become one) and despite its greatness it hasn’t procured the same kind of indelibility, or credibility amongst cinephiles the prestige of the sum of its parts (Like Tommy Lee Jones’s performance, or the presence of a great score from James Newton Howard ) might otherwise demand. ..

After arriving at the scene of the crash, Deputy Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones) and the other Marshals take over the local operations. 'The Fugitive'; A film by Andrew Davis. Starring: Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, Sela Ward, Joe Pantoliano, Julianne Moore, Jeroen Krabbe & Andreas Katsulas.

The Fugitive was accidentally ingeniously released in August of 1993. I say that because it’s release date, as well as its chosen director say alot about what the studios saw for this movie considering. August, that last month of summer usually carved out as a make shift parking lot for Hollywood clunkers and ne’er do well vehicles, gave it more than enough time to be free of the megaton fallout of Jurassic Park. Most viewers having sufficiently punched the ticket on somewhere between their third and fortieth viewings. Director Andrew Davis was a safe choice to lead such a film.. talented, but not TOO talented, tested but not yet cynical, the kind with ideas, but not ones so big they may potentially ruin your studios year. Having mastered the art of the slightly over mid-budgeted action film, in movies like Above the Law and Under Siege, Davis showed a soft touch with actors, a deft understanding of story, and a workman like precision. High expectations for this movie would’ve been in the 150 mil range, as mostly it was meant to be the kind of movie it came out with and would end up spawning ( a sort of middle tier thriller)…

1993 was somewhat of a beginning of the decade long obsession with mid budgeted thrillers with mega movie stars, of which The Fugitive is arguably the best of. 93’ saw Sidney Lumet’s stylish ode to Hitchock “Guilty as Sin”, Sydney Pollack’s The Firm, and “Malice” one of Aaron Sorkin’s earliest works on film.

The Fugitive’s ( and to be the fair The Firm also) influence on on the marketplace could be felt not only by the career paths of Jones and Ford in the 90’s (which seemed to be a decade long extension of these same two characters), but by the repetition of the formula - journeyman director, big stars, extremely similar budget around the thirty to forty million range. Some of these exact attributes function as contributors to what may have made The Fugitive disinteresting as a consistent topic of cinema. The film in certain ways wants to be a working class depiction of a city, an under the radar punch the clock film. One that celebrates it’s hard working denizen’s as well as its well-to-do. It features some explicit, and implicit commentary on corporate greed, and it has a diverse its cast, but this is all mostly superficial, as is any attempt at style or signature. The commentary is obvious, and lacks any teeth, never mind it being in short supply, the diversity is only in existence, (the characters of color have very little to say, and don’t particularly add anything to the movie besides background), and the final act of the this film doesn’t say much, doesn’t commit to much, and isn’t much to look at. Take for instance “Heat” Michael Mann’s cops and robbers masterpiece. There are similarities here…A dogged cop after his man, a final act that consists of the cop locating his man because he goes after the man who wronged him. They take place in very different cities , yet the goal is the same; that the city itself be a character in the film. And yet these two final scenes are worlds apart as it concerns truth, style, and power…

The ending of the film Heat.

The Clarity of purpose, the lack of sound, save for the deafening screech of the planes, light and shadow, we are not telegraphed the ending, the playing field is even, the elements around the conceptualization of the scene see to that. Then there are choices, speeding up DeNiro’s death, the cuts, the close ups, the wide shots, and they all play integral parts to creating the tension. …

Director: Andrew Davis Cast: Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, Sela Ward, Joe Pantoliano, Andreas Katsulas, Jeroen Krabbé

Here Davis telegraphs the ending as does the script, the placement and chosen order lets us no who is where. When you’re in a wide open field and some how it feels more precarious than a cramped laundry room its a problem of vision and execution. It not the location, its the choices that hamper the effectiveness of the scene. Nothing fits narratively, including why Jones character would go on like that knowing that the other guy is in the same room. It gives away his location,and puts him in unnecessary danger. It’s meant for us the audience to feel relief, which is the exact opposite of what we should be feeling , and its filmed the same way. The laundry scene would be infinitely more impactful, and nerve racking if each player moved in silence, letting the sound, and the feel of the laundry room be a background player, maybe even allowing Ford’s character who in actuality would be most likely to make such a mistake given how desperate he is to prove himself, give away his position by one way or another. The removal of the cuffs scene could be so much more powerful if it was the first time we find out Jones knows.

His role in the 1993 film- The Fugitive

Nevertheless while its cinematic aspirations, and ambition, may be up for debate, and hard to pin down, that’s kind of part of its lasting charm. The Fugitive is almost artful in its ability to avoid any kind of conceit or big idea about itself. Its willingness to just let us the audience go on this noir-ish emotional thrill ride, with nothing other than the emotion tied to our collective insistence that this man be given justice as our propulsion is what gives it such power.. If it had any high concept as its bedding, it is of the power of pitting any one person(s) pushed to the brink will up against the will of the people, the city. The will of one man to make a profit, and another to bring about his own straightforward idea of justice. Unlike Heat in which the audience can almost feel an almost existential dread bound to the disappointment of knowing both these men can’t win, so that one of these extremely well liked characters faces inevitable doom, the Fugitive has no shame in its game about fan service. It wants to give us what we want, the satisfaction of seeing neither of these men “lose”, and thus the impetus of the cuffs scene. Jones’s Gerard got his man, and his justice, Ford’s Kimble his freedom and respect. I mean his wife is still dead but , one thing at a time here.

