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Great Director Sidney Lumet has brought many great police dramas to life over the years. Such as the marvelous 'Serpico' With Al Pacino. 'Prince of the City' 'Q & A' among many others. But even he can't overcome the poor performance of his sadly misplaced leading lady in the already flawed 'A Stranger Among Us'. The problems begin with the film's prosaic title. Already 'A Stranger Among Us' seems trite and contrived. Perhaps sticking with the UK moniker 'Close to Eden' wouldn't have sounded as much like the title of a Lifetime movie. Griffith strikes out as a police woman who goes undercover in New York's Hissidic Jewish community to solve the disappearance of a young jewelry shop keeper whom she ultimately discovers murdered..From one of the opening scenes when Griffith asserts her character as a tough talking, trigger happy cowboy, or girl in this instance, we know the plot is headed for ridicule. Griffith never seems to leave terrible enough alone as she comes up with a new, in your face, slogan for almost every new scene and situation. Then things really take a turn for the absurd when one of the young potential Rabbis turns out to be disguised hunk Eric Thal. And grows even more ludicrous when Griffith, with the help of one the young Hissidic girls ( Mia Sara ) gets a total Jewish makeover to go undercover as one of their own. Her dyed blonde locks now toned down to a still teased, yet slightly more modest black. As she sets out to solve the crime, the relationship between her and Thal's persona Ariel seems as out of place as the police women herself. For one thing, Griffath, who looks like she's lived the hard party life she has, looks way too old for Thal, as she does for all her leading men. And where did she get and why does she employ that God forsaken Marilyn Monroe accent? Eventually the forbidden romance comes to a head, as we suffer through formulated scenes where Thal and Griffith lament the differences between their worlds. And you sense that Griffith just needs a chance to wrap her legs around the religious student for him to flush the whole faith down the toilet. In Griffith's defense it is a difficult premise to make work and I can't think of one actress who could have pulled it off convincingly. Thal tries to play it straight as the fledgling rabbi but has only his costume to work with.The whole thing plays out like kind of a reverse version of the Harrison Ford film 'Witness' Only the plot is much less imaginative and the romance can not find any foothold here. In the end Lumet didn't have no where near as much to work with as he did in most of his other films. And any hope of anyone taking any of this nonsense seriously wast lost on the incompetence of Griffith.. No doubt Lumet was forced to cast her based on the success of box office hits like 'Working Girl'. The poor old man must have been tearing his hair out. anyway, the shock ending isn't much of a shock, and you've probably already turned the channel by then. This one is definitely not kosher. Miss it. 4 out of a possible 10 T.H.

When Mel Gibson first blazed onto the American screen as Mad Max in the memorable Australian import 'The Road Warrior', well everyone including me thought we were seeing the gleaming debut of a special actor. But after watching Gibson stumble through the ludicrous 'Bird on a Wire' We ask ourselves what in the world has happened to his once promising career. Equally as bad is the limited Goldie Hawn who does nothing much but let out, what is supposed to pass for a comedic scream in almost every scene. The forgettable story centers around Rick ( Gibson ) or Billy Ray or whatever stupid handle they address him by throughout the ridiculous plot. He is in the the witness relocation plan you see after ratting out some dirty drug friends fifteen years earlier. It seems they wanted him to agree to go along with a murder, this is how they establish that Gibson is really a good guy, and he refuses by turning states evidence against one of the main bad guys. Sorenson, portrayed lifelessly by the wood faced David Carridine. Billy Ray seems to be hiding out pretty well. Working an odd job as a mechanic in Detroit. Until his old girlfriend Marianne (Hawn ) recognizes him while he is pumping gas into her car. Various references are made to the couples drug crazed romp through the latter part of the 1960s. And it turns out when the feds faked Gibson's death, Marianne was left jilted at the alter. And she is still royally P.O.d, especially after Billy Ray initially denies that he is Rick in the first place. Well, you guessed it, soon the criminals led by Carridine, show up looking for revenge and the couple hits the road looking for deliverance. Gibson tries on a variety of different accents for different situations, including American, Southern, and even homosexual. But the only one he gets right is the unintentional Australian which keeps bleeding through. Hawn trots out that same ditsy dumb blonde routine she's employed in a double figured number of films. It may work when you're twenty five and cute. But it's just plain obnoxious when you're over forty and beginning to look haggard. Gibson seems to by trying to make a comic spin off of his 'Lethal Weapon' character only without the suicidal tendencies. His tight jeans and long hairdo selling his true artistry out more with each passing frame The chemistry between the two is nonexistent, And Gibson lacks an essential element for comedy. He isn't funny. The film tries to borrow its premise from clever road films like 'Midnight Run' but lacks any of the wit or excitement. It's hard to believe that director John Badham is the same man which presided over the wonderful 'Saturday Night Fever' and other hits. The film dredges on towards its meaningless, predicable and far gone conclusion. I for one was glad to see it end. This film is disappointing at kindest. Especially since we know how good Gibson can be. If there's anything else on besides this movie, watch that instead. Sub par, 4 out of a possible 10 T.H.

Writer John Hughes, Perhaps better known for his popular yet overrated 'Home Alone' series scores here with a charming and delightful romantic comedy starring clever comedian Frank Whaley. When the town liar Jim ( Whaley ) loses his umpteenth job in comical fashion. His father lays down an ultimatum. If Jim loses one more job he will be kicked out of the house. Where Jim has already confessed that he loves living at home since the accommodations are four star. Having burned most of his bridges with the local businessmen through his incompetence Jim has few options left. And we find our hero as 'Night clean up boy' at none other than the local 'Target' store. Well this leads to all types of mishaps and hilarious situations which are executed nicely, by the clumsy and exaggerating yet imminently likable Jim. Enter the crush interest, portrayed by the fabulous Jennifer Conelly. Josie is the daughter of a local bigwig, yet she seems disenchanted by what life in the small North Carolina Town has to offer. She is the apple of Jim's eye, and just about every other male's eye within the range of vision. Conelly really looked beautiful in this role. It was before she had dieted down to where she now has two pool cues for legs. Nowadays Conelly looks as if she's had two crackers a day for the last three years. And the nose job which makes her face seem sharper and pointier does not become her. But she looks amazing here as Whaley discovers after they've locked him inside the store for the night, to look after things and tidy up. Josie, you see, in an act of rebellion has locked herself inside the store in a botched shoplift attempt. And it turns out her and Jim are the only two people in the building. The dialogue between Jim and Josie is refreshing even if it isn't realistic. Jim is incredulously surprised when Josie identifies him as the town liar. Even though she doesn't mean it as an insult. But Jim does treat her like a person instead of a sex object and this is something that Josie is not used to. The two share TV Dinners in front of the electronics presentation and even a slow dance. And you can relate to the way Jim would feel in the presence of such a gorgeous creature. He does not want the Sun to come up. It's not perfect of course. Anyone would have a hard time believing that beauty Queen Josie would fall for the twerpish bullshitting Jim. And the actors are being too serious for comedic license. But the thing is, you want to believe it, and that only adds to the film's charm. Eventually, the whole thing starts to unravel and the film degenerates into the Hughes tradition of bungling burglars and other stupid nonsense, and the magic is lost. But for a brief time the suspension of disbelief makes us exist in this modest oasis of romance, and there's no red blooded American male who didn't imagine himself there with Conelly. But between the capable antics of the sidesplitting Whaley and the remarkable beauty of the breathtaking Conelly. They are more than enough to carry a film that definitely has some top moments. Credit Hughes for coming up with a good premise than finding the perfect actors to make it work. A very enjoyable and original romantic comedy. 7 out of a possible 10 T.H.