Tightrope

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Trailer—Tightrope

Tightrope

Clint Eastwood plays New Orleans policeman Wes Block, who is investigating a series of brutal attacks and murders on women. Wes becomes disturbed because some of the evidence describing the criminal reflects his own fetishes and feelings, though of course disgusted by the killings. He then befriends a rape counselor(played by Genevieve Bujold) who tries to understand Block's feelings, as she helps him understand the killer, so he can stop him. Unusual story for Clint doesn't really work, since his character is somewhat unsympathetic, though he is a father of two daughters, some aspects of the story are just sleazy, and the mystery angle is undistinguished and ultimately anti-climatic. A misfired thriller.

"Tightrope" could have been a fascinating character study. Eastwood plays a somewhat kinky cop who has almost nothing in common with Dirty Harry; he is a much more believable character here, and his performance is superb. Unfortunately, the direction lacks the necessary vigor - it fails to increase the level of tension as it should - and the film becomes more sleepy as it approaches its end. Even with Clint at his best, this film's second half is almost deadening.

TIGHTROPE (1984) ***1/2 Clint Eastwood, Genvieve Bujold, Alison Eastwood, Dan Hedaya, Jennifer Beck. Taut and disturbing psychological thriller with Clint in a challenging variation on Dirty Harry-like character, Wes Block, a recently divorced New Orleans cop investigating a serial killer with some parallel sexual inclinations that makes him examine his own perversions. Ambitious and suspenseful with real-life daughter Alison cast as his eldest child. Directed with flair by Richard Tuggle.

TIGHTROPE is a decent, though not entirely flawless, dramatic thriller. Clint stars as a hard-nosed detective (does he play any other kind?) trying to figure out who's behind a string of murders in New Orleans. But these aren't just any murders, as the female victims were all part of the wonderful world of kinky sex. Our hero's mean squint gets even squintier when it becomes obvious the women are being targeted because of their kinky relations with him. Released in 1984, TIGHTROPE was a reasonable success in terms of revenue and critical acclaim. Maybe you just had to see it when it first came out, because watching it today, it seems like a fairly formulaic cop thriller. That doesn't mean it's bad; far from it. It's reasonably paced, not entirely predictable and nicely buffered with some cute (sometimes hilarious) father-daughter moments (Clint's real-life offspring, Alison, plays one of his two girls). Add an extra star if you're a fan of the big C.

Inner darkness is out of control in this thriller set in New Orleans. A veteran cop(Clint Eastwood)is put in peril when evidence links him to the serial murders he is investigating. Genevieve Bujold co-stars. Twelve year old Alison Eastwood plays one of the cop's two daughters, and surprisingly holds her own. This shady thriller is worth your time. The pace is a little slow, but very intense. Some pretty cool sets and mellow jazz. Don't get too relaxed.

Here is a very, very tense thriller about a New Orleans cop (Clint Eastwood) finding a serial killer.....and vice-versa. This is a very dark (literally) film with a big film-noir look and feel. Neo-noir, I guess, is what they call post-1950 gritty crime films like these. Eastwood's character in "Tightrope" is a complex one. On one hand, he's a wonderfully loving father of two sweet girls (one played by his actual daughter, and played well), and yet he is a weak man when it comes to prostitutes. But, whatever side he shows - light or dark - he's interesting, as always. So is the female star of this movie, Genevieve Bujold, a woman with a very intriguing face and just a trace of her French accent. Dan Heyada contributes strongly in a low- key performance. Yes, this film is a bit too much on the seedy side for my normal tastes, definitely sordid, but very well done. It's a story that grabs you early and locks you in all the way.