Desperate Measures (1998)

Desperate Measures is an action thriller film that stars Michael Keaton, Andy García, Marcia Gay Harden and Brian Cox.The film was directed by Barbet Schroeder. It was filmed in both the San Francisco Bay Area and downtown Pittsburgh.Garcia stars as Frank Conner, a widowed San Francisco police officer whose young son Matt is suffering from leukemia. Without a bone marrow transplant, Matt will die, but Frank isn't a donor. In fact, the only potential match is prison inmate Peter McCabe (Keaton), a psychotic but charming serial killer. At first, McCabe refused to participate despite Conner's pleas, but eventually, the convict relents and agrees to the procedure. It is all a ruse, however, as McCabe has discovered a clever way to escape the confines of the operating room where Matt's oncologist, Dr. Hawkins (Harden) is scheduled to perform the transplant. Faced with the dual nightmare of his son's deteriorating condition and a mass murderer on the loose in a major metropolitan hospital, the frantic Conner finds himself bending and even breaking the law to bring McCabe down and save Matt's life.Too bad that the film is only masquerading as a thoughtful movie that's really about something. At heart, it's an action thriller--a chase picture. It has all the usual implausible or impossible stunts, the highway carnage, the jumps off bridges, the slides down laundry chutes, and other feats that make it more of a video game than a drama.This unfortunately makes it an average picture that would thrill action fans.

San Francisco police officer Frank Connor is in a frantic search for a compatible bone marrow donor for his gravely ill son.There's only one catch: the potential donor is convicted multiple murderer Peter McCabe who sees a trip to the hospital as the perfect opportunity to get what he wants most: freedom.With McCabe's escape, the entire hospital becomes a battleground and Connor must pursue and, ironically, protect the deadly fugitive who is his son's only hope for survival....What we have here is essentially a chase movie. Schroeder is a great director, but it seems that he has just sat back and let the actors do what they do.Keaton and Garcia are great as the two leads, and Keaton arguably plays one of his greatest roles.He's usually the nice dependable guy who just likes the easy life, but here, he's just gone all out in his portrayal. He's no Hannibal Lecter, which in some scenes he's clearly trying to be (there is even mention of him getting in your head), but nevertheless he seems more human than your usual nut-job.Garcia too is very good as the desperate dad, and both are ably supported by the rest of the cast.If you can forgive some really silly parts in the film and can forget plausibility for ninety minutes, you are going to get a rollicking good movie.It's a shame that this was overlooked in the cinemas, because it really is a treat to watch.If you get a chance to see it, please do.

Well the plot is entertaining but it is full of goof. To summarize things up, cop/dad badly wants to save his son from cancer but the only way is by getting the transplant from the criminal(Michael Keaton).well criminal agrees BUT escaped in the hospital while the transplant was going on and the police and the cop-dad is not allowed to shoot at the criminal in order to save his son. (dead criminal-no transplant-dead son).well, the police in this movie doesn't have a brain, in case they never heard of a TAZER to knock off the criminal without killing him. end of movie, as simple as that.But it when all crazy and stupid including the death of 2cops and a few doctor getting burned up pretty badly.

in fact,it's downright ludicrous at times.and the acting isn't very good.the dialogue leaves a lot to be desired,too.though i'll admit,the movie is somewhat suspenseful at times.but when you have one stupid predictable plot twist after another every few minutes,it just becomes tiresome.there really isn't much point to this movie.it's also too long by at least 30 minutes,so that doesn't help.Michael Keaton plays a good villain,but i think the filmmakers were trying to make him into something akin to Hannibal Lector,from Silence of the Lambs.well,they feel short by a country mile.it's a shame the movie wasn't better,since there were some good actors involved.oh,well.for me,Desperate Measures is a 4/10