film: Hostage

Hostage 2/5

Bruce Willis plays a local hero chief of police in a small LA burb. Three misguided youth, who survive by stealing cars, chance upon a Cadillac SUV and an unsuspecting father, adolescent son and ripe teenage daughter. The daughter brushes off their vulgar advances, setting the ring leader off. They follow the family to their remote, ultra-luxurious, fortress-like home and get violent with the father to reclaim their respect, before taking off with the Caddy. At least, that was their simple plan.

Things take a turn for the worse and a hostage situation ensues.



But wait, didn’t the previews make it look like our hero was fighting against criminals who took his own family hostage? The twist that makes sense of the previews, doesn’t save this derivative, gratuitously violent film from being a dud.

Remember the first Die Hard film that catapulted Bruce Willis to stardom 17 years ago? Don’t believe the hype that Hostage even begins to compare to it.

In Die Hard, you had vacationing cop John McClane running around inside a massive skyscraper. In Hostage, you’ve got a kid hiding in the crawl space and communicating with the cops. A clear rip off. The bad guys in Hostage are also emotionally disturbed social deviants high on testosterone, save for the youngest one, who was supposed to wait in the car while the other two stole the Caddy.

This isn’t a film that I would see again.
http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/03/11/200527.php


http://blogcritics.org/archives/2005/03/11/200527.php