Proof of Life

Let me just say from the outset that I really do not care if Russell Crowe and Meg Ryan are dating, and if so, whether they kindled their romance on the set of “Proof of Life.” This matter seemed to be accorded great weight among the tabloid crowd, but the important thing is not what happened between Crowe and Ryan but what the movie does for Crowe’s career. Crowe was fine ensemble player in “L.A. Confidential,” and he was superb in “The Insider,” although he disappeared so thoroughly into that character that we lost the actor entirely. (We won’t talk about the loathsome “Gladiator.”) In “Proof of Life,” on the other hand, he displays nothing but million candlepower star quality. He is both a romantic and an action lead in the picture, and he can hold the screen with the best of them. (I am not much for comparisons to other stars, but Sean Connery in his James Bond days does come to mind. Crowe’s brooding magnetism is also a bit Clooney-esque.) Onscreen, Crowe exhibits a certain economy of movement, so that even when he is in action it appears that not one bit of energy is wasted.

In the role of Terry Thorne, operative extraordinaire for Luthan Risk, the fictional K & R (kidnapping and ransom for the uninitiated) company, he gets to display icy nerves, total coolness, and action chops. “Proof of Life” takes place in the fictional South American country of Tecala, where engineer Peter Bowman (David Morse, getting better with every picture) accompanied by his wife Alice (Meg Ryan) is working on a dam building project. Peter is kidnapped by a rebel group which had once been interested in political change, but now, as everyone in the movie seems to acknowledge, “it’s all about the money.” Peter’s company hires Luthan Risk to handle his ransom and return, but shortly after Thorne arrives to take charge, corporate squabbling pulls him off the case and leaves Alice in the hands of the corrupt locals. Apparently feeling a bit guilty about leaving the Bowmans in the lurch, Terry returns on his own dime and his own time to help Alice. Back in Tecala, he teams up with his old pal Dino (a terribly underused Caruso, and if ever there were a cautionary tale for successful TV actors looking to move to features, he is it), who is working on a recovery of his own.

In the end, it turns out that both kidnap victims (or “cargo” in the lingo of the operatives) are held by the same group in the same camp, setting the stage for the film’s denouement. Terry grinds through negotiations with the kidnappers, only to have the talks collapse, leaving he and Dino with no option but to mount a commando style raid on the rebel camp. This is arguably the least interesting part of the picture. It is technically proficient, but we have seen it a dozen times before in inferior films starring the likes of Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris. Where “Proof of Life” shines is in its depiction of the shadowy, suspenseful world of international kidnapping and ransom, effectively capturing the atmosphere of dread and boredom that permeate it. The movie serves as a pretty good primer on the basics of the business. Tony Gilroy’s effective script was “inspired” by William Prochnau’s Vanity Fair article called “Adventures in the Ransom Trade.” (The article itself is pretty interesting.) I do have a few quibbles with the script. For one thing, there was no reason to make the identity of the kidnapper fall into Terry’s lap by the sheerest serendipity.

If one thing comes through in the movie, it’s that these cases are usually resolved by dogged determination and patience, not blind luck. After all, kidnapping is a business like any other, although it is also, as Terry says, “a game that you play whether you like it or not.” I also question the shyness of the script. Why invent a country, Tecala, when everyone knows that it is supposed to be Colombia, which, according to Prochnau’s article, is ground zero for the international kidnap trade? While Crowe is forceful and charismatic in his role, Ryan is merely adequate, although her part doesn’t call for much more than looking alternately frightened and angry. The relationship between Terry and Alice is never very compelling or convincing.

In fact, Terry’s relationship with Dino and his other operatives is far more believable. The movie opens with a strong sequence showing Terry arranging the recovery of a kidnap victim in Chechnya. The action scenes are intercut with scenes of Terry debriefing the Luthan Risk executives after the operation, and the opening establishes both Terry’s character and some of the risks of his peculiar occupation. Director Taylor Hackford, who has made some affecting films (“An Officer and a Gentleman”), but who has also been known to wallow in sentimental excess (“Everybody’s All American”) returns to fine craftsman form here, shooting the picture with economy and style, and handling both action and suspense scenes equally well. It is good to see him back on his game, but the real winner here is Crowe, whose position in the Hollywood firmament should now be assured. (12/17/00)