Fled (1996) User Reviews

Actioner which borrows most of its ideas from other pictures

[barnabyrudge · 4/10 · 28 January 2003]

Fled is a cheerfully illogical actioner which rattles along at a seriously rapid pace without ever pausing for breath. It's stupid and spectacular in equal measure.

The plot hardly seems important, but for what it's worth here it is: a Cuban mafia boss has foolishly allowed himself to leave some incriminating evidence on a computer disk. The only guy who knows where the whereabouts of the disk is in a chain gang in the Deep South. An undercover cop is sent to the chain gang to find out where the disk is, and to keep the guy alive when the Cuban hitmen turn up to silence him.

The first half of the movie borrows liberally from The Defiant Ones, with Baldwin and Fishburne chained together and fleeing through the swamps from both the good guys and the bad guys. Later on, they reach the big city, and the film then borrows ideas from any police actioner that you could care to mention (Lethal Weapon, The Dead Pool, Tango and Cash, Striking Distance, et al). In fact, the second half of the film consists solely of fist fights and car chases and shootouts, all inspired by similar movies from the genre.

Fled never bores you, but it never particularly engages your brain. It is a quickly forgotten film, but it is also the perfect film to watch with your mates while you sink a six-pack of beer and a 16" pizza on a Friday night.

deserves a higher rating, but not very

[jbryanc · 6/10 · 21 December 2002]

Mindless chasing and shooting. This one leaves plenty of your mind unoccupied to wonder such things as: How can a guy shoot a three-quarter inch rope with a handgun and miss everything with a shotgun? Why is RuPaul in this movie for 15 seconds? Would the feds really honour a verbal agreement to let you off after you've shot up a lot of folks and a lot of Atlanta? Could a limo really keep up with a Ducatti? Is it true that all you've got to do to get a semi out of your way is to lean on the horn?

See How They Run

[bkoganbing · 5/10 · 25 May 2009]

The unlikeliest of partners, Laurence Fishburne and Stephen Baldwin are chained together and make a jail break together from a Georgia road gang. It's now the Nineties and objections about a black and white convict being chained together are now passé. Even with race not a really big issue with these two guys as it was in The Defiant Ones, they've still got a lot of other problems.

The most curious thing about this is the interest the Feds have in this jailbreak. They're keeping the Atlanta PD cop who busted Baldwin in the loop, but at a distance and this arouses Will Patton's curiosity no end. US Marshal Robert John Burke is playing things way too close to the vest to suit Patton.

Baldwin's who they're after. He's a computer hacker who hacked into a holding company that the Cuban Mafia owns and ripped off 25 million dollars. The local Cuban don, Michael Nader, wants him real bad. The wild thing in this film is that he's the only one in the cast who is what he says he is.

A couple of current beauties, Selma Hayek and Brittany Powell, decorate this film as love interests for both Fisburne and Baldwin. Hayek is introduced rather clumsily into the situation that our escapees find themselves in.

In fact the film, enjoyable though it is in many places, could have been a lot better with a much tighter script. Director Kevin Hooks did a good job with what he was given. In fact Kevin Hooks got to cast his dad Robert Hooks in a role as the Atlanta PD supervisor for Patton.

Fled is not a bad film, it could have used a lot of improvement though in the writing.

Not terrible, but could have been a lot better

[King_Opossum · 26 May 2000]

FLED is, perhaps, best watched very late at night after a bit of a drink when you don't seem to care about plot holes, bland characters and poor acting. Although not as diabolically awful as other reviewers have made out, this is a pretty bad remake of a great classic. What they seem to have forgotten is that when they made THE DEFIANT ONES, it was at a time where racial awareness was so topical - in FLED the conflict is represented by just one line.

The two leads are acceptable, with Laurence Fishburne flexing his fighting skills ready for THE MATRIX. Stephen Bladwin is his usual surly smouldering self, and there is a very small (ie no reason to watch it just for this!) part from Salma Hayek.

Although a little overdone, I enjoyed the film references made by Baldwin's character, and you will have a chuckle at the very final one...!

Enjoyable. But.....

