In The Line Of Fire
Reviewer: Lee Griffiths
Issue 106 August 2008
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Death of a president.
The Lowdown: Frank Horrigan is a secret service agent haunted by the murder of President Kennedy, who he failed to save on that fateful day in 1963. Now, 30 years later, Frank is faced with a new assassin adversary who intends to kill the current president while playing a few mind games with Frank along the way.
Review: The modern political cat-and-mouse thriller has had to step up its game in order to meet the needs of a post-Jack Bauer audience, but before the glitz and multi-screen glamour of ‘24’, all you needed to make a white knuckle thriller was an old man with a wry smile.
Old Clint Eastwood huffs and puffs his way through this superior edge-of-your-seat thriller, and it’s Clint’s wrinkled wise man that remains one of the film’s many trump cards, delivering the matured heroics and dry humour in equal measure. John Malkovich provides a memorable stint as the charismatic and genuinely creepy assassin, Mitch Leary, who conjures some terrific chemistry with Clint during the high-octane proceedings.
The Blu-ray package is a mixed bag. While the picture has been noticeably improved since the film’s DVD incarnation, with vibrant colours (especially the shades of red, for some reason) standing out in eye-catching fashion, the visual quality isn’t exactly pristine. The audio does a great job during chaotic crowd scenes, with the music score and panicked wheezing of Clint sounding as clear as crystal.
The special features provide a satisfying overview of the production through a selection of featurettes, while Peterson goes into greater detail during the audio commentary. Unfortunately, the special features are the same extras that appeared on the DVD about six years ago.
PICTURE: 7
AUDIO: 7
FILM: 7
EXTRAS: 6
DVD Info:
Certificate: 15
Release Date: Out Now
Starring: Clint Eastwood, John Malkovich, Rene Russo
Directed By: Wolfgang Petersen, 1993
Distributor: Sony
Audio: Dolby True HD 5.1
Visuals: 2.35:1 Widescreen
Running Time: 128 mins
Price: £17.99
Film supplied by: DnA
Special Features:
Audio Commentary With Director Wolfgang Petersen
‘Showtime Special: Behind The Scenes With The Secret Service’ Featurette
‘The Ultimate Sacrifice’ Featurette
‘How’d They Do That?’ Featurette
‘Catching The Counterfeiters’ Featurette
Deleted Scenes
Trailers
Scene Selection
