Frantic (1988) Warner Bros./Suspense-Thriller RT: 120 minutes Rated R (violence, brief sexual content, drugs, language) Director: Roman Polanski Screenplay: Roman Polanski and Gerard Brach Music: Ennio Morricone Cinematography: Witold Sobocinski Release date: February 26, 1988 (US) Cast: Harrison Ford, Betty Buckley, Emmanuelle Seigner, John Mahoney, Dominique Pinon, Jimmie Ray Weeks, David Huddleston, Alexandra Stewart. Box Office: $17.6M (US)
Rating: ***
Please allow me to begin this review by clarifying my thoughts on director Roman Polanski. While I am a fan of his work (Rosemary’s Baby, Chinatown, Bitter Moon, The Pianist), I do NOT condone the crimes for which he was convicted in 1977 (unlawful sex with a minor). He fled the US in 1978 just hours before sentencing and took up residence in his home country of France. When watching one of his films, I try to focus more on his talent for filmmaking and less on his legal issues. In his defense, I can only say that he was never the same after the murder of his pregnant second wife Sharon Tate at the hands of the Manson family in August 1969. Again, I do NOT condone his illegal actions.
That being said, I will now proceed with my review of one of his most overlooked and underappreciated films, the 1988 Hitchcockian suspense-thriller Frantic. Dr. Richard Walker (Ford, Raiders of the Lost Ark) and his wife Sondra (Buckley, Eight Is Enough) arrive in Paris for a medical conference. It’s their first visit to the French city since their honeymoon 20 years earlier. They check into their hotel, hoping for a little R&R together before the conference begins. Dr. Walker steps out of the shower and discovers that Sondra isn’t in the room. When she doesn’t return, he goes looking for her in the lobby and in the area immediately surrounding the hotel. An eyewitness (Pinon, Alien Resurrection) tells him that he saw the woman being forced into a car. When Walker checks the spot where the car was parked, he finds her ID bracelet on the street.
The situation turns into a real nightmare for a few reasons: 1) the hotel staff and police are indifferent, 2) the embassy officials are bureaucrats more concerned with filling out the required paperwork than finding the missing American and 3) Walker doesn’t speak French. Despite that last thing, he decides to look for Sondra on his own, following clues he finds in a suitcase. I should mention the suitcase belongs to somebody else. Sondra accidentally grabbed the wrong bag at the airport.
At this point, I really shouldn’t reveal anything else about Frantic. Nobody likes plot spoilers. I will say that the clues lead Walker to Michelle (Seigner, Bitter Moon), a streetwise young woman who might be able to help him locate his wife.
Right off the bat, it’s a perfectly nightmarish situation, the sudden unexplained disappearance of a loved one. Anything could have happened to Sondra, but Walker has absolutely no idea what and nobody seems willing to help him. It’s even suggested that she doesn’t want to be found. As a husband, I really feel his pain and watching this movie makes me want to never travel again. Polanski really knows how to set up an awesome story; unfortunately, I never got the sense that Ford’s character was all that frantic. Worried? Yes! Pissed off? For sure! Panicky? Maybe a bit. Frantic? Not so much. I think part of the problem is the expectations of the audience, they expected Ford to be more of an action hero here. I can understand that, we’re talking about the same guy who played Han Solo, Indiana Jones, Jack Ryan and Dr. Richard Kimble (The Fugitive). Let me respond to that right now. Frantic is NOT an action movie (the climax notwithstanding), it’s a suspense-thriller and it totally delivers in that respect.
Ford delivers his trademark understated performance as a man in an unspeakably horrific situation. It’s not a bad performance, but I think that he should have put more into it. The character never really comes to life. Newcomer Emmanuelle Seigner turns in a pretty good performance, it certainly helps that she’s very easy on the eyes.
Frantic moves slowly at times, but it never gets boring. The suspense keeps the viewer on the edge of his/her seat throughout the entire picture. It’s a great looking movie. It has amazing cinematography and the Parisian locations prove to be a real asset. Polanski stages some very tense scenes like the sequence where Walker attempts to enter an apartment by climbing across the roof to the window. One gets the sick feeling that he might fall to the ground at any moment. He’s definitely wearing the wrong shoes for this task. A little later, he finds himself on the same roof with Michelle as they attempt to retrieve a particular object. It leads right to the obligatory scene where he prevents her from falling and she finds herself hanging above the ground while holding onto his hand.
The score by Ennio Morricone (the Man with No Name trilogy) is terrific. I don’t think that he’s ever delivered a substandard score to any movie. Polanski manages to pull together the various components and create a movie that deserves more recognition than it’s gotten over the years. If you haven’t seen Frantic, it’s time that you give it a chance. If you have seen it and weren’t impressed, perhaps you should give it another chance. Besides, it’s always great to see a gifted filmmaker at work. Despite his personal character flaws, Polanski is a true master of his craft.
