Narrow Margin (1990)

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

Peter Hyams

Writers (WGA):

Martin Goldsmith (earlier story) &
Jack Leonard (earlier story) ...

Release Date:

21 September 1990 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Thriller

Tagline:

Sometimes the difference between life and death can be a Narrow Margin

Plot:

A woman secretly witnesses the murder of her blind date for the evening by a top Mafia boss. She immediately...

Plot Keywords:

Mafia | Blind Date | District Attorney | Murder | Train

Cast

Gene Hackman	...	Robert Caulfield
Anne Archer	...	Carol Hunnicut
James Sikking	...	Nelson (as James B. Sikking)
J.T. Walsh	...	Michael Tarlow
M. Emmet Walsh	...	Sergeant Dominick Benti
Susan Hogan	...	Kathryn Weller
Nigel Bennett	...	Jack Wootton
J.A. Preston	...	Martin Larner
B.A. 'Smitty' Smith	...	Keller
Codie Lucas Wilbee	...	Nicholas
Barbara Russell	...	Nicholas' Mother (as Barbara E. Russell)
Antony Holland	...	Elderly Man
Doreen Ramos	...	Elderly Woman
Kevin McNulty	...	James Dahlbeck
Andrew Rhodes	...	Sgt. Nigro

Runtime:

97 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.20 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR (35 mm prints) | 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints)

Certification:

Argentina:13 | Iceland:14 | Iceland:16 (video rating) | Australia:M | Finland:K-14 | Germany:16 | Norway:15 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 | USA:R | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

British Columbia, Canada

Company:

Carolco Pictures

Trivia:

It was Gene Hackman's idea that his character wear glasses.

Goofs:

Continuity: State of repair of windshield after car hits a low branch.

Quotes:

[in helicopter above mountains]
Caulfield: Why does he have to fly so low?
Sergeant Dominick Benti: We're not low. The ground's high.

Movie Connections:

Edited into Mindstorm (2001)

Suspense for the Discriminating

This film pops up frequently on the tube, and with good reason -- it's lean, smart, and superbly acted. Director Hyams makes the most of the claustrophobic train interior contrasting with the wide open Canadian wilderness. Gene Hackman has never been better. Tension is built through a series of one-on-one confrontations, each with electric undercurrents. The best by far is the gentlemanly chat between Hackman and James Sikking in the dining car. The standard "action-packed" ending is a bit disappointing. But don't let this stop you if you're into suspense films for the thinking person.