[Mickey Knox · 5/10 · 22 December 2000]

Fled is an enjoyable action movie, not as bad as other users said it is, but with nothing special. The bad thing about it is that it's a remake, after a movie titled The Defiant Ones. And of course remakes are inferior movies by definition.

Except that, it has all the ingredients of an enjoyable film, very good to watch if you don't want to use your brain too much. The acting is good, there is alot of action, some funny one-liners, a nice ending.

All in all, pleasant, but that's it. Vote: 5 out of 10.

The odd couple

[jotix100 · 7/10 · 4 January 2005]

While this is not a film that will mark any new trend in the thriller genre, it's not unpleasant to watch. The director, Kevin Hooks, working on the script written by Preston Whitmore, delivers a an action film that is easy to watch.

Preston Whitmore's screen play combines elements from different movies that have been much better, but that said, while it's not breaking any grounds, the film keeps one's interest throughout.

Laurence Fishburne and Stephen Baldwin make an odd couple indeed. Mr. Baldwin acts with a blank expression most of the time he is seen. Mr. Fishburne has been around for a while; with the right director he is more effective than what he shows in this movie.

Will Patton, one of the best character actors working in films today, has a small, but effective role. It'shame because he can outperform this cast by only saying his lines. Salma Hayek's Cora, the girl with a heart of gold, is a welcome presence for the eyes.

The beginning of the film, as well as the closing scenes are the best things going because it sags a bit in the middle section, but all in all, it will keep the viewer entertained without pretending to be more.

Why persist in making remakes of classic movies

[serpico_usa · 1/10 · 31 January 2006]

I accidentally stumbled on this movie channel surfing and now regret channel surfing! How bad a movie is this in that the acting is horrible. Mr. Baldwin please note only Brando and Dean could get away with the attitude and look you try to convey here. As for Mr Fishburne I have had enough of Black actors conveying that everyone in the world owes them. The original of this movie was the Defiant Ones with two great actors in Tony Curtis and Sydney Poitier and was a classic in story line and acting, this is BAD. There is a scene early in the movie where a good ole boy holds a shotgun on the two escaped convicts,but talks to them and does not shoot them. He would have done us all a favor and finished the movie there and then

Very, very average

[Gubby-Allen · 6/10 · 13 February 2002]

As average a film as you'll se. Not much to say on it. Starts off very well with much promise but once they unchain themselves turns into a run of the mill action film, nothing different. One or two of the subplots, the romances especially, seemed trivial. It may even of been a better story had Fishburne not been a copper and a different plot.

Quite why they didn't shoot the chain apart when they had the gun I don't know either, but they chose to drive, still attached. No character is especially warming, but there's a good cast, nothing wrong with the acting & great to see old Dex Dexter, Michael Nader in a role, as he was brilliant in Dynasty & never looked even slightly out of place here.

Better than it's 4.9 rating, but not by much.

6/10.

Dumb at it's Dumbest

[NerveBoy · 1/10 · 26 October 1998]

Fled is, without a doubt, the stupidest, most brainless, pointless action movie ever (or at least something REALLY close). Imagine getting high, and going on a scavenger hunt to places that are completely irrelevant to what you're doing, having shoot-outs with hitmen from the mafia, and acting like you're cool. Congratulations!! You're a character from Fled. The plot keeps changing, but not in a good way, like L.A. Confidential. I'm talking like in a "oh, ok. so he's a cop, and he's a thief, but not a bad thief, and this cop guy is not a prisoner, but, um THIS SUCKS. etc. etc." frustrating, meaningless, stupid sort of way. My advice to you is: FLEE FROM FLED. It's a movie for idiots.

Cool, low budget chase movie.

[rustiswordz · 6/10 · 23 April 2007]

As with many movies, as long as the viewer doesn't read too much into the movie you will do OK! Its a fun fast paced road movie-ish, fugitive styled chase movie.

It's well filmed, and slickly edited for a low budget chase flick.The acting is simply and solidly done even if the dialogue is a tad cheesy. Steven Baldwin is the token down at the heel hero, Laurence Fishburne is cool as the mentor type character, pulling the hero out of one fix after another. Salma Hayek is as stunning as ever but the best character is Gib played by Will Hatton, a highly likable character whos putting the puzzle together as the heros run around.

