Why so much hype?

A very feeble attempt at affirmatie action

It's a mild crowd pleaser for people who are exhausted by blockbusters.

.Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

In my opinion, Deadly Pursuit is quite a slick movie, but more an adventure and in part, thriller. It's one of those movies, which in it's start, immediately leaves you wondering what's going on, and what's to ensue, when a lone car comes speeding down a rain swept city street. A great night shot. I love those movies. When a very clever psychotic, (Clancy Brown, always reliable as a good performer) escapes hot shot FBI cop profiler, Poitier (marking a solid comeback) and his men after a negotiation, goes to s..t, he makes it his personal, mission to capture this madman, who have two aged hostages plus a maid and heir dog. The killer has taken off with these diamonds, so guilt stricken Poitier needs a guide, loner Berenger, the wilderness, his really own karmic environment. Berenger, not a real people person, who too could use a shower or too, is loathe at first to take Poitier, but really he has no choice. And with his survival skills in the great outdoors lacking here, our inept Poitier becomes the pain in Berenger's arse. Poitier's ineptness is what's funny too, some scenes, involving a horse. But too, Berenger's short fuse, adds more laughs, especially in one scene, involving a stubborn Poitier. Berenger's love (Kirsty Alley) Sarah, is leading a party of men on a hunting expedition, one man escaping the hell of a divorce, another one being the jewel stealing psycho. When too in a chinwag, Brown, keeps asking another of his fellow party, some questions, as if to maintain his guise of normalcy, where if this guy was among you, you wouldn't think for a second, he's weird or dangerous. But these stone cold psycho's are so good at pulling off their act of Mr good and wholesome, they themselves deserve an Oscar. Soon the other men of party are all killed, some of them falling into the river, one of them told by Brown, that he's a cop, before this poor explorer buys it. Now we have a cosey scene with just Brown and Sarah, which is really an inhospitable one. Sarah is a fighter and has an independence about her. She has balls too, as when offered one of the diamonds, she throws it in the river. The film is in the adventure, where Berenger and Poitier, tackle obstacles, one big one, trying to cross a ravine, from one cliff to another where it's means was tampered with, so our two have to do it the hard way using their own ropes and pegs. They encounter a bit of a hiccup, and Berenger goes flying hard against the face of a big rock, (I can still feel it and hear that slap) then manages to climb back up, which really got me exhausted as it did our actors. Another thrilling scene has them chased by a big grizzly, and you'll love how this situation is dealt with. I also loved it when the blizzard hit, that had me thinking, "Are these two scenes part of the same environment". They dig a burrow furiously, under the snow, amidst the wild blizzard. Poitier is so cold that Berenger has to warm him up. Another funny moment. The next day, a fist punches through the snow, where we have a warmish sun of relief. Then we near towards a climax with some things I couldn't buy. 1. Like how they just happened to track Alley and co down when coming onto a mountain road. And 2. Just outside the police station, how they happened to overhear a report that leads to a location, where Alley and her captor were. The climax was powerful, I must say, where it's great to see our Sidney back in action. But despite some flaws, Deadly Pursuit is a good 88' movie I've viewed many times, with beautiful outdoorsy locations, that almost makes you want to take up, being an explorer. But if part of a troupe, you certainly wouldn't want to be in one, killer Brown is part of.

A slick and efficient wilderness thriller utilising a few great actors to strong effect, DEADLY PURSUIT is one of my favourite crime films of the 1980s. The story is simplicity in itself, a classic odd-couple pairing as inner-city FBI agent Sidney Poitier is forced to team up with a survivalist type to track down a ruthless murderer. This is the type of film that you don't really watch for the intricacies of the storyline, as it's kept very simple and straightforward, but to enjoy great outdoor photography, a sharp script and commanding performances.Poitier returned from a decade-long break from acting for his role here, and he couldn't have picked a better part: he plays a commendable guy, extremely hard-bitten and intelligent and yet not without humour too – witness the very funny scenes involving a moose and a horse. Tom Berenger, in comparison, is taciturn and unfriendly and watching the two butt heads makes for a lot of fun.As the villain of the piece, Clancy Brown gives a towering performance that builds on his breakout part as the Kurgan in HIGHLANDER. He's hulking and frightening, a vicious psychopath who leaves a trail of bodies in his wake and doesn't think twice about bumping off defenceless old women. It's truly an intimidating turn, delivered in classic Brown style, and adds to the film immeasurably. Kirstie Alley is thrown into the mix to equalise the gender balance a little and doesn't have a lot to work with, but to be fair the film isn't about her.For a thriller, there are plenty of suspense scenes, some of them truly nail-biting – witness the set-piece involving the cable car. Okay, so the film does lose points slightly for moving away from the wilderness locations for the climax – it would have done a lot better by staying in the mountains – but such things are merely minor detractions and don't spoil the flow too much. This no-frills adventure/thriller hybrid is right on the money.

