Rijndri
Load of rubbish!!
Sharkflei
Your blood may run cold, but you now find yourself pinioned to the story.
KnotStronger
This is a must-see and one of the best documentaries - and films - of this year.
Kimball
Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.
videorama-759-859391
This lesser known and short running film, didn't get the exposure it should of. This is one of those known films you go to the cinema, and really enjoy. This film has a great premise: Cop's kid needs a bone marrow transplant, the only possible match is that of a serial killer Peter MCcabe (Keaton). It's a nice chilling performance, though he's no Anthony Hopkins, who won't make you shudder, squirm, or make the hairs on your wrist stand up, but I for one, was quite impressed, especially after seeing him play it down, in the disappointing Jackie Brown. Garcia plays the determined cop, and pours a lot of humanity and heart into the role. Heavy duty prisoner, MCcabe, agrees to be the donor, of course for obvious, selfish, reasons. Now the real movie starts up with MCcabe loose in the hospital. Now consider Garcia's dilemma: he must stop his other colleagues from taking out Keaton, where meanwhile little son's condition is weakening. It's a great thunder show of explosions and shootouts, where Keaton has his humorous moments too. The car chase lead up, to a finale between Garcia and Keaton adds to the coolness of the movie, upholding the fun and excitement, which has been with us since Act 2. From the opening scene, the movie throws us right into Garcia's peril, where early in the film where father and sick son speak, I drew a few tears. It's really a well earned tear jerking moment. I can't really understand how this movie has got ridiculed so much as it has. Of course, it might seem quite far fetched, not in the way the action is delivered, but this is only a movie. In reality of course, Garcia, would of had a lot of explaining to do. From the get go this Barbet Schroder film, sets out what it wants to do, immediately involve our audience into the situation. Classic of a final frame moment too. It's a killer, preceding CCR's "Rolling On A River".
Leofwine_draca
DESPERATE MEASURES is one of those "high concept" thrillers that the 1990s were so fond of: an entire movie written around a single sentence premise guaranteed to garner interest. This time around, it's simple: a cop's dying child needs a bone marrow transplant and the only matching donor is a jailed killer.What follows is a movie that starts out on a fairly tense level before gradually become more and more preposterous as it goes on. It soon transpires that the killer, played with relish by Michael Keaton, is intent on using the opportunity to escape, and of course to take down anyone that stands in his way. Said cop Andy Garcia must do everything in his power to stop him.Much of the film involves a tense stand-off inside a hospital and it's during this section that it starts to get silly. Garcia does things like assisting a criminal to escape and driving his stolen motorbike through glass doors yet at no time do any of the detectives or police force attempt to apprehend him, preferring to let him get on with it.The plot gradually breaks down and in the end becomes one long chase sequence, filled with all of the over-the-top stunts you'd expect from a '90s-era action movie. The ending is both schmaltzy and expected. While Keaton is good value for money, I always find the staid Garcia a bit of a bore and he's no exception here. Still, if you take it for what it is - and you have a soft spot for laughably OTT direction and nostalgia for the late '90s - then DESPERATE MEASURES does contain a few nuggets of merit along the way.
jarnov
The title of my review says it all, really. Shroeder and Klass took a type of movie that usually doesn't surpass the level of popcorn entertainment (which is fine), and delivered a movie that can still be enjoyed with some good popcorn, but at the same time subverts the genre script-wise and in terms of editing, by constantly confusing the viewer's sense of who to root for, and adds aesthetic depth in terms of very cool shots, situations and cuts. You'll hate this if you're the high falutin' critic type, but if you come prepared to see a popcorn action movie that happens to be shown through the eyes of Barbet f*cking Shroeder, you're in the right place.
jhartline
This movie, "Desperate Measures", was.... I'm not quite sure how to even put it into words. Was this supposed to be a comedy? I couldn't stop laughing at how absolutely ridiculous it was. I love Michael Keaton, and I cannot actually comprehend that he did this. They did a good job at keeping my attention because I couldn't wait to see how much more ridiculous it was going to get minute by minute. I actually just registered on this site so that I could get this out. I don't review movies. I don't have time for this, but I cannot let this go knowing I haven't done my civil duty by letting people (those who have an IQ of 85 and above) know that this is no action/thriller, It is honest to goodness funny. You people that actually got thrills off of this scare me. Go watch a good movie like Million Dollar Baby. Clint Eastwood's acting is not superb, but I was balling at the end. Exercise your brain America!