This movie always makes me wish that Harrison Ford had continued to take roles like this.
When you see him in Frantic, Witness and even Blade Runner, you realize that although he might not have the most dynamic range, he has a Bogart-like ability to gently nudge his roles into variations on his own persona.
I wish he would work with better material, or at least a director with vision (Spielberg excepted). Imagine what the Coen Brothers or Paul Thomas Anderson could do with him in the right part - but I don't even know if he cares anymore. I doubt he does.
What was the point where the lights completely went out behind Ford's eyes? Last Crusade?
I recall interviews with him promoting Blade Runner where he so wanted to be distanced from Solo and Jones. He liked doing "other stuff". But then again he is kind of a strange dude. Love his characters though.
You said what I was going to say, but I should add to that the fact that any A-lister like him could have made any pet project he wanted to, every other movie, for the last few decades.
He didn't. He had decent control over what he did, if not for any one move, certainly across a dozen. He made what he made, and decided not to risk his brand. He's charismatic as all hell, and he's just not an artist. Mosquito Coast is one of the exceptions that proves the rule.
Take Jennifer Connelly for a counter-example. Some of her movies are for paychecks, but maybe more than half are no bullshit.
I should thank my parents for allowing/encouraging me to see stuff like this and Frantic and Until the End of the World and My Life As a Dog and even Repo Man in grade school.
Hell, I barely remember it and don't really recall if it's actually good, but they took me to see The Brother From Another Planet in the theater.
I think this was the first movie I ever saw where a bad parent wasn't portrayed as an obvious and cartoonish villain. Made me appreciate my own dad a little more.
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