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“Being
a filmmaker is all about passion. You want
to be ready to 'kill' to be a filmmaker.”
—Petersen
German filmmaker Wolfgang Petersen began
his career as a stage director, before moving
on to television, and eventually feature
films. Petersen was born in a small northern
community in Germany during World War II.
By the 1960s, Petersen began directing theatrical
plays in Hamburg, after which he decided
to study film and television making, enrolling
in the Film and Television Academy in Berlin.
After making many German films and television
shows, Petersen made his mark in 1981 with
his feature film, "Das Boot,"
garnering him critical acclaim and an Academy
Award nomination for Best Director. Petersen
followed up his success with several other
feature releases ("The Neverending
Story," "Enemy Mine"), but
non were received with critical acclaim
or box-office success until the release
of "In the Line of Fire" in 1993.
That success established Petersen as a successful
Hollywood director, and allowed him to make
other exciting films as "Outbreak"
and "The Perfect Storm."
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In
the Line of Fire (1993)
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Horrigan must guard
the president and
his past.
Photos © Warner
Bros. |
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Lily and Horrigan
momentarily let down
their guards. |
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"In the Line of Fire" is a clever
mix of wit, suspense, and outstanding acting
performances. Clint Eastwood plays veteren
Secret Service agent Frank Horrigan, haunted
by his failure to prevent the assasination
of former President John F. Kennedy. Skip
ahead thirty years to the present, and yet
another man is threatening the life of the
president, compelling Horrigan to confront
his past.
Mitch, the villain, is played brilliantly
by John Malkovich (and when isn't he brilliant?).
Mitch targets Horrigan with a series of
mind games created to capitalize on the
agent's feelings of guilt. As Mitch gets
closer and closer to the president, Horrigan
becomes more of an outsider, as the president's
staff — fearing the president's appearance
of cowardice — chooses to ignore the
agent's warnings. No longer a member of
the president's detail, Horrigan must now
break the rules to prevent another assasination.
Of course, there is always a love interest,
and in this case, it's Lily (Rene Russo),
a smart, tough and capable agent in her
own right.
The success of this film lands squarely in
the lap of Wolfgang Petersen, and he is up
to the challenge. Petersen establishes the
characters as real and believable. The plot
is suspenseful and intricate and yet, in Petersen
has it unwind seemlessly. In a time when most
movies are pushing stunts and special effects,
"In the Line of Fire" is a refreshingly
intelligent action film. |
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| Outbreak
(1995)
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Daniels and crew attempt
to isolate the virus.
Photos © Warner
Bros. |
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Daniels tries to solve
the mystery by commandeering
a tv station. |
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Racing against time is a constant theme in
Wolfgang Petersen films, and "Outbreak"
is no different. In "Outbreak,"
the deadly killer isn't a presidential assassin
— it's a rapidly spreading virus.
"Outbreak" stars Dustin Hoffman
as Col. Sam Daniels, an infectious disease
expert who has been studying a viral outbreak
in Africa that spreads so quickly it could
kill an entire population in a matter of weeks.
When Daniels suspects the virus has spread
to the town of Cedar Creek, California, he
recruits the help of his ex-wife (Rene Russo)
at the Centers for Disease Control, to stop
it before the military sends bombs the town
to kill the virus — and the people in
it.
As with "In the Line of Fire,"
Hoffman's character must not only contend
with the clock, but with past ghosts and
a group thought contradictory to the better
good. "Outbreak" is intelligent
and the all-star cast is more than worth
the price of the rental. And, the outbreak
is naturally occurring, which is refreshing
these days, if you have been watching the
news.
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| Air
Force One (1997)
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The American president
in a new role?
Photos © Columbia
TriStar |
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Would you negotiate
with a terrorist if
it meant saving your
own life? |
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"Air Force One" is a perfect
example of just how life can imitate art.
In this now eerily plausible film, a group
of terrorists hijack Air Force One, and
threaten to do harm if their demands aren't
met.
The plane was returning from Moscow, where
President James Marshall (Harrison Ford)
had given a speech to Russian dignitaries
stating the US would no longer tolerate
terrorism, and that his government would
never meet terrorist demands (sound familiar?).
The terrorists (Gary Oldman among them)
have taken the plane in retaliation for
the United States' involvement in the overthrow
of a now-imprisoned Russian dictator, and
have threatened to kill all passengers if
he is not released.
On the ground, the vice president and the
rest of the White House staff have no idea
what is happening on Air Force One, and
cannot assist in the rescue. The president
is forced to find a way to save himself,
his family, his staff, and his integrity,
without reneging on his promise to never
negotiate with terrorists — all alone,
at 40,000 feet.
This film can be fun to watch. Picture
a MUCH BETTER looking George Bush "karate-chopping"
Osama Bin Laden. Or, maybe you would rather
watch the evening news.
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The
Perfect Storm (2000)
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Clooney, as skipper
Billy Tyne, sending
out an SOS. |
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The doomed crew consider
their options.
Photos © Warner
Bros. |
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Once or twice a century, multiple storms converge
and create one dangerous and deadly monster
storm. Meteorologists call this a "Perfect
Storm." One such storm took place in
October of 1991, off the coast of Massachusetts.
"The Perfect Storm," adapted from
a book by Sebastian Junger, tells the true
story of the Andrea Gail, a commercial swordfishing
boat lost at sea during that dangerous storm.
Attempting to get one more swordfishing
trip in before the onset of winter, skipper
Billy Tyne (George Clooney) takes his crew
out for a last 30 days at sea, despite the
weather forecast. The trip doesn't start
well — a crewman is lost at sea, a
shark accidentally ends up on deck, and
Bobby Shatford, the skipper's right hand
man (Mark Wahlberg) is homesick for the
girl he left behind. But it is not until
the storm hits that the movie makes its
distinguishable mark.
Wolfgang Petersen truly brings the book's
characters to life, and, when mixed with
the film's extraordinary visual effects,
viewers are rendered as helpless as the
crew of the doomed Andrea Gail.
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Top
photo of “Wolfgang Petersen” by
Steve Granitz - © WireImage.com
+ summary and film synopses
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