An (allegedly) accurate account of what happened when heiress Patricia Hearst (Natasha Richardson) was kidnapped by a terrorist group. They brainwashed her and she ended up helping them commit crimes.
Plenty of people have gone on and on and on (and on) about the politics of the movie. I can't really comment on that since I was only 12 when she was kidnapped and knew little about it. I saw this movie with no preconceived notions about whether it was true or false or if the politics were accurate. So (as a movie) this fails badly. It's flatly directed, badly acted (except for a few exceptions) and has a script that has some of the dumbest lines I've ever heard. All the "revolutionaires" ideals came across as extremely questionable and I actually started to laugh when Ving Rhames started spouting off about it. This is not to say that Rhames was bad (he was actually pretty good) but the lines he's given are just utter drivel. The only good thing about this is Richardson. Considering she has nothing to work with she's incredible. She convincingly fakes an American accent and Hearst's pain, confusion and terror come through. Still, her acting can't save this terrible movie. This bombed in 1988 and has since sunk without a trace. I heard that Hearst herself saw it and hated it. This really isn't worth your time. Skip it.
Plenty of people have gone on and on and on (and on) about the politics of the movie. I can't really comment on that since I was only 12 when she was kidnapped and knew little about it. I saw this movie with no preconceived notions about whether it was true or false or if the politics were accurate. So (as a movie) this fails badly. It's flatly directed, badly acted (except for a few exceptions) and has a script that has some of the dumbest lines I've ever heard. All the "revolutionaires" ideals came across as extremely questionable and I actually started to laugh when Ving Rhames started spouting off about it. This is not to say that Rhames was bad (he was actually pretty good) but the lines he's given are just utter drivel. The only good thing about this is Richardson. Considering she has nothing to work with she's incredible. She convincingly fakes an American accent and Hearst's pain, confusion and terror come through. Still, her acting can't save this terrible movie. This bombed in 1988 and has since sunk without a trace. I heard that Hearst herself saw it and hated it. This really isn't worth your time. Skip it.