Set in the volatile political climate of Ecuador, 'Proof of Life' is basically a film about an engineer, Peter Bowman (David Morse, The Rock, The Negotiator) who is kidnapped by a ruthless gang of guerrillas. Enter former SAS man, Terry Thorne (Russell Crowe), a specialist in K&R (kidnap and ransom) to negotiate the terms of his release, whilst comforting and gaining the trust of Bowman's wife Alice (Meg Ryan). The ransom demands are extreme, and as Bowman and his company are uninsured it comes down to the family and Alice to provide the money, except they do not have the requisite amount, being able to accrue a mere $650 000.
This is a long and rambling film that fails on almost every level. Considering that Ryan and Crowe were having a sizzling and passionate romance, it is incredible that none of this is transferred to screen. Their chemistry is simply none existent, and although the film moves throughout at a horribly boorish pace, their inevitable romance seems contrived, hurried and without any foundation whatsoever. Prolonged eye contact does not suddenly equate to earth shattering, deep, romantic love. Crowe is an undoubted talent with tremendous and markedly different performances in films like 'Gladiator', 'The Insider' and 'LA Confidential'. There is no doubt that action films suit his acting style, and Crowe can pull off a good performance even when he is given very little to play with. 'Proof of Life' is supposed to demonstrate his more sensitive side, whilst maintaining the rugged charm and hardness that has made him successful, but this is without doubt his worst film to date.
Meg Ryan, seems to have built her career out of one film ('When Harry Met Sally') and more importantly one scene (the faked orgasm scene), and she is frankly awful in this film. She seems to be typecast, forever playing an emotional and tearful woman, and in 'Proof of Life' she is no different. Such repeated sentimentality in her characters make her performances much less effective than they might be in isolation, so when the tears come in this film, they are much less potent or moving than they ought to be.
'Proof of Life' is completely lifeless, and the only scene that saves it is towards the end where the film gets some 'Predator' like action scenes, and we realise why we have come to watch Crowe, viz. to see him fire his gun. The star of the film is Thorne's close friend, and fellow K&R specialist, Dino (David Caruso, 'NYPD Blue'), but he is in too few scenes to really save the film.
The premise of the film is a good one, as kidnapping has gone up massively throughout the world in the last ten years, especially in England, but there is so little that can be said that is positive about the film, although the ever reliable David Morse plays his hostage role particularly well. The usually sound Pamela Reed ('Kindergarten Cop'), plays Bowman's older sister, but her character could easily have been left out of the film altogether. In one scene she leaves for the airport to collect the ransom money and we never see or hear from her again.
Director Taylor Hackford ('Devil's Advocate') can do a lot better than this, although I am sure that the film will be a box-office success simply because Crowe is one of Hollywood's biggest actors, despite the fact that it is dull and unentertaining.
Overall 2/10
This is a long and rambling film that fails on almost every level. Considering that Ryan and Crowe were having a sizzling and passionate romance, it is incredible that none of this is transferred to screen. Their chemistry is simply none existent, and although the film moves throughout at a horribly boorish pace, their inevitable romance seems contrived, hurried and without any foundation whatsoever. Prolonged eye contact does not suddenly equate to earth shattering, deep, romantic love. Crowe is an undoubted talent with tremendous and markedly different performances in films like 'Gladiator', 'The Insider' and 'LA Confidential'. There is no doubt that action films suit his acting style, and Crowe can pull off a good performance even when he is given very little to play with. 'Proof of Life' is supposed to demonstrate his more sensitive side, whilst maintaining the rugged charm and hardness that has made him successful, but this is without doubt his worst film to date.
Meg Ryan, seems to have built her career out of one film ('When Harry Met Sally') and more importantly one scene (the faked orgasm scene), and she is frankly awful in this film. She seems to be typecast, forever playing an emotional and tearful woman, and in 'Proof of Life' she is no different. Such repeated sentimentality in her characters make her performances much less effective than they might be in isolation, so when the tears come in this film, they are much less potent or moving than they ought to be.
'Proof of Life' is completely lifeless, and the only scene that saves it is towards the end where the film gets some 'Predator' like action scenes, and we realise why we have come to watch Crowe, viz. to see him fire his gun. The star of the film is Thorne's close friend, and fellow K&R specialist, Dino (David Caruso, 'NYPD Blue'), but he is in too few scenes to really save the film.
The premise of the film is a good one, as kidnapping has gone up massively throughout the world in the last ten years, especially in England, but there is so little that can be said that is positive about the film, although the ever reliable David Morse plays his hostage role particularly well. The usually sound Pamela Reed ('Kindergarten Cop'), plays Bowman's older sister, but her character could easily have been left out of the film altogether. In one scene she leaves for the airport to collect the ransom money and we never see or hear from her again.
Director Taylor Hackford ('Devil's Advocate') can do a lot better than this, although I am sure that the film will be a box-office success simply because Crowe is one of Hollywood's biggest actors, despite the fact that it is dull and unentertaining.
Overall 2/10