This clichéd little television movie shows a lot of promise but instead plays by the rules and never breaks any of the rules of a made for television film. The premise itself is nothing new and has been done a few times before and after this was made, for example in the Van Damme vehicle NOWHERE TO RUN. Unfortunately for the most part, this film is all build up and a disappointing climax. You can really feel the tension rise as the time limit to the confrontation between Jones, his friends, and the government employees ticks down, and yet, despite a bit of violence, nothing much really happens. There is a predictable sickly-sweet happy ending, lots of nonsense, and an unbelievably low death toll.
I for one would have liked to see Tommy Lee Jones snuff it in an honourable way at the end of this film, but it ain't gonna happen. Instead he gets shot in the stomach, only for the wound to magically heal five minutes later when he engages in an old-fashioned fist-fight with the chief villain. This villain is played with relish by a baldy Terry O'Quinn, familiar from THE STEPFATHER films. Jones himself is actually quite good and macho as the hero who will stop at nothing to protect his land, all brooding menace and silent intensity. Sadly the same cannot be said of Dee Wallace Stone, who is absolutely awful as Jones' whiny wife! Old timers Ben Johnson and Pat Hingle lend credibility to the proceedings, but in the end this is a bit of a wasted opportunity and never raises above average.
I for one would have liked to see Tommy Lee Jones snuff it in an honourable way at the end of this film, but it ain't gonna happen. Instead he gets shot in the stomach, only for the wound to magically heal five minutes later when he engages in an old-fashioned fist-fight with the chief villain. This villain is played with relish by a baldy Terry O'Quinn, familiar from THE STEPFATHER films. Jones himself is actually quite good and macho as the hero who will stop at nothing to protect his land, all brooding menace and silent intensity. Sadly the same cannot be said of Dee Wallace Stone, who is absolutely awful as Jones' whiny wife! Old timers Ben Johnson and Pat Hingle lend credibility to the proceedings, but in the end this is a bit of a wasted opportunity and never raises above average.