Three Fugitives (1989)

On his first day after being released from jail for 14 armed bank robberies, Lucas finds himself caught up in someone else's robbery. Perry has decided to hold up the local bank to raise ... See full summary »

Director:

Francis Veber

Writer:

Francis Veber

Stars:

Nick Nolte, Martin Short, Sarah Rowland Doroff

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Nick Nolte	...	Lucas
Martin Short	...	Ned Perry
Sarah Rowland Doroff	...	Meg Perry
James Earl Jones	...	Dugan
Alan Ruck	...	Tener
Kenneth McMillan	...	Horvath
David Arnott	...	Bank Teller
Bruce McGill	...	Charlie
Lee Garlington	...	Woman Cop
Sy Richardson	...	Tucker
Rocky Giordani	...	Bowles
Rick Hall	...	Dog Handler
Bill Cross	...	Guard at Prison
Stanley Brock	...	Release Sergeant
John Procaccino	...	Highway Patrolman

Storyline

On his first day after being released from jail for 14 armed bank robberies, Lucas finds himself caught up in someone else's robbery. Perry has decided to hold up the local bank to raise money so that he can keep his daughter, Meg, and get her the treatment she needs. Dugan, a detective, assumes Lucas helped plan the robbery, and hence Lucas, Perry and Meg become three fugitives.

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Plot Keywords:

daughter | detective | bank robbery | hostage | mute | 

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Taglines:

They rob banks. She steals hearts.

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Genres:

Action | Comedy

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 January 1989 (USA)

Also Known As:

Los tres fugitivos

Filming Locations:

Eatonville, Washington, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$40,590,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Touchstone Pictures, Silver Screen Partners IV

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The character Meg is mute for most of the movie. James Earl Jones, who plays Dugan, was functionally mute for eight years until he reached high school.

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Goofs

When Lucas gets off the ferry and sees Dugan from around 100 yards away while heading towards him, you can see two young men going by when the camera pans on Dugan, but as as Lucas approaches and gets really close up to Dugan, you can see those same two men going by. By now, they should have been some way away and not in the shot.

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Quotes

Woman Cop: Do you know what kidnapping her will get you?
Ned Perry: Yeah, her
[meaning his daughter]
Ned Perry: .

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Connections

References Pee-wee's Big Adventure (1985)

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Soundtracks

"Living in the City"
Written and Performed by Gary Mallaber and Glenn Sherba

User Reviews

No need to run away from this one

This is not as bad or as unfunny a movie as some IMDb posters make out. The central situation of Lucas (Nick Nolte), a tough, professional heist-meister, being taken hostage by Perry (Martin Short), a bungling first-time bank robber, is pleasingly ridiculous. In particular, Perry's antics in the early bank robbery scenes are laugh-out-loud funny; as is Lucas's later violent entry into the bar where Perry is being held prisoner. The section towards the end, when Perry is disguised as a woman is also reasonably amusing. The scenes between Lucas and Perry's daughter (Sarah Rowland Doroff), are quite touching, when they could easily have been been sickly sentimental. (It helps that the little girl is supposed to have a psychological problem, so she hardly speaks.)

On the downside, there are undoubtedly soggy patches in the middle of the film, including the scene where James Earl Jones and Alan Ruck, as the two policemen leading the chase for Perry and Lucas, find it hilariously funny that Lucas was treated for a gunshot wound by a crazy vet who thought he was a dog. Another defect is the whiny music, which is repetitive and irritating.

All in all, this may not be a film to spend much money on, but is worth watching if it turns up on TV.