Stars: Hugh Grant, Gene Hackman, Sarah Jessica Parker, David Morse, Paul Guilfoyle, Debra Monk

Director: Michael Apted

Summary: A young doctor's life and career are threatened when he uncovers the shocking details of a private medical research programme. Psychological thriller.

At New York's Gramercy Hospital, a homeless man under the care of English doctor Guy Luthan (Hugh Grant) dies in a horrific manner. Soon both the patient and his file mysteriously disappear. The puzzled Luthan is told by a superior to forget about it and move on. Undaunted, Luthan conducts his own investigation--and uncovers a scandal in which homeless people are being used as human guinea pigs in the name of science. The moral Luthan wants to put a stop to this, but doing so may cost him his career--and his life.
Adapted from a book by Michael Palmer, the film marches to its conclusion with as much suspense as director Michael Apted's previous thrillers (AGATHA, GORKY PARK, and THUNDERHEART). Grant plays the charming, put-upon Englishman to perfection, while Gene Hackman and Sarah Jessica Parker provide strong supporting roles. An intelligent examination of the contemporary dilemmas in medical ethics, the film concludes with an ending that will challenge viewers' moral beliefs.

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Extreme Measuresloses credibility near the climax when it sacrifices its hold on reality, but this entertaining, intelligent thriller effectively applies a formulaic plot to the complicated ethics of medical research. It also gives Hugh Grant an opportunity to break free from lightweight comedy by playing an emergency room surgeon who discovers that a renowned neurologist (Gene Hackman) has been conducting secret experiments on patients. When Grant fails to save a patient whose body later mysteriously disappears from the morgue, his investigation leads to an underground community of healthy homeless people, some of whom have been test subjects in Hackman's revolutionary, but criminal research toward a cure for paralysis. Co-produced by actor-model Elizabeth Hurley and capably directed by Michael Apted, this otherwise conventional thriller rises above its limitations by asking morally complex questions that give its far-fetched plot an extra kick of dramatic impact. --Jeff Shannon

Aspect Ratio:	4:3 Full Frame, 2.35 Wide Screen
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 2
Special Features:	Interactive Menus, Scene Access, Trailer
Subtitles:	Arabic, Bulgarian, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish
Year:	1996
Release Date:	June 12, 2000
Runtime:	114 minutes
Certification:
Catalogue Number:	D0 C 2510
Label:	Castle Rock Entertainment
Keywords:	General, Wide, Screen, Full, Extreme, Thriller, Psychological, Measures
Genre:	Thriller