Delayed Reaction: Shoot to Kill

What I Guessed It Was About: Let's see, the box has Sidney Poitier and Tom Berenger with a bandana. There's some mountains at the top. I'm going to guess that Poitier has to hunt down Berenger in the mountains for some reason, probably related to some crime, given the title and big gun in the picture.

How I Came Into It: As the previous section suggests, I knew very little about this. I've only recently realized that there was a time when Tom Berenger was considered a box office draw, which is surprising. Also, this is Poitier's return to acting after over a decade off. Then there's Kirstie Alley just as she's getting into Cheers fame. In hindsight, this was a sort of big deal movie. Then there's the 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. That's probably a bit too high, but that happens on occasion with things made before the site was around.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) It's a good chase movie, and even old Sidney Poitier can hold the screen better than just about anyone. Berenger is a natural choice for the outdoorsy hero. This makes sense for the kind of movies that Roger Spottiswoode was directing at the time (including this, this, and this). He likes action movies that are light, but not unsubstantiative. This fits that mold.


Why I Wish I Hadn't: I've gone into this before, but we are too sophisticated as viewers now, especially in crime movies and shows. When Poitier is still in the city, the level of idiocy of the cops (who aren't being painted as complete fools) is comical. I mean, there's a moment when the cops think that the killer is lost, not trying to lose their tale. What is that?! No, the level of police work even today is still not right, but seeing something from 25 years ago is just bad. Also, Poitier is not the right star for this movie. He's too old and, more importantly, thinks he's in a much more serious movie. I want to know how they decided on this title. Was there a list of unused Dirty Harry or James Bond movie titles they pulled from? That is such a generic title and only tangentially related to the movie. Oh, and remember when Berenger and Poitier manage to dig an underground igloo in the middle of an ice storm?

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend