White Mile (1994)

Such a frustrating disappointment

Instant Favorite.

Beautiful, moving film.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

The intensity of "White Mile" is somewhat surprising. Oh, I don't mean intensity in the way the DVD case will have you believe - all action and peril in the vein of "The Edge". In fact, the white water rafting is ultimately a very brief portion of the story. The stars of the film (Alan Alda and Peter Gallagher) offer up both very solid and very conflicted characters. At first, the depth is a unexpected thing. We aren't given basic sketches created simply to graft onto a script. Michael Butler has written this film as, essentially, a moral dilemma. In the end, it is so much devoted to this approach that we never quite get going in a fully emotional sense."White Mile" made me think. That's a good thing. It didn't particularly make me feel, but I'm okay with that. The acting was good, the direction adequate, and for something I went into without expectation, I can't say I'm disappointed. Good film.

"White Mile" tells the true story of a driven, success-at-all-cost ad agency executive who puts together a fishing and white water rafting trip for a group of agency and client people so they can bond and make a tenuous business relationship more secure. The trip goes bad when a raft overturns resulting in death and a difficult search through gray areas for a black and white sense of culpability. The film is a solid product given its docudramatic limitations and refuses to be dumbed down and cheapened up for the sake of entertainment. A smart flick with some good messages about the absolute nature of truth, matters of conscience, and just saying "no". (B)

Combining the best elements of adventure, suspense, character study AND courtroom drama, "White Mile" is a smart and engrossing film, made all the more fascinating due to the fact that it's (at least partially) based on true events. Alan Alda gives an astonishing performance as Dan Cutler, a hard-assed, unsympathetic ad executive who, convinced that his underlings have lost their competitive edge in the business, bullies them (along with a couple of their clients) into going on a whitewater rafting trip. Tragedy strikes the group on their outing, and when the details of the accident look like they may be swept under the rug and dismissed, one of the men who survived (Peter Gallagher, also very fine)decides to come forth and tell the truth when Cutler and the company are sued by the wife of one of the deceased. If you only know Alda from his days as the nice-guy Hawkeye on "M*A*S*H," he's sure to surprise you here with his intense, tightly-wound portrayal. Expertly filmed by veteran director Robert Butler, "White Mile" is riveting all the way. Excellent, atmospheric score by Pray For Rain. Not to be missed! ****stars

This work relates, speaking in broad terms, a narrative (based upon a true story) of a group of executives that is pressured into taking part in a whitewater raft trip, during which an unfortunate incident occurs. A subsequent lawsuit which addresses the incident completes a good portion of the film. The entire production wants nothing, as all involved perform at a high level. The scenario, by Michael Butler, is stripped neatly to its essence, and immediately engages the viewer with its combination of visceral excitement, suspense, and character development. The direction by the veteran Robert Butler is precise and enhanced by the splendidly balanced casting. Alan Alda gives his finest performance, softly creating a characterization which fascinates as it develops. Among other cast members, Peter Gallagher, Bruce Altman, and Robert Loggia offered nary a flaw in this seamless tale. The scenes immediately leading to, and including, the actual raft trip are enthralling as a test of strength between Alda's character and his companions, a test that reveals varying moral sensibilities. Editing, in a film reflecting issues of larger scope than are commonly seen, provides an important framework; here, a linear structure is created and moves smartly. The cinematography and lighting, under the aegis of Lloyd Ahern II, can be enthusiastically endorsed (with a wide range of scena) as a standard to be envied. The score by Pray For Rain, refreshingly non-DJ, implies applicable emotion neatly and nicely throughout this interesting and beautifully balanced motion picture. An obviously high level of preparation by all involved brings forth one of the finest films of the 90s.