Hollywood Drama Movie Extraordinary Measures 2010
Cast And Crew
Starring: Harrison Ford,Brendan Fraser,
Keri Russell,Jared Harris,Patrick Bauchau
Directed by: Tom Vaughan
Genres: Drama
Distributor: CBS Films
MPAA Rating: PG for thematic material,
language and a mild suggestive moment.
Theatrical Release: Friday, January 22, 2010 (Wide)
Extraordinary Measures Flim SYNOPSIS:
From his working class roots, John Crowley (Brendan Fraser) has finally begun to taste success in corporate America. Supported by his beautiful wife Aileen (Keri Russell) and their three children,
John is on the fast track. But just as his career is taking off, Crowley walks away from it all when his two youngest children, Megan and Patrick, are diagnosed with a fatal disease. With Aileen by his side, harnessing all of his skill and determination, Crowley teams up with a brilliant, but unappreciated and unconventional scientist, Dr. Robert Stonehill (Harrison Ford). Together they form a bio-tech company focused on developing a life-saving drug.
One driven to prove himself and his theories, the other by a chance to save his children, this unlikely alliance eventually develops into mutual respect as they battle the medical and business establishments in a fight against the system – and time.But, at the last minute, when it appears that a solution has been found, the relationship between the two men faces a final test - the outcome of which will affect the fate of John's children.
Extraordinary Measures Flim Reviews:
Brendan Fraser plays John Crowley, an executive at pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers. He and wife Aileen (Keri Russell) have three young children, two of whom suffer from a genetic malady known as Pompe. A form of muscular dystrophy, Pompe causes enlargement of internal organs and the deterioration of motor skills. Most children with Pompe do not live past age 9. The movie begins with wheelchair-bound Megan Crowley celebrating her eighth birthday. For the doting dad, time is ticking away.
Crowley’s personal research on the disease points him to Dr. Robert Stonehill (Harrison Ford), a research scientist who shows some promise for a potential therapy with his theory regarding an enzyme. But Stonehill is working in the biochemistry department of the University of Nebraska, and he lacks the budget and lab facilities to create a drug suitable for clinical trials. Stonehill also lacks interpersonal skills, playing hard-rockin’ oldies at top volume in his lab rather than speaking to others, and ignoring most people when not angrily behaving like a prima donna scientist. The Crowleys raise funds for a Pompe Foundation and use the money to go into business with Stonehill, financing a private lab in the middle of Nebraska. Rushed for time to prepare for clinical trials, their start-up venture is soon bought out by a big pharmaceutical company in Seattle, where Stonehill’s style irritates the other research teams at the lab, and Crowley — now a vice president, thanks to the buyout — runs afoul of a by-the-book executive (Jared Harris) who thinks Crowley incapable of objectivity given the failing health of his own kids.
If Extraordinary Measures was a Hallmark Hall Of Fame production on TV, it would probably garner Emmy nominations. The supporting cast includes numerous television series veterans: Keri Russell (Felicity), Patrick Bauchau (The Pretender), Alan Ruck (Spin City), David Clennon (Ghost Whisperer), and Courtney B. Vance (FlashForward). One of the few points of amusement about this movie is listening to Jared Harris attempt an American accent, especially after a season of playing British executive Lane Pryce on Mad Men.
The story has no real dramatic punch. The script is disjointed and lacks focus; it often feels like each scene is about to take the story in a different direction, then the location changes or the story jumps forward in time, and the previous scenes and storylines don’t seem to matter anymore. Any message they’re trying to deliver about the heartlessness of drug companies is hopelessly muddled. Perhaps too much was left on the cutting room floor; that would account for actors like Bauchau and Ruck relegated to one scene each, and E.T. star Dee Wallace getting only a couple of lines and about 30 seconds of screen time as a barmaid, despite all their names being listed in the opening credits. The title is overblown given the content — there’s nothing extraordinary about this movie at all. Furthermore, casting movie stars in the two lead roles gives this story a larger scale than it deserves. Fraser is believably earnest in his role as the determined father; he’s a talented actor given the right material (Gods And Monsters, for example), and he tries his best here. However, Harrison Ford sleepwalks through his part. Whether it’s because he gave up top billing for the first time in a quarter-century, or he’s content to rest on his audience drawing power from years past, Ford looks and acts like he’s just stepped off his Montana ranch and can’t wait to get back to it. He gives a lazy performance, and it’s sad because we’ve seen him dominate the screen in films like Witness and The Mosquito Coast. But those films were decades ago, and any real effort these day seems to be reserved for the latest Indiana Jones project. The target demographic for Extraordinary Measures obviously skews toward middle-aged mothers. The ladies will weep and have their heartstrings tugged by the adorable sick kids and their healthy, caring brother. They’ll smile and laugh at the brief and artificial moments of humor. They’ll empathize with the teary-eyed mother, regardless of how shallow and underwritten her role is. They’ll fantasize about having hunky Brendan Fraser as their devoted husband, and having aging, once-hunky Harrison Ford as their rugged lover. If you don’t fit that target audience, then sitting through this movie without yawning — or leaving — may be difficult.
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