Clint Eastwood directs himself, Gene Hackman and Ed Harris in this thriller where an art thief witnesses the President Of The United States of America murder his lover.

A ponderous flick. Classy but daft. The hook is better than the end product. The opening, half hour long, one scene first act is very good. Then Clint goes on the run in a lot of barebones disguises. Then it all resolves itself without any of the major players sharing a room. No big scenery chewing face-offs? “How dare you, sir!”. The big suspense scene in the middle is interrupted in the silliest way possible. Turns out that was a rewrite to avoid Clint’s anti hero from disappearing from the plot for the second half. Still, it is a perfect ensemble. Who doesn’t want to watch Eastwood and Hackman cook even on a low heat?

6

Perfect Double Bill: The Bridges Of Madison County (1995)