Product Description

John McWhirter is a hard-drinking reporter whose award-winning career is slipping away. But he's just been handed the story of a lifetime and his editor wants the scoop. A group of radicals want McWhirter to protect a beautiful fugitive who is actually a Palestinian operative on the run from the FBI and an assassin. As the pulse-pounding action builds to an astonishing climax, McWhirter must fight for both the woman he loves and the story of a lifetime--and hope he doesn't have to choose between them.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #65927 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-05-15
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 97 minutes

From the Back Cover
John McWhirter (Fred Ward) is a hard-drinking reporter whose award-winning career is slipping away. But, he's just been handed the story of a lifetime and his editor (Virginia Madsen) wants the scoop. A group of radicals he helped send to prison for the failed bombing of an ROTC center want him to safeguard a beautiful fugitive (Rachel Ticotin). Posing as a Peruvian rebel, she's actually a Palestinian operative, tied to the killing of a pro-Israel media mogul. McWhirter is pursued by a relentless FBI agent (Christopher Plummer) and an enigmatic assassin (Penelope Ann Miller). As the pulse-pounding action builds to an astonishing climax, McWhirter must fight for both the woman he loves and the story of a lifetime... and he hopes he doesn't have to choose between them.

Customer Reviews

UNFORTUNATELY, THE SCREENPLAY WINS OUT.
Fred Ward enjoys a rare starring assignment in this Canadian made melodrama, cast as an award winning New York City reporter who has seen palmier days, yet has decided, when given an opportunity, to write the most significant story of his career, one in which his private past forms a critical chapter. John McWhirter (Ward) had belonged to a radical left-wing organization during the 1960s that attempted to bomb an R.O.T.C. building, but his identity was not disclosed by those who were arrested and sentenced to substantial prison sentences. Shortly after two of the bombers are released, they pressure McWhirter to provide a safe house wherein a Peruvian refugee (Rachel Ticotin) may hide, and when he agrees to the task as payment for his moral debt, he quickly finds himself enmeshed in dealings with such as the C.I.A., the F.B.I. and Palestinian terrorists (although strangely the subsequent murderous proceedings apparently occur without involvement by the New York City Police Department). Director John Bradshaw is notably competent with use of extras, therewith smoothing the flow of action, and his oversight of editing and other post-production processes assist in keeping the film interesting, but the storyline, and chiefly its rushed and logic bereft ending, largely jettisons his endeavours. There are curious casting choices, with Virginia Madsen rather uncomfortable as a metropolitan area newspaper editor, while Penelope Ann Miller thoroughly revels in her eccentric turn as a C.I.A. contract killer, while sterling actors Christopher Plummer and Kim Coates are too lightly used as F.B.I. agents; Ticotin garners the performing laurels, creating her part as an ambiguously actuated fugitive. Cinematographer Barry Stone provides well-composed scenes despite ineffective utilization of flashbacks; in a final analysis the script is what most matters here and a coherent narrative structure requisite for such an ambitious plot as this is simply not forthcoming.