Not a classic but worth a late night look see when you get home from the pub with a bag of munchies.

Bad

[Ebo · 3/10 · 10 May 1999]

Basically, the only reason to see this movie is to see Will Patton's fine performance in a peripheral supporting role. If you're not the kind of person who'd watch a bad movie because a good actor is in a peripheral role, this is not the movie for you. Even those who would are likely to get more enjoyment doing something else.

A Fresh Angle On Worn Out Thriller Plots

[CavemanGSz · 8/10 · 27 August 2000]

I've seen comment about this film putting it down. I disagree. The film is built on good actors and good directorship. I agree that the film has weak spots in the script, but HEY what action film doesn't. I don't think I'll put the film in the TOP 10, but don't forget that there is only place for ten films in the TOP 10.

The plot isn't the smartest one, or a reliable one but it's fun, and actually has some shining smart points.

If you like action movies in general, you'll like this one for sure.!!

Rate: 8 of 10

Not too bad...

[muvphreek · 7/10 · 16 November 2005]

This film, admittedly, is not the best of the genre but it is entertaining if you set aside the obvious parallels to films that came before. In fact, the script intentionally incorporates previous films by references from Dodge and Piper. The one at the end was hilarious!

It could have been better in a few places and it certainly could have been worse. Better: have a little more animated performance from Baldwin, perhaps a little less gore and sadistic behavior by the Cubans and a bit more believability in the fire-fights.

Kudos to Mr. Hooks for keeping it from becoming worse! My wife and I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend it to any free-thinking adults looking for a fairly good film to watch after the kids are in bed. Don't forget the popcorn.

Mildly entertaining movie

[smatysia · 5/10 · 9 June 2016]

This was a mildly entertaining movie. Laurence Fishburne was in his prime as a taciturn action figure. Stephen Baldwin was adequate, quite an accomplishment for any of the Baldwin brothers not named Alec. Salma Hayek was awfully gorgeous back then, and one can see why she has had quite a career since then. And kudos to Brittney Powell in a small role. We have to mention Will Patton as well, in a role badly underutilized. There were decent production values, unobtrusive direction, nice photography of the Atlanta area. But overall, this film missed the mark, largely due to an uninspired script. Can't recommend it, but it isn't terrible either

One of Will Patton's best performances!

[johnnysure1 · 12 July 2004]

Will Patton is one of our finest actors, having blessed the screen with a variety of memorable characters. Unfortunately, most of his performances seem to be in movies like this: generic action films which nobody has any need to remember. Sure, he gets to show up in great movies (NO WAY OUT), good movies (REMEMBER THE TITANS), and popular movies (ARMAGEDDON), but the man is a working actor who ain't embraced by the masses, so he also has to make movies like this. Not that this is a painfully bad movie... it's just so darn generic. And the testament to the man's performance is that there is nothing on paper that should make this a particularly great role. But darn it if he isn't the moral center of the movie.

If you don't know who this guy is, you can skip the movie with a clear conscience. But if you are a fan of the man, this performance is one of his best.

Comical and Sad!

[mimiybyazphil · 4/10 · 29 March 2022]

This movie must have been written by Stevie Wonder! Only a blind person would have written such a hot mess!! Set in Georgia, it has a Federal Prison located in Covington Ga., a small hamlet outside Atlanta, where a REAL Federal Prison is located! When the prison break occurs,on a road work gang, the ATLANTA PD shows up!

Along with the FBI,County Sheriff,and Federal Marshalls!

The plot gets sillier from that pount on!

The only reason it got a 4 was because it was filmed in Atlanta.

Fun film that pays tribute to other action films

[bloodthirstyaction · 6/10 · 16 May 2009]

Of course many people will say this movie was irrational and unoriginal, and truthfully, it was. But beside the lack of creativity, the film was actually a fun little action flick. The film is split into two main segments. The first part is a fugitive run away type chase that is somewhat entertaining. The 2nd takes part in the city that consists of many twists and "dramatic" deaths. Neither of these parts are amazingly great but they are both watchable. Fishburne is the stiff no nonsense character that he usually is and Baldwin is the rather silly but intelligent technical geek. The film, in my opinion, is somewhat of a homage to older action films and was worth a watch.

Story 6/10 Action 7/10 Acting 6/10 Watchability 6/10 Total 6/10

Fled is a FLOP

[imseeg · 4/10 · 19 February 2022]

Back to nineties. That's what I thought. I went back allright, because I had seen this movie back then and I had remembered it as a good action packed movie. WRONG memory.

The bad: this movie is SILLY. Really silly. The dialogues are completely laughable. The characters cant be taken seriously. The action is boring. What's left? A cheap formula action movie from the nineties that can best be forgotten...

A decent action film

[jonathanmark-77048 · 6/10 · 15 July 2017]

Plot: Two prisoners chained together flee during an escape attempt gone bad.

This is a decent action film, no more no less. The story is simple, even though it tends to rip off other films in certain scenes. Certain actors do good and certain ones are really bad, the ones that are good are Laurence Fishburne, Salma Hayek, and Will Patton. The ones that are bad are the rest of the cast especially Stephen Baldwin who is very annoying and very miscast.

The action is well done, the story while very generic and is average at best, some of the cast is good and some are bad. Overall Fled is a decent timewaster at best that is at least worth a look just once.

This isn't divorce.....

[FlashCallahan · 4/10 · 19 March 2010]

Dodge is a computer hacker serving a prison term; Piper is a tough guy.

They end up chained together, and flee during a chain-gang escape attempt that goes bad.

An adventure plot ensues, involving a missing floppy disk, an attractive woman that assists them, a sinister Federal marshal, an honest cop, and the Cuban mafia....

Sounded like a good idea at the time. Baldwin who was reasonably fresh from 'The Usual Suspects' and Larry 'I'll Change my name to Laurence' Fishburne, chained together and on the run, sounded like it could have been a good buddy movie with lots of one liners and good set pieces.

It isn't i'm afraid. What you get is stereotypical characters coming and going, weak plot, and cheap production values, only made better by half decent performances from Patton And Fishbourne.

It tries to be too clever for it's own good, with in jokes to films featuring cast members, and having silly twist after silly twist, making it just too boring come the end.

If Hooks had watched a few cannon films from the eighties and focused on the action rather than the incomprehensible story, this would have been an amazing, funny if un-original action film.

what we get is un-original and bored.

Flee.

Very Watchable Action Movie

[docm-32304 · 7/10 · 17 August 2019]

I watched this movie with reservations after reading some of the reviews, but found it to be a most suitable entertainment. The plot summary will make you roll your eyes as, yes, there have been a few other films with the same plot. But one thing any fan of movies knows is that Hollywood rarely has any original ideas, so just relax, sit back and enjoy this film as consider it on it's own as an enjoyable afternoon entertainment. Personally I find Stephen Baldwin dislikable in all the roles he's played, but the sketchy character he plays in this one works fine There are plenty of implausible spots in the movie as with ALL action films so don't bother trying to look for them. Bottom line... it's watchable.

Laurence Fishburne and Stephen Baldwin escape and go on the moralistic tour.

[Boba_Fett1138 · 5/10 · 17 May 2008]

Not really too sure what to think of this movie. On the one hand it's a fast going action flick that is always on the movie and on the other hand it's a movie with a real muddled main plot that makes some odd choices with its characters and story elements.

Here we have two tough convicts that escaped but are still friendly enough to save a little boy from being run over and they bring a man to the hospital who tried to shoot them but than got an heart attack in the process. There are some moralistic elements in the movie that seem highly out of place, especially when the main characters in the progress of the movie shoot around a lot without worrying too much about any innocent bystanders. It's such a ridicules contradicting contrast. it's just one of the story elements that makes "Fled" a pretty weak movie to watch.

Also it's main plot line just never really seems to get off the ground. It's one of those stories you simply couldn't care less about and simply pay very little attention to it.

Because of this also not all of the characters really work out in the movie. Actors such as Will Patton and Robert John Burke walk around in this movie but you can wonder why really. Their characters were potentially good ones but they simply got not used very well and only pop up once in a while, causing them to also make a pretty redundant impression.

Laurence Fishburne is a fine actor and he really shows that in this movie. He gives away one fine performance, that alone still makes this movie still somewhat worthwhile. Stephen Baldwin is also not too bad in this movie and he forms a good duo with Fishburne.

It's overall style also made the movie seem as if it was not to sure what it wanted to be. At times it showed the signs of a mismatched buddy comedy flick while at other times it was a pure violent action flick. So no, the movie also lacked a real clear consistent style, which also makes the viewer a bit uneasy on how to watch and approach the movie.

It on the other hand is a fast going action in which basically always something is happening. No it's not always something good or interesting but at least it's not a slow or boring movie. It gives the movie definitely some watchable value. The action itself also isn't too bad and mostly consists out of shooting and a couple of chases. So no, also nothing too original here and it's a pretty formulaic standard action/thriller movie but it's definitely not the worst one around in its genre.

A movie that definitely had some more potential in its core and could had worked out with a different and better approach of the overall story and character treatments. It still remains a somewhat watchable movie though thanks to it's principal actors and good action movie style of film-making.

5/10

http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/

A wonderfully terrible movie

[EricRShelton · 9/10 · 11 September 2018]

This is one of those movies that "isn't good, but it's great". Pure mid-'90s schlock that sometimes looks like it was straight to video. It just couldn't have cost that much to film. Imagine a movie done by a not-very-good Michael Bay fan, and you'll have this movie. And I love it.

On my movie scale, 5 is the worst sin a movie can commit because it's boring. 10s belong to Jaws and truly great films, 1s and 2s are so bad that they're good again, like Sharknado. This movie would probably be a 2 on my scale.

This flick is pure nonsense, hasn't aged well, and is peak '90s. The other reviews here are right, Will Patton turns in a fantastic performance in this wonderfully dumb, slo-mo for bloody squib explosions, brainless action movie.

At one point a character successfully takes cover from gunfire behind flimsy concession stand poster board.

Characters read an IM chat exchange out loud to each other even though it's shown on screen, presumably because they thought the audience would be too stupid to read.

At one point, Stephen Baldwin talks about a motorcycle's impressive specs and finishes by saying "Best of all, it has an on-board computer." What?!?! LOL! There's no explanation of why it's good or anything! It's just really dumb dialog from back in the days when computers were magic. It's hysterical.

This is the movie you tried to make with Dad's camcorder when you were in junior high. It's like a beautiful idiot you can't help but love. It's terrible and glorious all at the same time. Bon apetit.

Underrated 90s movie - not to be overanalyzed

[crushinrussian-52248 · 6/10 · 18 January 2024]

Fled (1996) is one of those movies many would label as "derivative." From 48 Hours to The Last Boy Scout, you will watch Fled and see themes from all of these movies. Having said this...

This movie hits all those beats with competence. The dialogue between Fishburne and Baldwin is elevated by moments of humor and film callbacks from Baldwin. The action scenes are complemented by accents like Fishburne's John Woo-style gunplay. The story is comfortably predictable with corrupt feds and the Cuban (?) mafia.

If you want some nostalgia for pumping soundtracks and the occasional offensive joke, then Fled will satisfy that thirst. Enjoy with some popcorn. Or a cocktail, if you are thirsty.

you'd be justified in fleeing this movie

[lee_eisenberg · 4/10 · 18 January 2007]

Did you know that the word "fugitive" derives from the Latin word meaning "flee"? Whether or not you do, it should be easy to figure out that "Fled" is almost a total repeat of "The Fugitive". It's another story of two guys chained together having to escape, all the while hating each other until they realize that they have to rely on each other; "The Defiant Ones" and "Runaway Train" did a much better job. This one, on the other hand, is basically a litany of car chases, explosions, etc. Laurence Fishburne has starred in far better movies, and even Stephen Baldwin appeared in "The Usual Suspects"; I can forgive Salma Hayek for starring in this, as it was early in her career.

Anyway, it's not worth your time. Also starring Robert John Burke and Robert Hooks, and they probably don't wish to stress this in their resumes.