Movie: Extremely Dangerous (S)

I must confess, I hyper-scrutinize extra-long movies just to see which scenes should have been cut. However, Extremely Dangerous, while clocking in at 3+ hours, is a tight and well-paced thriller that uses its extra time to advantage.

Sean Bean plays Neil Byrne, a man convicted of brutally murdering his wive and child. As in The Fugitive, this film relies heavily on the audience's belief in his innocence. We see Byrne with his family before he was struck by tragedy. We see him with his former associates (who now want him dead). Byrne is intense but not obsessive, focused yet still taking time to make new friends. He even holds doors for strangers! Despite his private grief and strong belief in his own innocence, he is willing to use others' assumptions about his guilt to freak them out so they will tell what they know. Byrne wants answers, he wants justice, he wants peace of mind.

There is an elaborate cast of characters from Byrne's past and present, and everyone's story is told in a way that is both well-developed and relevant. This is a smart film that successfully balances both character development and an action-driven plot. Grade: A