Harrison Ford is "The Fugitive" in this 1993 version of the popular television series. The film also stars Tommy Lee Jones as Gerard, Sela Ward, Julianne Moore and Joe Pantoliano. For you young 'uns out there, "The Fugitive" TV show starring David Janssen was based on the 1954 Sam Sheppard case, the subject itself of 10 books and two movies. Dr. Sheppard. accused of murdering his wife, claimed to have seen a "bushy-haired man" at the scene. It was a landmark case, resulting in the creation of the "change of venue" motion.
The film "The Fugitive" keeps the basics: Dr. Richard Kimble, en route to prison to await execution for the murder of his wife (Ward), escapes after a terrible accident. On his trail from the beginning is a U.S. Marshall, Sam Gerard. Both men have way above average intelligence, so while Gerard is able to get close, Kimble always eludes him. After stealing clothes, shaving his beard and dying his hair, Kimble goes to the hospital where he worked and gets into the computer database to find the one-armed man. He knows he injured the man's arm in a fight, and repair of the arm would have necessitated a visit.
This is a real on the edge of your seat thriller, with an absolutely spectacular beginning sequence that grabs the audience and doesn't let go. In the TV series, the one-armed man is an intruder; here, a different storyline has been added, and it's quite good. One of my favorite parts occurs when Kimble, disguised as a janitor at the hospital, overhears an incorrect diagnosis for a young boy. Because the ER is so busy and there is no one available, he's asked to take the child to another floor. While doing so, he conducts his own quick examination and writes a change of orders; the boy ends up in surgery. The OR doc (Moore) catches Kimble looking at the child's x-ray, and when she learns the boy never arrived at his destination, alerts security. Gerard asks her later, "What happened to the boy?" "He saved his life," Moore says.
Both Ford and Jones are at the top of their games and very well matched, Jones bringing a lot of humor to his role as the determined Gerard. Ford looks a little like the Ape Man in the beginning with all the facial hair; as Kimble, he's sympathetic and his desperation and determination are more internalized than Gerard's.
It wasn't until 1998 that DNA evidence finally exonerated Sheppard, who was released in 1966 after a retrial (in the original trial, the judge told reporter Dorothy Kilgallen that Sheppard was guilty). Sheppard died in 1970, his life ruined. Fifty years after the case, it continues to influence courtroom proceedings and inspire books and films. This "Fugitive" is particularly excellent.
