Desperate Hours (1990)

In need of a hideout, an escaped convict (Mickey Rourke) gains entry into the home of an upper middle class family. Accompanied by his accomplices, his brother (Elias Koteas) and an unstable simple minded psychopath (David Morse), he terrorizes the family while waiting for his girlfriend (Kelly Lynch). Based on the novel and play by Joseph Hayes (previously filmed in 1955) and directed by Michael Cimino (THE DEER HUNTER). Directed by William Wyler, the 1955 film was one of the first home invasion thrillers. It wasn't that great a film so one wonders why Cimino felt the need to remake it. The result is kind of a mess. It's sloppy film making and with one exception, badly acted down the line. Would the police really allow an attorney to see her client without checking her for weapons? And why does Rourke allow Morse to leave when it's clear he's unstable and likely to get them caught? The family held hostage are a bunch of jerks and behave stupidly when they have several chances to escape. Maybe if Cimino's movie had been leaner and tighter, there wouldn't be time to think about all that but it's a flabby inept movie. The one decent performance is by Kelly Lynch as Rourke's attorney and lover who helps bust him out of prison. The rest of the cast aren't able to overcome the bad writing. With Anthony Hopkins, Mimi Rogers, Lindsay Crouse and Shawnee Smith.