I enjoyed this film very much upon first viewing and I've must have watched it hundreds of times since and never get bored! Deadly Pursuit is a nail-biting, intelligently thought out action thriller made all the more stronger with its excellent cast and mountainous settings. It is certainly a welcome return for the legendary Sidney Poitier after a decade away from the screen.The intrigue regarding which of the five members of Kirstie Alley's (as Sarah) hiking group is a deranged jewel thief and killer is there in abundance; perhaps all have something to hide, you just don't know! This point is heightened thanks to the casting of actors well known for portraying bad guys, namely Andrew Robinson and Clancy Brown. When we do find out who the killer is, the cat-and-mouse game reaches new heights.Deadly Pursuit is a simple title for a simple film, but it does move along at a good pace, and adds full-on tension and interest to keep the viewer entertained; for example the turbulent yet vital relationship between Poitier's Stanton and Tom Berenger's Knox, two very different individuals coming together for one and the same purpose; the sometimes humorous moments (Stantin's struggles with a horse, a scene where he and Knox have to shelter from a snowstorm as well as their encounter with a grizzly bear), mixed with great action that doesn't go over-the-top as proved with other similar movies.Sidney Poitier and Tom Berenger are a pleasure to watch together. Despite their character's sometimes volatile relationship, the two actors do share a certain chemistry, while Kirstie Alley performs well despite limitations to her character.I enjoyed Deadly Pursuit to the full. Roger Spottiswoode directs a well crafted action thriller that can be watched again and again. 8/10

There is one sure truth about movies, not only that they last forever, but also that our memories last with it. Therefore, whatever how many years passed by; when you watch a certain movie, you recall all of your happy, or unhappy, memories which are connected with the first watching' time, with all of its thoughts and feelings.As for (Shoot to Kill), I was 21 year old when I first watched it. Back then, I've just ended my fourth and final year in faculty of arts, waiting for the result of my exams, exactly like my friend (he was my neighbor too) who was waiting for his result as well, but at the faculty of law. Both of us were movies' freaks, and maybe you'll understand how crazy we were when I tell you that we raced once to finish watching all the movies in one video store near our homes !! I remember that he saw more horror movies than I did, but I surpassed in watching the action and the musical ones. Anyway, it was the glorious glory's days, we were watching movies through our national TV like (Hot To Trot), (Romancing The Stone), (Other People Money); there were all good, so at the theaters too like (X Files "The Film"); although we were disappointed with it, but we were having each other, and ready to watch more movies, better or worse. Through the VHS, we enjoyed a lot of nice ones, and how we got our own dictionary out of the movies' dialogue; to hang a phone call saying (I'll Be Back !) from (The Terminator), or to end a hot conversation peacefully (Opinions are like asses, everybody got one !) from (The Dead Pool), or to be naughty sometimes (Hubba Hubba !) from (Payback) and so on.. On 14/7/1999, I watched (Contact) by (Robert Zemeckis), and my friend just finished (Shoot To Kill), so we recommended every one's movie to each other, to discuss it later, as usual, in our discussion zone : The Gym !I went to read its cover to discover that it's an action thriller that got (Sidney Poitier) as the lead, and (Roger Spottiswoode) as a director, so I rented it enthusiastically. And when I watched it, I just fell in love with it. (Shoot to Kill) was sharp, so solid and more beautiful than most of the above. It's the good old school at its best, and that's ladies and gentlemen my favorite kind of action, not the awful grisly comic books graphic novels video games kind of pace, violence and idiocy (YES, Sin City, Sin Movies !). I see that this good movie got it all. Firstly, the fine screenplay. It's fine because it cared about making good action thriller time with no flaws at all, and – in the same time – showed the comparison of 2 clever men and how everyone, in his own world and by his environment's rules, is a real hero. Actually, it said that the work of any police officer in the city is as hard as the mountain climber's work in the woods. Or that the world is one giant jungle, therefore you must know how to survive, but everyone by their special talents. Look how the magnificent (Poitier) acts so clumsy in the forest, with many wicked details and witty expressions, while (Berenger) was the MAN. But then in the city, it's totally the opposite, where (Poitier) was the master of his civilized yet the same brutal jungle, and (Berenger) turned into the naive one who discovered finally the truth about (Poitier) to tell him during the car chase "You're Crazy!".Furthermore, that strong music, that wonderful cinematography, and that perfect editing; remember the armlet's scene in the beginning; that was unforgettable piece of work as a lesson in how to build a thrill in one short scene. And, naturally, the proficient direction. This movie delivers greatly, particularly in the last 15 minutes; I simply adore this climatic sequence.I loved it to the extent that I watched it for a second time right after the first one immediately. You can find it in my list for the best 100 non-Egyptian movies ever. And it's still an enjoyment to watch that one from the 1980s, thanks mainly to the iconic presence of (Poitier) as an action star here (try to believe that this graceful elegant was 61 years old at the time !!). I didn't find till now an explanation for his 11 years of absence as a movie star from 1977 to 1988 ?! But whatever, he came back to make (Little Nikita – 1988) and (Shoot To Kill – 1988) and really what a huge difference between them both; as one is half good and one is too good ! (I wrote a review about Little Nikita on its IMDb page). So after watching the movie, on the title's date, I remember so joyfully that in the next afternoon I met my friend in the very zone of us, and when I asked him smiling "You FBI guys do this kind of s**t a lot ?" I had him and me answering in the same time imitating Poitier : "Every Damn Day !". Although it's a line which maybe we've heard in other movies or even TV shows before, but when it has Poitier's performance.. It becomes CLASSIC.