Extreme Measures (1996)

An interesting film in numerous aspects, this Gene Hackman and Hugh Grant fronted paranoia thriller was the film that Michael Apted directed before he took the James Bond reigns for The World is Not Enough (1999), and it’s safe to say that Extreme Measures has got lost along the way. Which is a shame, because this is a very solid piece of work.

Hugh Grant is a British doctor practicing in New York, who attempts to treat a patient brought in off the street, showing bizarre symptoms that Grant’s Guy cannot understand. The patient eventually succumbs to his injuries, but Guy follows up in the following days to try and figure out what had happened, only to find that the body and all records have disappeared.

When he continues to push the issue he’s told by superiors to drop it, and we’re also introduced to Hackman’s Dr. Myrick, a neurologist who is involved in some shady business that clearly relates to Guy’s patient.

Myrick proceeds to turn Guy’s life upside down to avoid his work being uncovered and publicised, and for the first two thirds of the film the set up works very well as a thriller; Grant especially is surprisingly terrific in a serious role for a change.

As it draws to a conclusion, Extreme Measures loses its way somewhat, but maintains the viewers interest by offering some rather fascinating moral dilemmas (“if you could cure cancer by killing one innocent person to save millions, could you do it?”) and is well worth your time if you’ve never seen it; it’s certainly a forgotten gem of a performance by Hugh Grant that makes you wish he took on serious roles more often. 6.7/10