‘Proof of Life’ Held Captive by Unscripted Development

It may be unfair, but it’s inevitable that “Proof of Life” is going to be seen, at least in the short run, through the lens of the off-screen romance that developed on location between co-stars Meg Ryan and Russell Crowe. The affair that unleashed a flood of tabloid headlines is simply too fitting a viewpoint to resist in our scandal- and celebrity-crazed age.

Partly that’s because the film’s story line, which to some extent involves a forbidden love that develops between a crack “K&R;” operative (that’s kidnapping and ransom to you civilians) and someone else’s wife (in this case the wife of the man he’s trying to extract) has some parallels to what happened in life.

But it’s also partly because this Taylor Hackford-directed, Tony Gilroy-written film, solidly and professionally made though it is, is nowhere near as engrossing as looking for signs of life between the two lead performers, trying to see if we can spy a genuine relationship developing in front of us. The movies may be fantasy, but a touch of the authentic never hurt anything.

Which is why, even though the film’s climactic action sequences are briskly done, the biggest gasp one preview audience gave was when Ryan and Crowe finally join for a brief but noticeably passionate kiss. Everyone felt, or imagined they did, that it was for real.

Based initially on a Vanity Fair article about men who specialize in getting back kidnapped business executives, “Proof of Life” is an ambitious film that aims to examine the human equations behind the abductions. But for all its good intentions, it’s not as subtle as it might be, and it’s finally pitched too broadly to achieve the level of emotional truth it aims for.

To familiarize us with the world K&R; men consider home, “Proof of Life” uses its opening credits sequences to eavesdrop on the exploits of Terry Thorne (Crowe), one of Luthan Risk International’s best operatives, as he negotiates for and then rescues a man abducted by the Chechen rebels. A proactive, essentially nerveless individual who if need be could probably use his teeth to latch onto a departing helicopter, Thorne is not a person to be trifled with.

Another of the world’s trouble zones turns out to be the mythical South American country of Tecala, where the usual corrupt oligarchy runs things and fights for power with a rebel movement called the ELT. This used to be an idealistic Marxist organization but devolved into a thuggish group more devoted to drug trafficking and kidnapping for profit than ideology.

Though they live in Tecala, neither American engineer Peter Bowman (David Morse) nor his spunky wife Alice (Ryan) know much about this. He’s a naive humanitarian, trying to build a dam for an oil company that regards his project as do-gooder window-dressing, while she is too involved in a recent personal loss to have even learned to speak Spanish.

Then, more by happenstance than careful planning, Peter gets kidnapped by the ELT. Once they find out that he works for a multinational corporation, the rebels insist on a $3-million ransom, a figure that flabbergasts both Alice and Peter’s overbearing sister Janis (Pamela Reed), who flies down to be of assistance.

It takes no great stretch of imagination to figure out that Terry is going to get involved in the attempt to pry Peter loose from his captors, but, movies being movies, all kinds of obstacles to his taking the job arise and almost half of the film’s running time elapses before, with the help of fellow negotiator Dino (David Caruso) he’s firmly in charge.

Once that happens, “Proof of Life” cuts back and forth between Terry saying calming things to Alice like, “This is a game you play whether you like it or not” and Peter being carted around the countryside by a not-very-together ELT. Unfortunately, a lot of what Peter attempts in the name of heroic resistance seems irritatingly childish, and though he is supposed to be more of an audience surrogate than Terry, his churlishness, albeit understandable, makes that an awkward fit.

Instead, audiences may prefer to identify with and/or fantasize about Crowe. Well-matched by Ryan’s feistiness and in a role halfway between “The Insider” and “Gladiator,” Crowe uses his top-of-the-line masculine presence and the ability to pour considerable emotion into the simplest looks to create interest in his character and his situation. Terry doesn’t have to say, “I’m for real,” but when he does, no one will be asking for a second opinion.

* MPAA rating: R for violence, language and some drug material. Times guidelines: more tense than graphic.

‘Proof of Life’

Meg Ryan: Alice Bowman

Russell Crowe: Terry Thorne

David Morse: Peter Bowman

Pamela Reed: Janis Goodman

David Caruso: Dino

Castle Rock Entertainment presents, in association with Bel-Air Entertainment, an Anvil Films production, released by Warner Bros. Director Taylor Hackford. Producers Taylor Hackford, Charles Mulvehill. Executive producers Steven Reuther, Tony Gilroy. Screenplay Tony Gilroy. Cinematographer Slawomir Idziak. Editors John Smith, Sheldon Kahn. Costumes Ruth Myers. Music Danny Elfman. Production design Bruno Rubeo. Supervising art director Steve Carter. Set decorator Steve Shewchuk. Running time: 2 hours, 16 minutes.

In general release.