Chain Reaction

It’s not difficult to see why Chain Reaction was received less-than-kindly upon its 1996 release, as the movie often feels like an attempt by filmmaker Andrew Davis to replicate the massive (and entirely justified) success of 1993’s The Fugitive. The storyline – which follows two researchers (Keanu Reeves’ Eddie and Rachel Weisz’s Lily) as they’re forced to go on the run after being framed for murder and treason – has been augmented with a number of elements that seem to have been pulled directly from Davis’ earlier effort, with the scrappy FBI agents on the heroes’ trail undoubtedly standing as the most obvious example of this (ie their similarities to Tommy Lee Jones’ squad of U.S. Marshals are more than overt). There is, however, little doubt that the film boasts a number of extremely effective (and downright enthralling) sequences that ultimately justify its existence, as Davis does a superb job of peppering the proceedings with one impressively conceived and executed chase sequence after another (eg Eddie flees from the cops by climbing a raised drawbridge, Eddie and Lily use an airboat to escape some baddies, etc, etc). It’s only as the narrative becomes becomes bogged down with increasingly convoluted attributes that one’s interest begins to dwindle, with the subsequent lack of momentum ensuring that Chain Reaction generally only works in fits and starts (which is yet another reason the movie is simply unable to live up to the precedent set by its propulsive predecessor). The end result is a decent (but far from spectacular) thriller that’s generally kept aloft by its performances and action sequences, and it’s worth noting that despite its problems, the film remains a cut above most contemporary examples of the genre.

**1/2 out of ****