Legal Eagles (1986) I do like coming back to re-watch this one from time to time......for no other reason than it represents a peculiar hybrid genre that studios rarely attempt - a thriller that also functions as an opposites-attract romantic comedy.
The simple reason for this genre's rarity......it's rare that anyone gets it right, and when it fails, the results come out painful to behold and sometimes downright catastrophic.
What a director and script must accomplish here is a double challenge.......make the thriller part really thrilling and suspenseful and make the rom-com part sparkling and funny. The latter requires that elusive factor of 'chemistry' between the two leads. The former requires a solid, well-plotted mystery to grab your interest.
No easy task......and as exhibit A, check out BQ's 7/16/20 review of 1994's "I Love Trouble" with Nick Nolte and Julia Roberts. Chemistry went out the window since this couple loudly and publicly despised each other. The storyline wasn't so hot either......
Which brings me back to "Legal Eagles", a big studio, big star, ultra high profile rom-com thriller pre-packaged by the mighty CAA talent agency for maximum appeal.
C'mon now, how could audiences resist the oddball pairing of mega-star Robert Redford with quirky, one-of-a-kind, newly minted "it" girl Debra Winger, of the giant hits "Terms Of Endearment" and "An Officer And A Gentlemen"?
And to insure the project would deliver both romantic fireworks and spectacular action, suspense and surprise twists, , the film came under the direction of that "Ghostbusters" maestro, Ivan Reitman. All the ingredients needed for a powerhouse project.
So now you're asking, did the movie deliver everything it promised? Laughs, chemistry and thrills?
Well......I'll say this for it. It's never boring, the stars do look like they're enjoying each other's company, lots of stuff gets blown up or set ablaze and there's a great supporting cast. including Brian Dennehy, Darryl Hannah and Terence Stamp. And once again, Reitman takes advantage of composer Elmer Bernstein's ability to write spritely, infectious comedy music as well as his more well known action-drama scores.
Redford's an ace rising star in the New York district attorney's office. But his life and prosecutorial career fly off the rails when he crosses paths with feisty defense attorney (Winger )and her client, an unconventional young performance artist (Hannah) accused first of art theft, and the murders of art gallery owners.
There's not much snap, crackle and pop in the dialogue's comedic byplay, so the film relies more heavily on Redford and Winger's charismatic charm, which thankfully, they provide. Director Reitman, probably hoping to repeat "Ghostbusters" box-office numbers, depends far too much on spectacle .......he throws in a warehouse explosion almost nuclear in size and building fires that might make you think you're watching an early version of "Backdraft".
For all the time, money and star power packed into it, "Legal Eagles" could have easily afforded (and used) some sharper, wittier writing put into its script. But then again, I can't really get too cranky at a movie trying so hard be entertaining and fun......(as opposed to today's multiplex offerings with spandexed superheroes making dumb wisecracks while they toss each other around like frisbees....)
And all these years later, it's still a comfort to spend some time with Redford, Winger, New York City, a strangely sexy Darryl Hannah, the chunky, reliable Brian Dennehy, the suavely sinister Terence Stamp, Elmer Bernstein's bouncy music, a few chases, a dash of danger....and middle-of-the-night tap dancing in the bathroom.
See for yourself.....3 & 1/2 stars (***1/2)
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