Weak performances, directionless plot set 'Switch' back

Interestingly enough, trains are a recurring motif in the movie "Switchback." Interesting because, unlike the movie itself, these trains are heading in some direction, trying to reach some destination.

"Switchback" marks the directorial debut, and hopefully the finale too, of Jeb Stuart, best known as the screenwriter of "Die Hard" and "The Fugitive." Stuart has managed to write, produce and direct a suspense movie in which suspense plays no part. By the end of this pointless and uninteresting film, you may very well be wondering how this train ever left the station.

REVIEW
	Switchback 1 star At Showcase

The wildly improbable plot centers around FBI Agent Frank LaCrosse (Dennis Quaid) and his search for the serial killer who, in addition to having murdered 18 people, has also kidnapped his son.

The FBI has pulled LaCrosse off the case, yet he pursues his son's kidnapper regardless. He goes to some town that is embroiled in a sheriff's election, where murders fitting the serial killer's style have occurred.

At this point, the movie gets off the track completely and loses whatever suspense it may have had. Should Sheriff Buck Olmstead (R. Lee Ermey) help LaCrosse even though it may cost him the election? This thread of the plot is so uninteresting, you find yourself hoping to see even more of Quaid's bad performance.

Quaid tries hard to make the character of LaCrosse appear purposeful and single-minded. Instead, his terrible performance gives LaCrosse less warmth and personality than the film's many cadavers.

Above: Dennis Quaid is Frank LaCrosse, an FBI agent who is on the tail of the serial killer, in the completely uninteresting, ridiculous "Switchback."

On the other side of the equation, Danny Glover plays railroad worker Bob Goodall in an acting showcase that is only slightly better than Quaid's. Glover plays the serial killer as a genial and beloved blue-collar worker, whom no one suspects of being a murderer.

Glover's performance is meant to show us that serial killers are no different than normal people. (If this movie had continued beyond the last dreadful scene, we would have no doubt heard Goodall's neighbors saying something like: "He was such a nice man, we had absolutely no idea he enjoyed killing people!")

Goodall drives around in a Cadillac that is upholstered with pictures of naked women and picks up hitchhiker Lane Dixon (Jared Leto). Leto's role is perplexing because it is so totally unrelated to the plot or action of the movie. It's as if the makers of this movie wanted to have more actors involved in the production but could not come up with a good reason.

The screenplay does not give the actors much to work with. Apparently, the filmmakers, led by Production Designer Jeff Howard, spent several days meticulously outfitting seven Cadillacs with nudie pictures, going so far as to get a Playboy photographer to make sure that the cars were lined with only the highest quality female nudity. If only Stuart had spent as much time and effort writing a thoughtful screenplay as was spent providing Goodall with fitting transportation, perhaps he would have succeeded in making an exciting film.

Even the action sequences lack any originality or pizzazz. The final train shots are a rip-off of many other movies.

Luckily for LaCrosse, Goodall falls off and impales himself. After seeing this dreadful production you may wish the same had happened to you.

Jared Leto (known for his role on "My So-Called Life") plays a hitchhiker in "Switchback." His character adds nothing to the plot, but we'll forgive him because he looks so damn good.

Danny Glover

11-04-97