Rick Jarmin is in the witness protection programme. When an old flame of his recognises him at his gas station work place, he is naturally concerned for his safety, and well he should be because the men he informed on, Albert Diggs and Eugene Sorenson, are hot on his tail. This sets up a sequence of events that lead to Rick and his former lover, Marianne Graves going on the run, with hilarious results.
Tho released in 1990, Bird On A Wire positively oozes an 80s feel, from Mel Gibson's (Jarmin) hair to the way director John Badham films his action sequences, it feels 80s and really it probably should have been kept back there. For although this is not a bad film by any stretch of the imagination, in fact Gibson and Goldie Hawn (Graves) are a delightful duo, it just feels repetitive and never really gets to anywhere you wasn't expecting. That is mainly because the 80s (and early 90s) were full of these type of thrillers relying on guffaw set pieces to bring home the bacon, chances are that if you watched another five of these genre films from the same time frame you will be getting deja vu.
Some laughs to be had here for sure, and there is nothing wrong with the bad guy portrayals on show, courtesy of Bill Duke and David Carradine, it's just now tired and showing its unimaginative age. 5/10
Tho released in 1990, Bird On A Wire positively oozes an 80s feel, from Mel Gibson's (Jarmin) hair to the way director John Badham films his action sequences, it feels 80s and really it probably should have been kept back there. For although this is not a bad film by any stretch of the imagination, in fact Gibson and Goldie Hawn (Graves) are a delightful duo, it just feels repetitive and never really gets to anywhere you wasn't expecting. That is mainly because the 80s (and early 90s) were full of these type of thrillers relying on guffaw set pieces to bring home the bacon, chances are that if you watched another five of these genre films from the same time frame you will be getting deja vu.
Some laughs to be had here for sure, and there is nothing wrong with the bad guy portrayals on show, courtesy of Bill Duke and David Carradine, it's just now tired and showing its unimaginative age. 5/10