S nasazením života

"In the Line of Fire" is a very exciting film and works well because the film was well cast and very well written. Clint Eastwood plays an old Secret Service agent whose claim to fame was his being on the detail that "protected" President Kennedy in Dallas in 1963. Not surprisingly, he blames himself for the assassination and although he seems like a great agent, he is imperfect and vulnerable.

Out of the blue, a strange threat arises -- a would-be assassin (John Malkovich) who announces himself to Eastwood's character! In other words, he tells the Service that he's going to kill the President and taunts them! And throughout the film, the psycho keeps contacting Eastwood -- as if they are old friends!

While I am pretty sure a Secret Service agent would watch this film and spot a few flaws, for the average Joe, it seems pretty tight and well made. My only quibble was the notion in one scene where the agent (Eastwood) did NOT kill the killer when he had a chance because he knew he'd die in the process. My assumption is a real agent wouldn't even think about this. Perhaps I am wrong. But, it did make for good viewing -- as did all the film. Plus, using an old guy like Eastwood worked because his age was figured into the plot -- not some old guy pretending to be a lot younger than he really is. Well done.