A Brilliant Conflict

Your blood may run cold, but you now find yourself pinioned to the story.

Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

One of the worst ways to make a cult movie is to set out to make a cult movie.

I was a kid when I saw this as a TV mini series in my country's (IRAN) national TV. It was about 3-5 episodes, I don't remember. It wasn't so popular but it was shown in a good time (about 10 pm) and I liked it so much. Back then, I had not seen so many IRA or KGB movies (I was 12), and it was so exciting for me. All the hard works Sean (Rob Lowe) was done to survive the royal family was so exciting. I was so interested in Range Rover cars in the movie!:D The character of Rob Lowe had so powerful affects in my juvenile years. Laziness and internal power of character and his strength all together was so inspiring and best reflects the pains he may had before he was captured by British police, And also was well-played by Rob Lowe. Strategies used by/against terrorists may be so boring now, or may be back then, but in my opinion they were directed good enough to make you watch till the end. Thanks to all who created this movie.

This movie gets very tiring to watch.For the first 30 minutes or so, you expect the two hit men to go after each other right away.It's just talk, talk talk...blah, blah, blah.I fail to see the intense action I was looking for.In fact I am writing this review as the film plays in the background and I could care less about it.Too much politics. Too much boredom.Too bad, because the box cover reads like it would be a kick ass movie.Unless you are really inspired by slow moving political movies with over done Russian KGB agents and British spies, you might be a tad bit sleepy within 25 minutes or so.

*POSSIBLE SPOILERS*I am the biggest fan of Jack Higgins the world has ever seen I have read all of his books so I was steeling myself against disappointment before I put it in the VCR. But I wasn't totally unimpressed. I thought the actor who played John Engle did a good job he seemed like the bad guys that Higgins writes about. I had three problems with this one. 1. Where in God's name did they come up with the title Midnight Man? This didn't make any sense. 2. Rob Lowe would not have been my first choice to play Sean Dillon I would rather have seen Patrick Bergin he would have been perfect to play him I couldn't think of anyone better. 3. I had a hard time believing that Engle would do what he did at the end. As a rule hit men and assassins for hire put little or no value on human life EXCEPT for their own. They are so egotistical and love their lives so much that not fighting to save it even when you don't have a chance just doesn't fit into his character's psyche. This movie did have some redeeming qualities and I did enjoy watching it I just think they could have done a better job than they did given the material. Now I have to watch the others.

An attempt is made to transfer too large a segment of Jack Higgins' espionage novel to film in this tale of former IRA comrades who find themselves on opposing sides during a royalty-targeted assassination plan, since the lengthy book is replete with sub-plots, and with a wide range of characters who need cinematic development in order to engage a viewer's concern. One's first impression is that nearly every role is miscast and although some certainly are, it quickly becomes apparent that weak direction by Lawrence Gordon-Clark gives little hope to the players as to what their interpretations might be; a good amount of intensity by the cast seems wasted in scenes that lack signification. Rob Lowe as an IRA hitman should probably have been able to collect some type of Irish lilt during his life, and it is ironic that his rival, played by the charismatic German, Hannes Jaenicke, speaks English with only a slight accent, although he also wants a Hibernian brogue.