“The Fugitive” was a popular 1960s TV series and a blockbuster 1993 movie starring Harrison Ford that won Tommy Lee Jones an Academy Award. Now it’s the latest “movies in chapters” edition to the growing Quibi library. The short-form streaming service presents 14 episodes under 10 minutes each, from August 3-18.
In this case, the title is referring to Mike Ferro (played by Boyd Holbrook). He’s congratulated by his parole officer for being out of prison for six months after a three-year stint. Mike’s daughter really won’t talk to him, and his wife is going on a business trip. At the end of the opening “episode”, Mike is seen existing a Los Angeles subway car. His P.O. is still on it. Moments later, it explodes.
The L.A.P.D. is immediately on the case. Detective Clay Bryce (played by Kiefer Sutherland) and his team look over security camera footage and quickly determine Mike to be their prime suspect. As he did as overnight U.S. President Tom Kirkman on “Designated Survivor”, Sutherland once again plays a character involved in a bombing investigation with numerous casualties. The Emmy-winning actor also reunites with director Stephen Hopkins, who did the first season of “24”.
I screened the first four episodes of “The Fugitive”, totaling about 35 minutes. Unlike previous versions of the story, we don’t completely know if Mike is innocent. At this point, it’s more of a [possible] misidentification than a framing. I understand why Hopkins wanted to incorporate more of a mystery element to this adaptation, and it works.
“The Fugitive” quickly draws you in, the action/intensity levels are just where they need to be, and Sutherland’s got a couple of juicy one-liners. I’m slowly warming-up to the subplot involving news reporter Pitti (“The Good Place”’s Tiya Sircar).
The Bottom Line: If this was presented as a two-hour movie without any interruptions, I would keep watching. I couldn’t say quite the same thing after watching the first four parts of Quibi’s “Most Dangerous Game” earlier this year (though star Christoph Waltz did just earn an Emmy nomination for his solid performance). So if you’re a Sutherland fan, know the previous versions and/or are just looking for something to watch: give “The Fugitive” a shot.