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6.4/10
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A divorced factory worker in 1967 Buffalo fights for custody of his children after his ex-wife marries a low-level mobster who enters the witness protection program, battling with government... Read allA divorced factory worker in 1967 Buffalo fights for custody of his children after his ex-wife marries a low-level mobster who enters the witness protection program, battling with government officials who seem to have little sympathy.A divorced factory worker in 1967 Buffalo fights for custody of his children after his ex-wife marries a low-level mobster who enters the witness protection program, battling with government officials who seem to have little sympathy.
Andy Fenwick
- Andy Hacklin
- (as Andrew Gordon Fenwick)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
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I'm one of Tom's nieces. When this all occurred I was just a young girl, but am very familiar with the story and how some of it unfolded. I know that on WKBW Channel 7 news on the 11 pm newscast, Irv Weinstein would state that it's 11 pm. Do you know where your children are? It would make my uncle sad because he loved his children dearly! And he was a great dad! Yes we all were a little disappointed they way the made him seem like such an angry person, but overall it portrayed him well. And we were greatly disappointed that they didn't promote, advertise & push the movie better!!
I am a great fan of James Caan's work and when I found out about this flick I had to order the DVD from a dealer because no one was streaming it. I was not disappointed; this movie is a gem. First off we have Caan's performance, up to his usual high level. Then we have the minimalist approach of the filmmakers. Every scene gives the viewer no more than what he needs to know for the story to progress, and there is no excess emotionalism. Use of music is minimal. As a result the story keeps you involved from beginning to end. Also worth mentioning is the fine work of Kevin McMillan, an excellent character actor. I don't know why this flick isn't better known but it is definitely worth seeing.
I thought the naturalism of the settings worked well for Caan. It's got that gritty 70's look. It's also interesting to see a film shot in Buffalo, NY during that period. The extras are good and some of the hairstyles and fashions are hysterical. I thought Caan did a good job considering this was the first and last movie he shot. Jill Eikenberry's acting is very natural. The climax is not exploitative and thus is believable. Not played very much on cable although the topic is timely, I forget which station I caught it on fairly recently. The character is played well by Caan and I identified with the working class element. I was also wondering why Hollywood never gave James Caan another directing job, was it because this fared poorly at the box office?
Never saw this film directed by James Caan, who also appears in the title role. This movie must have gone directly to video because we don't recollect if it ever was released commercially. The picture has a "movie of the week" feeling to it, which could well be the reason for not having received a wider release.
The film makes an interesting point. Thomas Hacklin, a factory worker, has divorced his wife, but they have remained in friendly terms. We watch as Tom comes, at the start of the movie, to baby sit his son and daughter. Clearly, Tom adores these children.
His divorced wife has remarried the small time hoodlum Jack Solese. When this man runs into problems with the law, he is offered a release and witness protection in exchange for his cooperation in getting the principal mobsters in jail. When he complies and points the finger to the responsible guys, Jack and his family are relocated to Michigan. Tom, on the other hand, is not notified about the where abouts. Thus begins his quest for his own children.
James Caan, makes a good impression as the working class father. Jill Eikenberry plays Alisa, the woman who has settled in the area and loves Tom. The supporting cast is good. Robert Viharo, Joe Grifasi, Barbra Rae, Kenneth McMillan, Josef Sommer and Danny Aiello work well under Mr. Caan's direction.
This is a curiosity because it's the only film directed by Mr. Caan.
The film makes an interesting point. Thomas Hacklin, a factory worker, has divorced his wife, but they have remained in friendly terms. We watch as Tom comes, at the start of the movie, to baby sit his son and daughter. Clearly, Tom adores these children.
His divorced wife has remarried the small time hoodlum Jack Solese. When this man runs into problems with the law, he is offered a release and witness protection in exchange for his cooperation in getting the principal mobsters in jail. When he complies and points the finger to the responsible guys, Jack and his family are relocated to Michigan. Tom, on the other hand, is not notified about the where abouts. Thus begins his quest for his own children.
James Caan, makes a good impression as the working class father. Jill Eikenberry plays Alisa, the woman who has settled in the area and loves Tom. The supporting cast is good. Robert Viharo, Joe Grifasi, Barbra Rae, Kenneth McMillan, Josef Sommer and Danny Aiello work well under Mr. Caan's direction.
This is a curiosity because it's the only film directed by Mr. Caan.
10gareth-g
One of the great unsung directing debut's from a versatile character actor with stat status. I remember the mid to late 70's cinema scene with fondness and the prospect of James Caan directing as well as starring in a character-driven piece was like manna from heaven to me. Living in the UK I never got to see this release in the cinema (despite excellent coverage in UK's Films and Filming magazine), but I caught up on it during the 80's video revolution (in an un-hired ex-rental video). Unfortunately the video was panned and scanned to 4:3 thus diminishing the composition and I had to wait until the late 90's to catch this excellent drama on TCM where it was regularly screened in it's correct aspect ratio. Since purchasing a DVD recorder last year this title has not popped up on UKTV so I wait with baited breath for the return of "Hide In Plain Sight" to the TV screens.....hey! maybe someone will lobby for a DVD release because you've got to admit it's far superior the 95% of the dross that gets released every week of the year!
Did you know
- TriviaOnly directing credit for James Caan.
- GoofsA notice at the start of the film establishes the year as 1967. However, near the beginning can be seen the Dell paperback edition of "Rosemary's Baby", which was not published until 1 January 1968.
- How long is Hide in Plain Sight?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $3,806,930
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $810,109
- Mar 23, 1980
- Gross worldwide
- $3,806,930
- Runtime
- 1h 32m(92 min)
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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