A Major Disappointment

It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.

The acting in this movie is really good.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

Terrible movie with so many plot holes. And Gene Hackman plays a self righteous sergeant in the army. They are planning an assassination of one of the leaders. The plan includes high officials in many police departments and in the military. Hackman is on the pursuit of the truth and what happened. Of course he has an ex - wife higher up on the military chain than him so she gets some movement. Her friend, Ruth, helping her, gets killed and they are upset. Everyone gets killed except Hackman. They recruit a "buddy" of his on the Chicago P.D.... They now go on the last offensive to stop and find out what is going on. So many issues. The cop, helping Hackman, gets shot and tells Hackman to go, because he is wanted by the police and army. Does he go? No! He stays with the injured officer and then promptly gets "arrested" and is handcuffed. Is he shot in the head and then dumped out in some alley? No, they take him where, to the safe house where the plan is going down. Doo they inject him with something lethal or to put him to sleep, no, they let one guy go down to "set up" Hackman's death. But, alas, he is able to beat the guy up, all from sitting on the ground mind you, and escape. At the end all the players are in the right place to be intercepted by Hackman and Franz (The officer helping Hackman). When you watch this movie you will do what we were doing, or saying. Like, why don't they, no way and all they have to do is!!! By the way, Hackman's wife, in the movie, is a colonel and oh, isn't missed at her job (post) in the office. The Secretary and people she does "business" with are not inquiring. Lastly, Joanna Cassidy, who is Hackman,s ex wife and is helping him was distraught over her friend, as I mentioned earlier, Ruth being killed, but, they now are happy and she isn't mentioned AGAIN and they are happy, like if didn't even happen. Again, suspend your brains, which is hard to do, because even a child won't understand why they do these things. One thing, I heard Hackman turned down the role in the "Fugitive" and thus, was given to Tommy Lee Jones. Do they, Hackman mainly , read the script before they do the movie??? Because if they do, well, something is wrong in their brain . Thanks for reading. God Bless. James

Gene Hackman plays Green Beret sergeant Johnny Gallagher; stationed in Germany, he receives the order to escort a habitually rebellious soldier (Tommy Lee Jones) back to the States for a court-martial. When the soldier, or "package", escapes from him, Johnny realizes that some sort of master conspiracy is going on, and that he basically got used. With both police and the military after him, he will be able to rely on just a select few people for assistance, including his ex-wife Eileen (who is herself in the military), and his old friend Milan Delich (Dennis Franz), a lieutenant with the Chicago P.D.Somewhat under rated, among the scattering of classics on director Andrew Davis' resume, "The Package" is a slick conspiracy thriller melding themes of political intrigue and paranoia. Written by John Bishop, it's not a great story at all, but it is pretty entertaining. Even this viewer had an idea fairly early on where the story was headed, and it didn't exactly prove him wrong.Still, it's pretty easy to watch, thanks to typically sharp direction by Davis, efficient pacing, and excellent use of both German and Chicago locations. The Windy City was Davis' old stamping ground, and he uses a number of his repertory players (you'll certainly recognize some of them). Hackman is an engaging hero, and he and the effervescent Cassidy do have some nice chemistry. Jones, in the first of his three collaborations with Davis, gets to have some fun, and be somewhat enigmatic; his character is a total mercenary, yet you never really learn much about him. Franz has one of his best feature film roles, and is allowed to head into the final battle right at Hackmans' side. Pam Grier and Reni Santoni are somewhat under utilized, but John Heard, Kevin Crowley, Ron Dean, Nathan Davis (Andrews' father), Chelcie Ross, Joe Greco, and Marco St. John comprise a very fine supporting cast. Heard, in particular, exudes pompous villainy in a subtle way. You don't see him chewing on the scenery.All in all, good fun, although it's the kind of thing that might not hold up to any intense scrutiny from the viewer.Seven out of 10.

Johnny Gallagher (Gene Hackman) is a sergeant guarding the peace negotiation in Germany with his men. They get attacked by a well organized group. Col. Glen Whitacre (John Heard) blames him for the failure as well as the failed hostage rescue in Iran. He suspects a group is aiming to assassin the President. Gallagher is ordered to take a prisoner (the package) disorderly sergeant Walter Henke (Tommy Lee Jones) back to the States. Henke escapes from the men's room at the airport with the help of several accomplices. Gallagher discovers that the man isn't actually Walter Henke. He enlists his ex-wife Eileen (Joanna Cassidy)'s help. Henke's wife is killed by an assassin and Gallagher is detained. Eileen discovers the package's true identity is Thomas Boyette. There is a conspiracy from both militaries to stop the treaty. Gallagher and Eileen enlists his old friend Chicago Police Lieutenant Milan Delich (Dennis Franz)'s help.The basic scheme doesn't make too much sense. It seems to be way too complicated and it would be simpler to leave Gallagher out of it. If they want Henke as the patsy, then they need to kill Gallagher at the airport or use one of their own men to transport Boyette. It's obvious the scheme is fashioned after the premise of Hackman and TLJ is hatched by the writer. By letting Gallagher go at the airport, he's obviously going to look and find out that the prisoner isn't actually Henke. The story needs a few more passes to iron out these problems. If one turns off the brain, this thriller goes on auto pilot and does a good job with that. Hackman is always capable in these kinds of tense thrillers. As a historical oddity, the movie was released at around the same time that the people were circumventing the Berlin Wall signaling the end of the Cold War. The movie is overtaken by history just as it was released.

I first saw the "The Package" as a video rental back in 1990. It's not only one of Andrew Davis' best films, but one of the best political thrillers I think ever made. The plot is as intricate and complex as movie viewers will see. Just take some of the best elements of a Tom Clancy novel, set it in an urban setting, namely Chicago where Davis is from, and you've got a typical Andrew Davis film. Like "The Fugitive" "Above the Law" and "Code of Silence", "The Package" sets its story around a plot filled with conspiracies, cover-ups and political power games. The plot, as I said, is intricate. Some in this forum and elsewhere said it's too confusing. Perhaps. So is the real-life JFK assassination. But all of the bells and whistles are necessary. The story (and here's a spoiler warning for you!) is about a plot to assassinate the Russian President during a U.S. summit held in Chicago. The plot involves high-level American and Russian political and military officials. What they hope to accomplish is somewhat revealed in the end. The Cold War --in the film-- is ending, but some in the U.S. government don't want to see that happen. So, a scheme is concocted to find a patsy, set him up as a radical, and frame him for the assassination. The Russians, presumably, will blame the United States for their president's death, regardless of the circumstances. What will all this lead to? World War III? A new Cold War? A coup d'etat in the American government? The film, understandably, leaves that up for speculation. The ride is more fun than sometimes the payoff in this kind of film. That's pretty much this movie's plot. But then again, this is a plot in many movies. Other films, however, fail to give us a compelling story. Not the case with "The Package." Too many movies just gives us wall-to-wall action with a cookie-cutter plot to get us from one action scene to the next. The good thing about this film is that there are plenty of action scenes, but the real enjoyment is trying to piece the puzzle together. So, if you like those type of thrillers, you'll love this film.TLD - Chicago