DeuceWild_77 "The Presidio" was the first released movie for Sir Sean Connery, after he won the Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his work in Brian De Palma's "The Untouchables", so the expectations were high, because Connery's career finally cemented with the box office revival and critical acclaim for "The Name of the Rose" and "Highlander" (both from '86) and now the much desired Oscar.Unfortunately, this production was plagued with a lot of misfortunes: several re-writes about the main focus on the film; a change of directors (it started as a Tony Scott project) and even the main actors (Connery replaced Lee Marvin after the legendary actor's health got worse and the heartthrob TV star, Mark Harmon was a last minute fill-in for Kevin Costner, who lost interest in the film, which upsetted his "The Untouchables" partner, Connery).Peter Hyams got the job of direct and photograph the film which he did here as a jobber and the end result is a routine and by the numbers crime / thriller / drama with a weak plot full of cliches and some really bad written dialogue, which lacks focus and looks and feels more like a pilot for some passable TV show than a theater released film.Sir Sean Connery plays Lieutenant Colonel Alan Caldwell, the Provost Marshal at the Presidio Army Base in San Francisco, who join forces with Police Inspector Jay Austin (played by Mark Harmon) to solve a case of a murdered Military police woman. As both have an old argument together, they share a dislike for one another and things get even worse when Austin meets and falls in love with the rebellious daughter of Caldwell, Donna (played by Meg Ryan), an emotionally unstable young woman who suffers from daddy's issues. Jack Warden plays Caldwell's best friend and an old comrade of arms and like the 2nd father to Donna.Saying that, "The Presidio" tries to be a crime / thriller film; a 'buddy cop' movie (the 80's popular formula of joining two rather different individuals with clashing personalities) and some family drama in the vein of "Terms of Endearment", but it fails in all the departments.Peter Hyams' direction is pedestrian; the camerawork is nothing special to talk about, so as the boring visuals (what a waste of San Francisco); some scenes are embarrassingly bad staged (such as the preliminary for the sex scene between Meg & Mark in the streets and posteriorly, the full throttle at his house which was too raunchy for a movie like this with the actors trying hard to fake it, due to their lack of on-screen chemistry) and other scenes are even treating the viewers as if they are morons (the plot's exposition at the final revealing).Now, the good aspects about the film: Connery's performance is good and he's always convincing playing an authoritarian figure. Here as a Militay progenitor, his couple of scenes with Meg Ryan (she acted better alongside Connery than Harmon) and especially, the eulogy at the end in the cemetery are "The Presidio"' highlights. Throw in a decent filmed chase in Chinatown, where co-lead Mark Harmon can finally leaves an impression, and nothing more of relevant happens here...In short, "The Presidio" was a rushed production that should have waited more time for a decent screenplay and a more compelling, charismatic and proactive co-lead (Mark Harmon seemed lost and unprepared in the role, but the funny thing is that about 2 decades later, he would dominate the screen in a way similar role of Leroy Jethro Gibbs in the hit TV show "NCIS"), which could have enhanced this film out of the potboiler territory.My vote is 6,5, because even if it's a below average film, that doesn't mean it's unwatchable or boring to follow...

Filipe Neto Although its an old movie (we're basically the same age) I still did not know it. The plot is based on an homicide investigation at the Presidio Military Base in San Francisco, by a police officer and the commander of the local Military Police. Both have a past of great differences but things get worse when the cop begins to date the military's daughter against her father's will.This film is, therefore, a thriller with an interesting story but far from being exceptional or brilliant. Sean Connery is, as usual, charm and elegance. I think he's one of the best actors of the late twentieth century. Flawless in his role, he didn't disappoint in this film. Meg Ryan also got rid of her task competently and gave the public a great performance. Mark Harmon is less known in the movies because he has turned his career to television, but was very well in his role.This movie is far from famous and may have great difficulty in winning the test of time. However, despite the lack of originality and the feeling that it's very close to television movies, it has an interesting story and, above all, an excellent cast, providing us some pleasant entertainment.

Predrag "The Presidio" is a really good movie. Well, that would be if it were a made-for-TV film, which I'm assuming that it wasn't. It's not the cast that's the problem. Sean Connery is good, as usual. And while I've been very hit-and-miss on Mark Harmon, I think that he's pretty decent here. Even Meg Ryan, who's been in quite a few completely overrated films doesn't completely stink here. "The Presidio", directed by Peter Hyams (Timecop, Stay Tuned) introduces us to an unlikely pair of Military Police played by Sean Connery (Dr. No, Highlander) and Mark Harmon (Summer School, NCIS) who must solve a murder at the Presidio, an army base in San Francisco.The plot is twisted enough to make sense and the car chase scenes in San Francisco are classical. But rather, I believe that it was the screenplay. Mr. Connery and Mr. Harmon have somewhat of a love-hate relationship here, for at least a couple of reasons. One guy hooking up with another guy's daughter might be one of them. And this little "love triangle" is what's blasé for me; it seemed to be a cheap little plot device to try and bring some interest to the characters and their plights. Overall, this film is pretty predictable and formulaic but well done. It's shot exceptionally well as all of Peter Hyams films are, Mark Harmon and Sean Connery have a great chemistry and make for a good pair in this basic buddy cop film.Overall rating: 7 out of 10.

Tweekums After an MP is shot and killed on the Presidio Military Base in San Francisco the killers flee into the city; here they kill two more people; this time city cops. Police Officer Jay Austin is put on the case as he used to be an MP who served at the Presidio. That doesn't make things easy for him though as he left the Army after his CO didn't back him when he struck a drunken colonel while arresting him… his old CO is Lt. Col. Alan Caldwell; the man he will have to liaise with if he is to solve the case. As is always the case in such movies they don't get along well at first and it looks like they will get worse when Austin goes out to dinner with the Colonel's daughter Donna. As the investigation proceeds a group of suspects emerges; all of whom served in Vietnam at the same time.This is a decent enough film but if you removed the unnecessary romance between Austin and Donna and some of the excessive banter the remaining mystery wouldn't sustain a one hour TV show! Sean Connery plays Caldwell the way he plays everybody; which isn't really a bad thing as he is an entertaining scene presence; even though I didn't buy that he'd still have that accent if he moved to the States when he was ten! Mark Harmon was OK as Austin although he has nowhere near the screen presence as Connery. The action scenes were pretty good; especially the opening night time car chase and the final shoot out in the water bottling plant. I wouldn't go out of my way to see this but it passes ninety minutes well enough if it is on TV.