The Package

The Package was quite a disappointment considering the presence of Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones among others.
A U.S. sergeant witnesses the assassination of a high ranking American military officer during peace talks held in Germany between Washington and Moscow. Shortly after the incident he receives orders to return home accompanying a prisoner. Things quickly become more complicated when `the package' makes a run for it...
In short, the acting is all right (though nothing great), while the plot and the dialogues are average and below average respectively.
The movie does bring to mind The Fugitive, though this film does not really provide as much entertainment.
Though the potential for a good movie was definitely there it fails to take off, primarily due to the writers and the poor choice of lines and weak plot.
In a nutshell, it's a mediocre movie and that's about it; no masterpiece here... 2.2 Stars

Having seen "The Jackal" both versions, I think this sort of remake of them is far above par and quite more realistic, with a grain of salt, but the main interest of this movie is Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones. Both actors give an exemplary rendition of their roles and should have gotten oscars. Unfortunately, the plot and scenario do not lend themselves to Oscars. Still highly recommended, I plan to see it again.

This is not The French Connection, but Hackman is, as always, rock solid, and the supporting cast (particularly Tommy Lee Jones) is superb. The plot is improbable, with Russian and U.S. officers conspiring to continue the cold war and the case broken by a sergeant formerly married to a lieutenant colonel, who are basically operating independently against all of the forces that be. Their success (guaranteed in a quintessentially American movie) reaffirms American beliefs concerning independence and integrity while it provides some action/adventure in the process. The canvas is a little large and there are some gaffes and shaky production values, but this is a reliable way to spend a slow evening. It's also nice to see Hackman doing a credible high crawl through rough terrain in snow. He's the man.

I love this lesser known Action Thriller set in the last days of the cold war. Hackman and Jones are pitch perfect as hero and villain,squareing off after Hackman brings prisoner Tommy Lee back from Germany only to get attacked and Jones escapes. Then the set-ups ,Double crosses, and conspiracy's start. Never a dull moment and both men are at the top of their game.

This movie has always seemed to me to be one of the most efficient, best crafted of its type, the military suspense thriller. And one of the most under-rated, too.

Gene Hackman stars as Sergeant Johnny Gallagher, an Army lifer who finds himself up to his ears in a ruthless conspiracy to assassinate the Soviet leader when the man visits Chicago. Gallagher had been stationed in West Berlin. His squad failed to stop the assassination of a U.S. Army general who had been taking part in a top military meeting in the outskirts of Berlin. Semi-disgraced, he is given the job of escorting an Army sergeant under arrest, the package, to Washington. But he's mugged in the D.C. airport and the prisoner escapes. Then he discovers the photo of the prisoner doesn't match the guy he was escorting. As he tries to find out what's going on, people start getting killed.

This movie works, I think, for several reasons. First, we know what's going on before Gallagher does, so there is the pleasure of watching him figure things out. There is a conspiracy, we realize, involving top U.S. and Soviet generals to sabotage the signing of a nuclear disarmament treaty. This will be done by killing the Soviet leader in Chicago on a visit to sign the treaty. The assassin, Tommy Lee Jones, is being provided by the senior American officers taking part in the plot. Gallagher at first stumbles around, but slowly, using his intelligence and with the help of the few friends he can count on, he begins to put things together. We know where this is going, but the fun is in seeing how Gallagher thinks and then acts. Second, Hackman's performance, as usual, is excellent. Hackman was 59 when he made this movie, but he is every bit believable as a shrewd, action-focused Army sergeant. He's nearly matched by Tommy Lee Jones as the cynical, amused hit man who doesn't respect anyone. Dennis Franz as a tough Chicago cop and John Heard as a ruthless Army colonel both give first-rate performances. Third, Andrew Davis keeps the movie moving quickly, with clues discovered, shoot-outs, near misses, chases. The plot is complicated, but Davis plays fair. Watch the movie again and it still makes sense.

It's interesting to compare this movie or The Fugitive, both by Davis, with an other good movie he directed, Holes. The Package and The Fugitive couldn't be more different than Holes, but all three, in my view, are very well handled. The DVD transfer is very good.