Chain Reaction (1996) PG13 - 3 Stars

Even though the movie stars Morgan Freeman, one of my favorites, unfortunately even he can't hold this one up. Rachel Weisz, though a good actress, her accent and demeanor just don't seem to fit with me. Scientist, yes, but with this group, no. The movie starts well with it's best scene, an explosion that Keanu Reeves must out ride, that you think this might be a good action packed adventure. But from that point on, the pace drags on and you loose connection with who's doing the chasing. Identification of the real bad guys is unclear and it's not clear if Freeman is a good or bad guy. Who are all these secret agencies? I've actually seen the movie twice now and it doesn't become any clearer. To me, the only memorable part is the awesome explosion at the start.

Eddie Kasalivich (Keanu Reeves), a bright student at the University of Chicago, is working with a team of other scientists, on a new fusion technology to turn water into clean energy. Paul Shannon (Morgan Freeman), is overseeing the project. One day while Eddie is working from home, he finds an audio frequency which causes his mini reactor to work. Overjoyed, he takes the concept to the lab to try it large scale. A celebration of the team is in order when the process succeeds. After drinking too much, co-worker Lily Sinclair (Rachel Weisz), allows Eddie to drive her home. When he returns to the plant to retrieve his motorcycle, he witnesses a van pulling away and hears the alarm from inside. Dr. Alistair Barkly (Nicholas Rudall), has been tied up and blindfolded and the fusion reactor is about to blow. Eddie barely has time to escape the building before it explodes reducing a large neighborhood to ruins. The president is notified and the FBI, headed by Agent Ford (Fred Ward), is called in to investigate. Eddie returns to Lily's house as it seems he is the one that has been framed for taking Dr. Barkly's life and disintegrating an entire town. The rest of the movie is the two fleeing for their lives as the FBI, tries to take them out.

Zanuck Company, The, Chicago Pacific Entertainment, 20th Century Fox
Director: Andrew Davis
Writers: J.F. Lawton, Michael Bortman
Producers: Andrew Davis, Arne Schmidt

I viewed 3/09