I love thrillers, especially if they were made during the 50s or 60s, but for some reason, no matter how many times I've tried to watch this show, it never held my interest. It's probably one of the few vintage crime dramas that makes me feel so bored to the point that I'll start looking at my phone, or opening other browser windows on my computer to surf the net, and checking back periodically to see what's happening in an episode, but honestly not caring. If I'm watching with another person, I'll start talking about miscellaneous stuff, and I'll probably annoy them, because they'll be trying to follow what's going on, but my brain checked out a long time ago. I always get drawn into programs that have complex storylines, fascinating characters, and impassioned acting, so when I get distracted by my surroundings, or my mind starts wandering, that's a major indication it's a lackluster show.
The concept sounds suspenseful: a doctor, Richard Kimble (David Janssen), is wrongly accused and convicted of murdering his wife. They were experiencing problems with trying to conceive, but killing her was just completely unthinkable for him. When he's driving home one night after having left to cool down from an argument, as he's approaching his house, a man runs out, stops in front of his car (which was very creepy and unsettling), and then takes off running again. He's sentenced to death. He manages to escape police custody after the train he was riding on en route to death row derails, and makes it his mission to track down the man he saw running out of his house, who was the real perpetrator, leading him on a cross-country search. What ensues is Kimble chasing after the killer, and the authorities chasing after Kimble. He meets different people along his journey, with a variety of backstories, not always making his problems the main focus. It was adapted into a film in 1993, with Harrison Ford playing Kimble.
So why is this boring, you may ask? In my opinion, I think it has a lot to do with the acting performances, most notably by David Janssen. He was like one of those actors whose face was always stuck on the same expression. I don't think a man who lost his wife from homicide and was subsequently apprehended by the police is going to be so blank all of the time. Don't know if that was Janssen's acting style, or if the director wanted him to be stone-faced. Nonetheless, it makes for a dull story when the main character has a limited range of emotions. I'm sorry, but the popularity of this show is baffling. It is somewhat entertaining, which is why I gave 4 stars, but it's not addictive or intriguing like other crime dramas from that time period.
The concept sounds suspenseful: a doctor, Richard Kimble (David Janssen), is wrongly accused and convicted of murdering his wife. They were experiencing problems with trying to conceive, but killing her was just completely unthinkable for him. When he's driving home one night after having left to cool down from an argument, as he's approaching his house, a man runs out, stops in front of his car (which was very creepy and unsettling), and then takes off running again. He's sentenced to death. He manages to escape police custody after the train he was riding on en route to death row derails, and makes it his mission to track down the man he saw running out of his house, who was the real perpetrator, leading him on a cross-country search. What ensues is Kimble chasing after the killer, and the authorities chasing after Kimble. He meets different people along his journey, with a variety of backstories, not always making his problems the main focus. It was adapted into a film in 1993, with Harrison Ford playing Kimble.
So why is this boring, you may ask? In my opinion, I think it has a lot to do with the acting performances, most notably by David Janssen. He was like one of those actors whose face was always stuck on the same expression. I don't think a man who lost his wife from homicide and was subsequently apprehended by the police is going to be so blank all of the time. Don't know if that was Janssen's acting style, or if the director wanted him to be stone-faced. Nonetheless, it makes for a dull story when the main character has a limited range of emotions. I'm sorry, but the popularity of this show is baffling. It is somewhat entertaining, which is why I gave 4 stars, but it's not addictive or intriguing like other crime dramas from that time period.