stuart-12777
Having watched this crafted Hitchcock like thriller many, many times I am perplexed at it's comparatively low score on IMDB. It is a gem of a film not to be missed. Those who have not seen it please take the time to do so, you will not be disappointed.
moonspinner55
After his wife is kidnapped from their Paris hotel room soon after checking in, confused, distraught American doctor (Harrison Ford) finds himself plunged into a complex web involving Arab terrorists. Rather mild Hitchcockian suspense-thriller from director Roman Polanski, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Gerard Brach. Polanski sets up the pieces to this chess game awkwardly, with opening moments that don't convince (Ford and spouse Betty Buckley act more like brother and sister than a married couple). The pacing does pick up from there, despite the fact that Ford's character is seldom likable and is mainly just a plot device (the worried husband). Newcomer Emmanuelle Seigner (later Mrs. Polanksi) is tantalizing as a young woman who becomes involved, and her scenes with Ford give the picture a sexy shot in the arm. ** from ****
Predrag
Harrison Ford has made something of a career of playing earnest, middle-aged professionals whose successful lives are turned over. Ford himself does not come under personal suspicion here, and the action is a little slower, but you can see why the producers of the later film might have looked at this one and said "That's our Richard Kimble!" What it lacks in raw energy it makes up in director Roman Polanski's extremely well-observed footage of Paris, and it plays well on the frustration that Ford's character feels at being unable to speak French. There are some terrific scenes; Ford's adventures on the roof as mentioned above, him trying to 'buy' drugs in the nightclub, and, best of all, Ford and Seigner 'dancing' in the second nightclub towards the end - a wonderfully funny scene.This film feels very French, including Polanski's (right) decision not to subtitle the bits of French dialogue, despite being largely about Americans abroad, right down to the twist ending (which I won't give away), which let me with a suitably Gallic feeling of hopelessness. The story keeps you on your feet and you find yourself begging to find out what will happen next. Even better is that it's got the come back factor, leave it for a year and come back to it, it's nearly as exciting as seeing it for the first time. The thrum of a neatly designed Paris puts a near surreal edge on the atmosphere, and Ford is terrific as the American abroad shifting often between paranoia, frustration and panic. The appearance of the Statue of Liberty on the Seine outside the window of the boat cabin in Polanski is as magical and memorable an image as the Mount Rushmore finale in Hitchcock. To me, this is a pure magic!Overall rating: 9 out of 10.
Mike B
One of the best thriller-intrigues of Roman Polanski. It stars Harrison Ford (playing Dr. Walker) as the bereft husband whose wife disappears from their hotel room shortly after their arrival in Paris. Thus begins a labyrinthine search. About an hour into the movie he encounters part of the solution - a possible femme fatale played with verve and sultriness by Emmanuelle Seigner. Harrison Ford has always been an actor that exudes excellent chemistry with an accomplice (or "buddy" as exemplified in Star Wars) and this movie is no exception. He is even outdone by Emmanuelle in an amazing dance sequence in a nightclub – watch his middle-class angst pour out! Seeing these two together is well worth the watch (or maybe it's just my middle age hormones acting up!)The film has plenty of confrontations from Parisian detectives to American consular officials – all of these keep adding to the mystery that eventually unravels at the very end. Polanski keeps the story moving at a good, well frantic), pace as he pulls us along on the journey to re-unite Dr. Walker and his spouse. Plus there's humour through-out, even on top of Parisian roof-tops.
AD
