 
  Popularity: 3 (history)
| Director: | Roger Spottiswoode | 
|---|---|
| Writer: | Daniel Petrie Jr., Harv Zimmel, Michael Burton | 
| Staring: | 
| When a cunning murderer vanishes into the rugged mountains of the Pacific Northwest, pursuing FBI agent Warren Stantin must exchange familiar city streets for unknown wilderness trails. Completely out of his element, Stantin is forced to enlist the aid of expert tracker Jonathan Knox. It's a turbulent yet vital relationship they must maintain in order to survive... and one that becomes increasingly desperate when Knox's girlfriend Sarah becomes the killer's latest hostage! | |
| Release Date: | Feb 12, 1988 | 
|---|---|
| Director: | Roger Spottiswoode | 
| Writer: | Daniel Petrie Jr., Harv Zimmel, Michael Burton | 
| Genres: | Action, Drama, Crime, Thriller | 
| Keywords | mountain, canada, diamond, fbi, kidnapping, horse, wilderness, mountaineer, waterfall, hiking, police, murder, bear, vancouver | 
| Production Companies | Silver Screen Partners III, Century Park Pictures, Touchstone Pictures | 
| Box Office | Revenue: $29,300,000 Budget: $0 | 
| