Kurt Russell has had a long and hugely successful career bouncing back and forth between every-man roles and bigger than life heroes like Plissken or MacReady.
In 1997, he played a New England man moving to California with his wife in BREAKDOWN. Jeff Taylor (Russell) and his wife Amy (Kathleen Quinlan) have packed their nice new Jeep with snacks and luggage and are heading to the west coast for a new job.
When a chance encounter with some desert dwelling lowlifes spins into a much more aggressive confrontation at a gas station in the middle of nowhere, Jeff and Amy get back on the road, driving quickly to get away.
When their Jeep suddenly stops, the Taylors are left stranded with no town in sight and no one they know for 2000 miles.
A trucker, Red Barr (perfectly played by character actor JT Walsh, who you've seen in 100 movies) stops and offers to pick them up, bet Jeff wants to stay with the car. Amy takes the ride to a diner about ten miles away, where she will call a tow truck and come back for Jeff.
The day runs long, Jeff finds himself waiting and waiting for his wife. He gets the car started and then heads directly to the diner, where no one has seen his wife or the trucker. He then manages to find Barr's 18-wheeler, where the trucker denies ever meeting his bride.
The film takes off from there in many directions, most of which are surprisingly believable, but I wont share any of them here. It's better that you stay on the edge of your seat just like I did as the trail twists and turns.
It's fun to watch the transformation of Russell from preppie tourist to vengeful husband and the red rock landscape proves a cool setting for all of the action.
Composer Basil Poledouris (Conan the Barbarian, The Hunt for Red October) had to write two completely different scores for the film when the first one was rejected, but kudos to all involved becuase his second version here is terrific.
A great little thriller, BREAKDOWN is suspenseful, fast moving and gets a B.
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