Russell Crowe Movie:

Editorial Review:
When someone in Proof of Life says "Don't leave me hanging," you can bet they're going to be left hanging. That's what happens when Alice Bowman (Meg Ryan) learns that her husband Peter (David Morse) has been kidnapped by rebels in the (fictional) Latin American country of Tecala. He's building a corporate-funded dam there, and that makes him a fine target for kidnap by the rebels, who barter with the lives of well-insured executives. Enter Terry Thorne (Russell Crowe), former soldier-turned-"K&R" (kidnap and ransom) negotiator for a global firm that collects a commission for rescued hostages. With no guarantee of payment, Thorne takes the job out of moral obligation (and a yearning for would-be widow Alice).

There's little room for delicacy in Tony Gilroy's screenplay, adapted from an article by William Prochnau and the book Long Road to Freedom by kidnapping survivor Thomas Hargrove. A hint of romance between Crowe and Ryan (who enjoyed plenty of it off-screen) adds tension as the story shifts back and forth to Morse's captivity, but it also threatens to cast Alice in an unsympathetic light. Avoiding that pitfall, director Taylor Hackford crafts the plot as a latter-day Casablanca that unfolds on a grander canvas (at stunning locations in Ecuador) while favoring an exciting rescue-mission climax over the tragedy of an ill-timed affair. It might have worked better as a straightforward macho action flick (with David Caruso doing lively work as Crowe's gung-ho K&R cohort), but Proof of Life effectively conveys the two-sided torment of a hostage crisis, while Morse holds it all together as the character to root for. --Jeff Shannon

Proof of Life [Region 2] Reviews:
Edge of your seat suspense.
2009-12-04 - Great acting. Great story line. Visually stimulating. Excellent ending. Great soundtrack. Russell Crow is at his best.

Proof of learning.
2009-10-12 - I had never heard of this type of business in the past. The methods of negotiation & trying to get the hostage released for the lowest amount were new to me. The conclusion was played out well.

A Most Underestimated Movie
2009-09-08 - This movie has it all. The more I watch it, the more I see the reality of a good, good movie. David Morse is absolutely superb.

Unexpectedly engrossing...
2009-06-22 - ...this film was on cable one day while I was sitting there catching up on emails...sometimes I like to have the TV on while doing that as sort of background noise. Well, before I knew it, I'd watched most of it and not gotten too many emails sent!

The story is pretty prosaic: husband gets kidnapped, wife freaks out, handsome and somewhat mysterious but cool-as-a-cucumber hero comes to the rescue of husband while sparks fly with the distraught wife.

To be honest, if they'd cast anyone else in the lead roles other than the ever-lovely Meg Ryan and fascinatingly talented Russel Crowe, I probably wouldn't have lasted through the whole thing. That, and the on-location settings (Ecuador) sealed the deal. Meg Ryan especially, though I wish that we could've seen more of her with less clothing on...she was cute at 28 in "When Harry Met Sally" but at 39 in this film, she is one SMOKIN' momma!

The hostage rescue scene at the end was a bit improbable but I respected the director's decision to NOT have too neat of a happy ending, i.e. having the two leads ride off in the sunset together. Have to agree with the other reviewer who said that this film could've used some heavy editing because there is a fair amount of deadwood lying around. But overall a decent way to kill some time.

3 and 1/2 stars.

This was great.
2008-11-27 - Where to begin with all the good things about this movie?

1. We all know that South America is a very good place to go if you want to get kidnapped and held for ransom. But this film did a good job of showing us some of the grievances that are used to rationalize these kidnappings.

2. This film shows that there is a business side to hostage negotiation as well as kidnapping. (Who would ever have thought that a person would bargain for how much they were willing to pay for a person's life?)

3. The characters were all very well developed and the camp was made very believable.

There is more, but I can only recommend that you see the film and see all the good things for yourself.