Search - Extreme Measures on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Violence, Adult Situations, Questionable for Children Movie Release: 1996 DVD Release: 12/14/1999 Format: DVD - Letterbox for TV,Pan and Scan Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English, French SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 58 mins Studio: Warner Home Video Members Wishing: 0 Genres: Thriller, Medical Drama, Psychological Thriller

Comic leading man Hugh Grant gets serious in this drama about a physician who uncovers a truly disturbing secret. Guy Luthan (Hugh Grant), a British doctor serving a residence in a hospital in New York City, is very puzzled by a patient brought to the emergency room one night. Naked, disoriented, and bearing a hospital bracelet and a fresh surgical scar, the mystery man is suffering from a baffling variety of symptoms, and though he dies not long after he's admitted, Luthan can't get the patient out of his mind. When he asks to see the records on the patient a few days later, he's told they no longer exist, and the more he digs, the more he's convinced that someone knows something they're not telling. Against the advice of his friend Jodie Trammel (Sarah Jessica Parker), a nurse and colleague, and the instructions of his superiors, Luthan keeps digging into this and other strange cases that have come through the hospital lately. Luthan's sleuthing eventually brings him to the door of Dr. Lawrence Myrick (Gene Hackman), a well-known surgeon who is doing research in experimental surgery that could allow patients with severe spinal injuries to walk again. While Myrick's work is done with the most noble of intentions, there turns out to be a sinister undercurrent to his research techniques. Actress Elizabeth Hurley, Grant's offscreen significant other, was co-producer for this picture, the first from their joint production company. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Hugh Grant - Dr. Guy Luthan
Gene Hackman - Dr. Lawrence Myrick
Sarah Jessica Parker - Jodie Trammel
David Morse - Frank Hare
Bill Nunn - Det. Burke

Michael Apted's medical thriller Extreme Measures comes to DVD with a pair of transfers. The anamorphic widescreen transfer preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and is preferable to the standard full-frame picture. English and French soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Surround. Subtitles are accessible in both of these languages as well. Supplemental materials include a theatrical trailer. Although the disc is light on extras, the transfer of the film itself is quite good. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide