Hi, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab...

There are several different types of DVDs that the studios release each year. There are the current new releases, the blockbusters that are efficiently pumped out in moderately-scaled “collector’s edition 2-disc sets” at the exact second their contractual theatrical window ends. There are the big-ticket catalog titles, older films that they know they can market as “events,” either because they’ve never been on DVD before, or because the studio creates some attractive new package that is better than any other version that’s been sold before.

And then there are those films that come out in bare-bones editions, catalog titles that people may or may not even remember exist. These are the titles where you know someone was reading through a list of titles the studio owns and went, “Hey, isn’t Matt Dillon in that? Let me check the IMDb... oh, fuck, Gene Hackman’s in it, too. Okay. Let’s slap a cover on that thing and get it into Wal-Mart’s bargain bin, pronto.” These are titles that no one’s invested anything new into, titles that simply pad out the release schedule. I’d be curious to see how many copies these titles actually sell.

Arthur Penn’s TARGET is one of those films, released by Paramount a while ago as part of their oh-so-no-frills Widescreen Collection. This was one of the last few theatrical films Penn made. So far, I guess I should say, since he’s still alive. But he seems to have petered out after the deeply-underrated PENN & TELLER GET KILLED in 1989. Damn shame, too. He made some great movies over the years. I love NIGHT MOVES, LITTLE BIG MAN, BONNIE & CLYDE, MICKEY ONE, and even THE MIRACLE WORKER and THE LEFT HANDED GUN. Even his less-than-great or flawed films like THE MISSOURI BREAKS or THE CHASE were worthwhile. TARGET was made in 1985. The dead middle of a decade that was rough on him all around. He only made four films in the ‘80s, and none of them are among his best work.

TARGET’s an interesting almost, though. It took me a few tries to actually watch this one. It was in the stack of movies I took with me to Vancouver a few weeks back, and I put it on two separate times. Both times, I was too tired to watch anything and crapped out about 20 minutes in. When I finally gave the film a proper chance, I thought it was a pretty engaging little thriller written by Jose Luis Navarro, an old-school foreign exploitation writer who worked on a lot of American television shows like COLUMBO and MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE, writing as “Howard Berk” most of the time. TARGET was his last produced credit, and if you know it was written by the same guy who wrote stuff like LOVE TRAIN FOR HITLER and FEAST FOR THE DEVIL, it makes more sense. Arthur Penn classes it up, as does the work by Hackman in the lead, but it’s still basically a low-budget spy thriller exploitation film.

Hackman plays “The Duke,” an experienced spy who has been living for many years as Walter Lloyd, an ordinary guy with an ordinary family. When his wife takes a trip to Europe and vanishes, though, all of The Duke’s old fears come bubbling to the surface. Turns out she’s been kidnapped, and someone plans to make The Duke pay to get her back in more ways than one. In order to find his wife, The Duke has no choice but to tell his adult son Chris (Dillon) the truth about who he was. More than anything, this movie is about the two of them bonding once Chris knows the truth about who his father is. There’s a scene where Hackman opens a door and almost shoots Chris that turns from a screaming match into an angry, terrified embrace that is actually pretty good. There are any number of car chases and spy movie conventions here, including a scene where Chris gets distracted by a hot female operative while an experienced gunman goes to kill The Duke in their hotel room. Penn certainly makes it all look pretty good, and he seems to get the best out of his actors. Matt Dillon seems really eager to go toe to toe with Hackman in their scenes together, like he’s trying to prove himself. It’s Hackman’s movie, though, and in the end, he’s the one who wraps it all up.

There’s nothing in the way of extras on the disc, and the transfer is okay, but nothing exceptional. If you're looking for a Father's Day rental to watch with your own dad that you haven't already seen a hundred times, this isn't such a bad option.

MOVIE: Rent it

DISC CONTENT: Bare bones

DISC QUALITY: Adequate