Ricochetwas an early starring role for Denzel Washington, but it was originally intended forClint Eastwood’sDirty Harrymovie franchise. Having already won an Oscar for his performance inGlory,Washington’s movie career in the 1990ssaw him establish himself as a true movie star and one of the most celebrated actors.
The decade was a varied one for Washington, mixing prestige projects, likeMalcolm XandPhiladelphia, with box office hits likeCrimson TideandThe Pelican Brief. Long beforeThe Equalizermovies, Washington was also building a solid career as an action star.
Of course, even a star likeWashington has some underrated movies, especially from earlier in his career. One of these overlooked projects that is most deserving of being rediscovered also holds an interesting origin story before Washington was the star.
Ricochet Is One Of Denzel Washington’s Most Underrated Films
Denzel Washington Elevates The Solid Thriller With A Strong Performance
Ricochetis anunderrated 1990s gemthat combines a crime thriller and an action movie, while also giving Washington a stellar leading role. Washington plays Nick Styles, a cop turned District Attorney who becomes targeted by a dangerous escaped criminal, Blake (John Lithgow), whom he put away years ago.
It is Washington who carries the movie and proves himself a leading movie star.
The setup is a typical hero being pursued by a vengeful villain, butRicochetis more interesting as it has a psychological thriller element to it. Blake is not content with just killing Nick, but instead wants to play a sadistic game in which he toys with him and relishes the feeling of power he has over him.
Ricochetis also elevated beyond the typical genre fare with some exceptional performances. Lithgow makes for a fantastic villain, infusing the cold-blooded killer with an eerie sense of glee as the carnage he inflicts. However, it is Washington who carries the movie and proves himself a leading movie star.
Washington’s lead characteris not a cut-and-dry hero, and the actor brings nuance to those elements, grounding the more outlandish aspects of the movie.Washington’s intensity and complex performance bring the material to another levelwhile also showing signs of the powerhouse actor he would become known as.
Ricochet Was Born From A Dirty Harry Script
Clint Eastwood Reportedly Felt The Script Was Too Grim
Denzel Washington madeRicochethis own. However, the original hero in the movie was not Nick Styles, but theiconic Clint Eastwood character, Harry Callahan. Writer Fred Dekker was a fan of the firsttwoDirty Harrymovies, but was disappointed in the subsequent sequels. He therefore decided to write his ownDirty Harrysequel (viaFlashback Files):
First of all, I really like Dirty Harry and Magnum Force. I’m a huge Eastwood fan. He’s one of my favorite movie stars. I think that Dirty Harry character was lightning in a bottle, because after the first two, the rest of the movies just weren’t up to snuff. So, I thought I would write a spec script.
Unbeknownst to me, I was ripping off a movie I hadn’t seen, which was Cape Fear. I said: What if Harry arrested a guy years ago and the guy gets out of jail and starts making his life hell? It’s fairly generic up to this point. My producer, Joel Silver, claims to have sent it to Clint, but that doesn’t make any sense. Joel had his own production company. He could just make it himself, which he did. He said that Clint thought it was “too grim” for him.
It is worth noting that Dekker addresses the similarities toCape Fear, and whileRicochet’s plot does bring that classic thriller to mind, it manages to set itself apart quite well.Dekker also explained that after Eastwood passed on the role, he tried to get Kurt Russell to star, before the project found its way to Washington.
1971
$36 million
1973
$44.6 million
1976
$46.2 million
1983
$67.6 million
1988
Buddy Van Horn
$37.9 million
It would be interesting to see how much of that originalDirty Harrysequel script made its way intoRicochet.Washington’s hero, Nick Styles, certainly doesn’t feel like Harry Callahan, and the movie arguably wouldn’t work with a character who is so stuck in his ways.
HadRicochetbeen aDirty Harrymovie, it is likely it would have gotten more attention. However, it is debatable whether Eastwood’s return as the famous cop character would have elevated the movie as much as Washington’s performance did.
