Scott LeBrun 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.

chris The Package is an enjoyable conspiratorial cold war thriller. I was extremely excited to watch when I discovered Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones were in it as I rate them both very highly. Hackman was excellent - thoroughly believable and accomplished. I thought Tommy Lee Jones was actually pretty unremarkable in this - perhaps because the nature of his character required some discretion for dramatic purposes. I always enjoy a standout performance from someone I haven't seen much or any of before. This time around it was Dennis Franz. I thought he was excellent and brought the movie back to life when it was starting to tire. Expect some twists and turns and also expect a few almost laughable moments that weren't needed. But overall it is a decent thriller with a couple of great performances notching it up a level from bang average. One criticism would also be the pace. I felt it lag a couple of times and almost lost interest - but the pieces came together eventually and it managed to reach its dramatic conclusion.

davideo-2 STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning Seargent Johnny Gallagher (Gene Hackman) is a gruff, no nonsense army veteran who doesn't follow the rule book and leads his troops in his own distinct style. But when a mission he headed goes disasterously wrong, he finds himself assigned to escort troublesome prisoner Thomas Boyette (Tommy Lee Jones) back from Germany. But when Boyette escapes after an airport altercation, it sets in motion a chain of events, where Gallagher finds himself implicated in a murder and Boyette's true identity and intentions become more terrifying.I've always been an admirer of The Fugitive and, especially, Under Siege, so you can imagine my surprise when I discovered, for the first time, this prior Tommy Lee Jones/Andrew Davis collaboration that doesn't seem to have as much recognition. Although I was interested in seeing it, I didn't expect it to be quite up to the standards of what was to follow from the pair and while it far from falls short of even this expectation, The Package does still come off very much like a build up to something better than something on an equal footing.It opens well, in typical Davis style, and generally carries it's plot in quite a slick and competent fashion, but after a while it really does develop quite a TV movie feel, with a less involving plot and less engaging characters than those other great two films I mentioned, a story that feels slightly too heavy and complicated, while Hackman just phones in another hard faced, craggy army captain role and Jones doesn't have the material to bring his character here to life in the same way he brought out Strannix and Gerard.All that said, though, this is still quite a worthy and well made effort that is slick and polished and carries itself well enough and certainly set in stone what was to follow from Jones and Davis. **

oeoaa 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