The film features two of the best performances by both of these actors. Ford the quintessential every man, the perfect guy to root for in any movie. Appropriately vulnerable, but not a leaky faucet. Believable as both a man of action, and a patsy, because he’s bone deep sincere. There’s a scene in which a then unknown Jane Lynch gives Ford the clue that breaks the case for him. The realization in his eyes, the limited amount of time he dwells on it, and the re-committal afterwards are all examples of Fords unique skill set, and why its so singularly his role. ..Alec Baldwin, Michael Douglas (both incredible actors, and both whom were considered) reek of upper class, and would have been a turn off to the necessary interchangeability needed, because in essence this is a stripping down of superficial reminders of Kimble as a symbol of his class, you need someone who believably looks like he can comfortably do and play to the artifice of both…

Tommy Lee Jones as Gerard is one of the great grumps in movie history. Ornery , moody, and deadpan, he defines himself by his job as his job defines him, and while Ford’s character has to strip down his class, Jones’s Gerard is already dressed as a symbol of the white working class anti hero. Dedicated, plain speaking, honest to a fault, over worked, and probably a bit resentful. What Jones does so well throughout the film is cut straight through every scene. Gerard never has to think long, or very hard. He knows he’s right ( a dangerous trait ) and he values time so he will cut through to the objective. If I were to summarize him I would use the words of Harvey Kietel's Winston Wolfe “If he's curt with you ,it’s because time is a factor, he talks fast and he thinks fast, and he needs you to act fast”. He's a pit bull, loyal, loving and attentive when they want to be, but if they lock their teeth into something or someone…God help you. What Lee brings to Gerard is his erratic speeding train whizzing by you style of acting, typical in his 90's run and evident in films like Blown Away , Batman Forever, and Under Siege, backed by a consistency of intention very few actors have. With many actors time is central to getting to the heart of the moment, usually though that means more time, Jones is the rare actor that can find you a genuinely authentic moment, almost seemingly in the moment…

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At around 2:38 seconds we find one of those exact moments, and you can pair that reaction to packing it in and going home that incredibly sincere “No…no" with many of the reactions in his intro (the very first video above) which he finds some incredibly honest, impactful moment right then and right there. Whether they were improvised or well thought out Jones makes them feel as if the words were Frankenstein's monster imbued with life from a charge that came from the frantic mind of some mad scientist of association. Tommy Lee plays Gerard as a great white hunter charging through the brush of a concrete jungle, cutting through bullshit , ( and many times nuance) to get to his lost city of black and white, right and wrong, and as ugly as this character would be in real life Jones gifts him with an intelligence, warmth, and plainness that feels refreshing enough that despite all his “I don’t cares’ and nearly shootings of friends and innocent men, somehow he comes off as a guy you’d love to have a drink with after this was all over.

The opposing energy of these two, one already a star, the other about to be. The cadre of other identifiably talented character actors and young actors who soon would see their own days in the sun. The pulsating, charging, but patient score from James Newton Howard, three fantastically staged action sequences, David Twohy and Jeb Stuarts cracking script (with it's non-ornate one liners, and superb pacing), are the sum total of an almost perfect summer blockbuster that doesn't feel like blockbuster fare, because the blockbuster elements only have a superficial kinship with its predecessors and antecedents. There are no Ferrari's or fighter jets, no martial arts , no dinosaurs or spaceships. There is shooting, and violence, but very little death. It's two major stars are not young, impossibly in shape, and full of vitality, but middle aged, and in Jones’s case world weary. They don't run very well, or move very fast, and though Ford is actually pretty got damn sexy in the movie, the film is not particularly interested in exploiting his sexual potential. Simultaneously it’s not exactly Oscar fare either. Big, boisterous and loud when it wants to be, it doesn’t carry the self important weight of best picture winners. It lacks a truly great villain and its arguable that the villain is in fact a bad villain due precisely to the scripts unwillingness to bring Dr Charles Nichols out of the darkness until the end in the name of a twist, and then refuse to provide any more meaningful exploration of the motivations behind such a horrid betrayal of a friend. The movie’s lack of the previously mentioned stylistic and authoritative flourishes, and refusal to sit or contemplate its meaning, or a central thesis, made it a minor miracle it was nominated at all. The enigma of The Fugitive is that it's a truly great movie that defies the bourgeois artistic aesthetics of a classic film. No pomp, some pulp, very little style, and very little authority. It knows what it is, and yet its still kind of hard to pin down what it is. It is clearly flawed, and yet almost perfect , it doesn't lend itself to a plethora of think pieces , or revisitation that redefines what it means now. It exist in it's own space, it's own time it's own genre as “The Fugitive”.