No Way Out Information

No Way Out is a 1987 thriller film about a U.S. Naval officer investigating a Washington, D.C. murder. It stars Kevin Costner, Gene Hackman, and Sean Young. Will Patton, Howard Duff, George Dzundza, Jason Bernard, Fred Thompson, and Iman appear in supporting roles.

The film is a remake of 1948's The Big Clock; both films are based on Kenneth Fearing's 1946 novel The Big Clock. Filming locations included Baltimore, Annapolis, Arlington, Washington, D.C., and Auckland, New Zealand. The film features original music by the Academy Award-winning Maurice Jarre.

Plot

At a ball, U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander Tom Farrell meets a woman, Susan Atwell, and they begin an affair, although she is involved with another. Later, Farrell begins to work at the Pentagon for Secretary of Defense, David Brice.

Soon, Farrell learns that the other man in Susan's life is Brice, who in turn learns of Susan's infidelity. While demanding the name of her lover, Brice accidentally kills her in a jealous rage. Ready to turn himself in, Brice is persuaded by his General Counsel, Scott Pritchard, to cover it up and blame it on someone else. They concoct a story that Susan's other lover was a suspected but unconfirmed Soviet Union KGB sleeper agent. code-named "Yuri."

Brice appoints Farrell to lead the investigation to find Susan's other lover, placing him in the position of seeking evidence that could implicate himself. Farrell sets about proving Brice was involved with Susan by searching computer files for evidence that Brice gave her a government-registered gift he received from Morocco. Farrell presents the gift-registry printout to Brice who shifts the blame to Pritchard, arguing that Pritchard was jealous of his relationship with Susan. A devastated Pritchard commits suicide and is falsely exposed as "Yuri" to the police by Brice, hoping to avoid blame for Susan's death.

As the film draws to its conclusion, it is revealed that Farrell is the real "Yuri" and was the KGB's "mole" in the Department of Defense. Aware of Brice's affair, the Soviet Union had assigned Yuri to seduce his mistress and gather intelligence from her.

Cast

• Kevin Costner as Lieutenant Commander Tom Farrell, U.S. Navy/"Yuri"
• Gene Hackman as Secretary of Defense, David Brice
• Will Patton as Scott Pritchard
• Sean Young as Susan Atwell
• George Dzundza as Sam Hesselman
• Howard Duff as Senator Duvall
• Jason Bernard as Major Donovan, CID
• Fred Dalton Thompson as CIA Director Marshall
• Iman as Nina Beka
• Brad Pitt as Officer
• Gordon Needham as limousine driver

Release

Box office

The film debuted at number 2 at the box office after Stakeout. The film's budget was an estimated $15 million; its total U.S. gross was over $35 million.

Critical reception

The film was very well received by critics and as of July 30, 2013, holds a 92% "Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 38 reviews.

Roger Ebert gave the fim 4 out of 4 stars, calling it "truly labyrinthine and ingenious." Richard Schickel of Time wrote, "Viewers who arrive at the movie five minutes late and leave five minutes early will avoid the setup and payoff for the preposterous twist that spoils this lively, intelligent remake of 1948's The Big Clock." Desson Thomson of The Washington Post wrote, "The film makes such good use of Washington and builds suspense so well that it transcends a plot bordering on ridiculous."