Considering the success of The Fugitive, and the fact that a number of scenes were stolen by Tommy Lee Jones working the case with his colleagues, it was inevitable that people would try to come up with a sequel. You can't just frame Dr. Richard Kimble (Harrison Ford) again though, so what do you do? You get someone else who ends up on the run while declaring that they're actually an innocent party. Tommy Lee Jones (as Samuel Gerard) and co. are all back, joined for a large chunk of their investigation by Robert Downey Jr., and Wesley Snipes is the fugitive being hunted.
Neither writer John Pogue nor director Stuart Baird have filmographies full of features that would inspire confidence in anyone knowing that they were given responsibility for this. While the first film took an enjoyably simple premise and interspersed the cat and mouse narrative with some truly brilliant set-pieces (set-pieces that hold up today as prime examples of superior blockbuster movie moments), U. S. Marshals makes things needlessly complicated, scatters around a trail of breadcrumbs that viewers won't care to see followed, and only has one moment that comes even close to anything in the first movie. Pogue makes the mistake of thinking that Jones alone can carry the movie (as much as I like him, he isn't up to that task), and that Snipes can make a decent replacement for Ford (as much as I like him, he also isn't up to that task).
The supporting cast provide all of the treats here, although I am not saying that either Jones or Snipes are bad. They're just stuck with providing a centrepiece for something that doesn't allow them to work at their best. Downey Jr. is fun though, although his character development is as predictable as you might expect Downey Jr. to be saddled with at about this time, and Joe Pantoliano, Daniel Roebuck, Tom Wood, and LaTanya Richardson remain a loyal and talented group working for the determined Gerard. They also seem to be having fun with their roles, in contrast to the two leads who seem far less comfortable working within the confines of the blockbuster requirements.
The best way to describe everything else her is lacklustre. From the plotting and dialogue to the editing and production design, from the cinematography to the Jerry Goldsmith score, there's just nothing here that feels as if it was made with care and enthusiasm. I'm not saying that's the case, it just isn't conveyed to viewers.
If you have recently watched The Fugitive and you are wondering what to watch next for the same mix of thrills, tension, verbal sparring, and spectacle, I would have to tell you to just rewatch The Fugitive. Or, as I have said before when reviewing it, be sure to make some time for In The Line Of Fire (which is a bit darker, but no less brilliant in terms of star-powered thriller fare). This sequel is probably already forgotten by most people anyway. If I have reminded you of it just now, and if you're now curious, then I can only apologise and encourage you to forget it again ASAP.
4/10
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