The Presidio (1988)

I would be giving this film a 10 out of 10 if it weren't for the relative letdown of the ending which does not quite resonate the way it should have.

But this small disappointment does nothing to erase the first hour of the film which brims with great characterization, great acting and great direction.

Peter Hyams chose to pace his film with two great chase scenes which are so well directed, they should be studied by younger filmmakers who think fast cutting and CGI somehow makes action scenes exciting.

Shot with long takes and real stunts, the car chase is a model of great action directing that takes your breath away even after the tenth viewing. As for the foot chase scene, it is so well-paced (kudos to Hyams' editor Jim Mitchell) that you can still see everything in spite of the frenetic action (again a craft that is totally lost in most of today's disappointing action films) Extra tip of the hat should also go to Bruce Broughton for his inspired and powerful score.

Fmovies: An amazing movie. All the elements come together to make a very entertaining movie that gets better the more you watch it.

From Bruce Broughton's masterful score (one of his very best in my view) to Peter Hyams' evocative photography, everything comes in focus around a first-class cast that include star-making performances by Mark Harmon and Meg Ryan and the wonderful turns we take all too easily for granted by Sean Connery and Jack Warden.

The chase sequences are among the most inventive and gripping of modern cinema and are edited with just the right touch (take note you commercial directors who think chase scenes consist of unwatchable snippets of film) and highlight a great story full of lively characters.

Overall, a very memorable movie, which helps explain why it keeps showing up again and again on our TVs.

This story looks like other drama/action movies. The story take place at the Presidio (military base) and is nothing new (a criminal investigation inside military lines) but Meg Ryan, Sean Connery, Mark Harmon plays it so well that the thin story becomes a minimum. Though it isn't a complete love story and have a little attention to it, Mark Harmon and Meg Ryan does it very well. She has a complex since her father (Sean Connery) probably spent more time doing the army instead of his wife (her mother). She cannot concentrate her mind on one man for long. Of course he (Mark Harmon) falls in love with her after a few love scenes, and at a party he get furious when she wants to dance with another gentleman. They come apart. This is when I noticed that this movie was about love. At home she have a little fight with her father over the problem, and as a solution to this she goes back to Mark Harmon's apartment where she apologize. When the story reach top and they solve the puzzle the end comes very quickly, but as they walk away hand in hand I feel like something else has been solved. The love between father and daughter, and of course between daughter and her lover (Mark H.).

See for yourself Meg Ryan is made to be a father's darling.

The Presidio fmovies. Sean Connery fans,this is a must. Mark Harmon fans, this is a must. Meg Ryan fans, this is a must. For: a) Sean Connery fans (of which I am one), watching Scotland's favourite son beat up a bully with his thumb is impossible to miss. He's great as a solder, and acts well (as usual). b) Mark Harmon fans, watching him as a coool detective smirking down a barrel of a gun held by a pretty much insane villain is quite amusing AND c) Meg Ryan fans, though she appears in few scenes, she takes over each one with her wild hair and sexy manner. In other words, see it. It's got an element of mystery and and action, and, in my opinion, it's very well acted. Enjoy.

Harmon and Connery turn in decent performances. Meg Ryan is way over the top as spoiled sex-pot provost's daughter. The rest of the cast is only competent, but they aren't being asked to do more. Serviceable location photography of San Francisco, competent editing.

Otherwise this is a completely formulaic buddy-cop action film of the later '80's. Totally predictable plot about diamond smuggling. No complications.

And no sense of humor. The best films of this genre had heavy doses of comedy - 48 Hours, Beverly Hills Cop, Lethal Weapon. If there's anything supposed to be amusing here, I missed it. Instead we get a pretty unbelievable romance taking up that space.

There's also a barroom brawl that has absolutely NOTHING to do with the story whatsoever. Perhaps that was supposed to be amusing. I just felt confused and depressed.

Despite the title, this has very little to do with the famed military base. The film does try to convey a "the Vietnam war is over" salute to the soldiers who fought there, so I guess it gets a point for social conscience. The rest is just a waste of talent, locale, and audience interest.

I haven't seen "The Presidio" for about a decade, so watching it again recently after so many years was almost like watching it for the first time.

Although it's definitely not a top class thriller, more of a low-key crime drama, the final twist in the tale makes it a decent picture. It's got fantastic setting. Peter Hyams, who apart from directing the film also holds a spot as director of photography, shots exteriors stylishly. The slightly cold colours correspond well with Sean Connery's characterisation as a strict man of principles.

In case of Connery it's always as much about the acting as it is about the looks and he looks really good as an MP officer, mostly wearing regular uniforms, prefferably dark blue. If he hadn't succeeded as 007 he would have definitely made a career as a character actor playing officers.

Mark Harmon takes over as an action man from Connery which is a nice change. The chase scene is quite impressive even by today's standards, well done! On the other hand the fight scene with Connery is also well choreographed.

My only complain would be about Meg Ryan's character. She seems too soft, too childish as for a person rised only by a father, who happens to be a rather tough guy, shy of showing emotions. Somehow her character doesn't convince me at all.

In a nutshell: you'll like the film if you like San Francsico and you'll love it if you like Sean Connery. No more, no less.