SnoopyStyle Walter Lloyd (Gene Hackman) runs a Dallas lumber company. His son Chris (Matt Dillon) repairs stock cars and doesn't get along with him. His wife Donna travels to Paris but she goes missing. Father and son go off to look for her. Soon the stodgy businessman Walter turns into a man of action without Chris' knowledge. Walter is approached by two gun men with Donna's jewelry but he turns the table on them. He used to work for the CIA and reconnects with an old college Barney Taber (Josef Sommer). Chris saves his father from another gun attack and he finally comes clean to his son.Matt Dillon is overplaying the bratty know-it-all rebellious teenager role. He overplays everything by a little like when he is first told. Hackman is more of the lead and he's very solid. It's a worthwhile watch for Hackman fans. It goes to lesser seen location like Germany. It's a competent spy action thriller but Matt Dillon's character keeps annoying me with his arrogant ignorance. He's being shot at, his father is a secret spy, his mother is kidnapped and he's still chasing tail.

grubbyjeans-1 I've read the comments about this movie and agree with many; however, I don't watch movies as a critic. I watch movies for enjoyment. Many reviewers commented on weaknesses in plot, or acting, or directing and while I share some of them, I'll offer what I tell my wife frequently when she observes a "hole" in a movie: "It's a movie". It isn't real life; the plot doesn't HAVE to be perfect. The movie DOES have to be enjoyable and I have thoroughly enjoyed this movie every time I've viewed it. I like the plot, I like the acting, and I'm a huge fan of Gene Hackman. His character offers probably my favorite line of all time: "If I see you again, I won't see you again".Just enjoy the movie and don't get so bent up over the small stuff.

Richard Brunton I'm a huge Gene Hackman fan and I remembered seeing this film many years ago and thinking it was quite cool, and when I saw the title in the paper again, I thought I would find out how right I was.Well Hackman is once again excellent. He has such a natural and believable way about him in his roles that I find it hard not to be drawn into his character. He's definitely one of those actors who always plays himself, but it doesn't matter as his ability and style just carry it off without a thought. A truly great actor in my mind.Matt Dillon is also very good, although his younger trademark look of startled deer is ever present.The plot itself is a good one, in that Hackman plays Dillons father, a boring and very dull man with an equally dull job, in his sons eyes anyway. What quickly transpires is that he is not the speed limit sticking man that his son first thought, he is actually a ex CIA agent.This change is done very well, with a short set piece in an airport. With the smallest of physical changes, Hackman flips from average father to confident and action ready agent. You can see it in his manner, and it shows his excellent capability as an actor.The rest of the movie reveals the story as father and son are pulled deeper and deeper into his life, revealing the true extent of his agent activities. His son quickly realises that this is not the father he knew, and quickly grows from off-handedness to total rejection and then to acceptance again.It is an interesting movie, and the plot is quite good with some interesting action sequences. Where it fails are some of the other actors and the hectic pace of the movie, it seems as though either in filming or editing that crucial parts of the movie have been missed or removed.Big shame, but it is still good to watch for a Sunday afternoon movie. I think this may kick off my <i>watch every Gene Hackman movie</i> campaign.

Oldsport57 The performances of Matt Dillon and Gene Hackman brought this film right over the top for me.Dillon's character grows from being an obnoxious teenager, who sees Dad as an un-hip set of car keys with a hand attached to them, through the astonishing realization that Dad just may be "James Bond".And Gene Hackman brings his blazing talent to the table, unfolding from a middle-aged, pokey, conservative, 35-mile-an-hour, aw-shucks businessman into a multilingual, multitalented super-spook.The two interact perfectly! As they face dangers and intrigue together in a wild ride across the globe to save Mom, it is a delight to see them discover and appreciate the depths of each others' characters and become friends and partners."Saving Mom", was almost irrelevant!