In the Line of Fire (Blu-ray) (1993)

"Eye-popping and heart-pounding, maybe one of the best thrillers ever!  Joanna Langfield, The Movie Minute
"Movies don't get more exciting than this! Don't miss it!  Joel Siegel, ABC-TV
"Crackling, well-made thriller...Eastwood, as an older, vulnerable, piano-playing loner, has never been better...  Leonard Maltin's Movie & Video Guide
"...a terrific action movie with good performances and a smart script...  Marjorie Baumgarten, Austin Chronicle
"...one of the finest thrillers you'll ever see.  Roy Leonard, WGN-TV
"...a finely tuned suspense thriller, though executives who have recently laid off trained killers may experience some discomfort.  TV Guide
"...movie making of the high, smooth, commercial order that Hollywood prides itself on but achieves with singular infrequency.  Vincent Canby, The New York Times

Editor's Note Aging secret service agent Frank Horrigan (Clint Eastwood), on duty the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas, is still unable to forget his failure on that fateful day, even as he nears retirement in 1993. When Mitch Leary (John Malkovich), a psychotic man calling himself Booth, threatens to kill the current president, Horrigan is the only one who takes the threat seriously. Over time, a cat-and-mouse game develops between the potential assassin and the agent; Horrigan sees the game as a chance to redeem his earlier failure and escape a life that has fallen into alcoholism and self-pity. With his only allies his partner (Dylan McDermott), who realizes he can't handle being a secret service agent and wants to resign, and a female agent (Rene Russo) whom he alternately annoys and attracts, Horrigan takes on Leary one-on-one in a fight to save the president, his job, and his self-respect. Directed with panache and precision by Wolfgang Petersen, IN THE LINE OF FIRE is an expertly crafted thriller that features spectacular performances by Eastwood and Malkovich.

	John Mahoney
	Rene Russo
	John Malkovich
	Gary Cole
	Dylan McDermott
	Clint Eastwood
	Fred Dalton Thompson
	Jeff Maguire - Screenwriter
	Lilly Kilvert - Production Designer
	Anne V. Coates - Editor
	John Bailey - Director of Photography
	Erica Edell Phillips - Costume Designer
	Jeff Apple - Producer
	Ennio Morricone - Composer
	Wolfgang Petersen - Director

"What's kept you in the game all these years?"----Mitch Leary (John Malkovich) to Frank Horrigan (Clint Eastwood)|"Why don't we get together and have a drink? We could talk about that."----Horrigan|"Oh, I'd love to, but I think the less you know about me the better."----Leary|"Oh, why?"----Horrigan|"Because I'm planning to kill the president."----Leary|"Oh, now you shouldn't have gone and said that. It's a federal offense to threaten the president. You could go to jail, even if you don't mean it."----Horrigan|"I mean it all right."----Leary

"What makes you think he'll call again?"----Lilly Raines (Rene Russo)|"Oh, he'll call again. He's got, uh, panache."----Horrigan |"Panache?"----Raines|"Yeah, it means flamboyance."----Horrigan|"Mm, I know what it means."----Raines|"Really? I had to look it up."----Horrigan

"Do you make an effort to be obnoxious, or is it a gift?"----Raines|"It's a gift."----Horrigan

"There's no cause left worth fighting for, Frank. All we have is the game. I'm on offense, you're on defense."----Leary to Horrigan

New York Times
"...Movie making of the high, smooth commercial order that Hollywood prides itself on but achieves with singular infrequency....[Eastwood lends] tone and class..." 07/09/1993 p.C1

Rolling Stone
"...Terrifically exciting..." 08/05/1993 p.71-2

Variety
"...A proficiently made thriller....Eastwood splendidly gives Horrigan humor, grit and imagination..." 07/19/1993

Entertainment Weekly
"Anyone on the hunt for surefire movie concepts need look no further than IN THE LINE OF FIRE....Engrossing..." 07/16/1993 p.38-9

Sight and Sound
"...Clint Eastwood excels here as a Secret Service agent with an Achilles' heel....The rest of the cast is equally impressive..." 05/01/2002 p.61

Premiere
"It's Malkovich, as an assassin tormenting Eastwood's aging Secret Service agent, who gives this movie its pulse." 09/01/2005 p.130-131

Empire
"Clint Eastwood followed his Oscar triumph UNFORGIVEN with a tough turn as a veteran secret service man....Riveting..." 09/01/2008 p.150

ReelViews 8 of 10
Director Wolfgang Petersen, best known for Das Boot, but also at the helm for the taut, twisted Shattered, is aware of what's necessary to make a good thriller work. He knows the importance of pacing, and plays the tension in In the Line of Fire like a virtuoso. Petersen takes what could have been a muddled motion picture and structures it perfectly, creating a strong piece of entertainment...Plot-wise, In the Line of Fire is nothing extraordinary. It's basically a formula-type thriller with one or two twists thrown in to keep the viewer off-balance. However, strength of character, coupled with a consistently-high level of excitement, makes this film anything but ordinary. The most intriguing element of In the Line of Fire is the cat-and-mouse game between Horrigan and Leary. The relationship of these two is fascinating in a twisted way, as it explores psychological layers which many motion pictures find too difficult to convey realistically...Overall, this is one of the most intelligent thrillers of the summer. In the Line of Fire doesn't require the special effects bonanza of Jurassic Park to involve the audience, nor does it rely on the mega-budget explosions and mountaintop battles of Cliffhanger. So, for a couple of hours of entertainment, In the Line of Fire is one of those rare "big" movies that doesn't disappoint. - James Berardinelli

Chicago Sun-Times 9 of 10
Thrillers are as good as their villains, and "In the Line of Fire" has a great one - a clever, slimy creep who insidiously burrows his way into the psyche of the hero, a veteran Secret Service agent named Horrigan (Clint Eastwood). The creep, who likes to play mind games with his opponents, makes a series of phone calls threatening to assassinate the president. He chooses Horrigan because he knows the agent still feels guilty about failing to save the life of John F. Kennedy 30 years ago...In its broad outlines, "In the Line of Fire" has a story similar to many of Eastwood's Dirty Harry movies, in which a psycho killer plays games with the cop, who is ordered off the case and then continues as a free-lance, helped by a loyal partner. The movie even supplies a typical Eastwood sidekick, a woman agent played by Rene Russo, who is tough and capable, and able to fall in love...Eastwood is perfect for the role, as a man of long experience and deep feelings. He is set off by an inspired performance by Malkovich, who is quiet and methodical and very clever, and devises a sneaky plan to work his way close to the president with an ingenious murder weapon. The movie's climax is exciting not only because of its action, but also because of its flawless logic...Most thrillers these days are about stunts and action. "In the Line of Fire" has a mind. - Roger Ebert