3290. Bird On A Wire (1990)

Starring: Goldie Hawn, Mel Gibson, David Carradine

Director: John Badham

Running Time: 110 mins

Bird On A Wire is an American film about a woman who unexpectedly runs into her ex-boyfriend, and discovers that he is now an FBI agent in hiding and being hunted by villains.

This is one of those movies that’s sort of fine, and nothing more. Led with the star power of its leads in Goldie Hawn and Mel Gibson, there’s a certain likability to Bird On A Wire, but it’s hardly the most hilarious comedy ever made, and it doesn’t tell the most entertaining story you’ll ever encounter.

For the most part, the film is pretty run-of-the-mill Hollywood fare, and there’s not all that much more to say about it. On the plus side, the lead performances from Goldie Hawn and Mel Gibson do work rather well, providing the most charisma and energy through the entire film.

With the exception of Gibson’s era-defining mullet, the pair go down very smoothly here, with Goldie Hawn in particular pulling out all of her effortless comedic chops to deliver yet another light-hearted but thoroughly entertaining performance.

The screenplay doesn’t give either of them all that much to do in terms of their characters, with Gibson’s FBI back story fairly superficial and Hawn having even less character development to work with. In short, the fun of watching this movie is watching two A-listers get caught up in all sorts of antics, and that’s about it.

So, if you’re a fan of either actor, then I think you’ll like this movie for what it is. But the fact remains that, while it’s perfectly harmless, Bird On A Wire isn’t particularly interesting at any point – and a frustrating watch when you just want it to do something different to the normal Hollywood fare.

Throwing together rom-com and spy action in a fairly random manner, Bird On A Wire does little to inspire a really entertaining viewing experience, with its action nothing more than fine, and never bordering on genuinely exciting or genuinely funny.

In short, Bird On A Wire is a really rather average film, and one that’s perfectly fine to pass the time with, but not a movie that you’ll remember long after the credits have rolled. Stay for the A-list performances, but be warned that there’s not all that much to the film otherwise. So, that’s why I’m giving it a 6.7 overall.