'Proof of Life'
The Ringer's Bill Simmons and Chris Ryan head down to the South American jungle to rewatch the 2000 action thriller 'Proof of Life,' starring Meg Ryan, Russell Crowe, and David Morse.
Cast
Russell Crowe as Terry Thorne
Meg Ryan as Alice Bowman
David Morse as Peter Bowman
David Caruso as Dino
Pamela Reed as Janis Goodman
Anthony Heald as Ted Fellner
Directed by: Taylor Hackford
Notes
- Bill and Chris openly acknowledge this is a self-indulgent pick – 'this is like 15 for them, one for us'.
- The shoot in Ecuador was brutal: hailstorms, mudslides, 23 crew with altitude sickness at 14,000 feet, volcanic eruptions, tear gas from riots, and stunt double Will Gaffney died during filming.
- Russell Crowe jumped on a helicopter with no safety harness, 100 feet up, for a stunt.
- Crowe turned down Wolverine (too similar to 'Gladiator'), The Matrix (couldn't get past page 42), and nearly did 'Collateral' before scheduling conflicts sent it to Tom Cruise.
- Harrison Ford was originally offered the lead and turned it down.
- The real-life Crowe/Meg Ryan affair during filming paralleled the on-screen relationship and became a massive tabloid story – an unintentional passing of the torch from Meg Ryan as America's sweetheart.
- Dennis Quaid said his anger over Meg Ryan's greater fame doomed their marriage.
- Taylor Hackford shot the Crowe/Ryan sex scene both ways and cut it after screening – a key decision that may have made the movie worse.
- Henry Cavill was an extra on set who asked Russell Crowe for acting advice; they stayed friends, and Crowe played his father in Man of Steel.
- Van Morrison contributed to the soundtrack.
Categories
David Caruso steals every scene he's in as Dino, Russell Crowe's right-hand man in the K&R operation.
Anthony Heald as the slimy corporate guy who doesn't want to pay the ransom.
- Harrison Ford was offered the lead and turned it down.
- Russell Crowe turned down Wolverine/X-Men because it felt too similar to 'Gladiator', turned down The Matrix because he couldn't get past page 42, and nearly did 'Collateral' before scheduling conflicts sent it to Tom Cruise.
The various villain performances – Arturo, Wakko, and Kessler all chewing scenery.
Danny Trejo – this is a better movie with Danny Trejo in it somewhere.
- The maid somehow recognizes Marco's voice on the phone.
- Meg Ryan's character holds cigarettes in seven different scenes but never actually smokes.
- The logistics of the flight home at the end make no sense.
Not really, but Bill and Chris want a Crowe/Caruso kidnap-and-ransom sequel or series.
- How much is your spouse worth in ransom?
- How do the flight home logistics work at the end?
- What does David Morse smell like after months in captivity?
David Morse – this might be his most prominent role, and he's great in it.
Russell Crowe – the movie lives and dies with his charisma and he carries it.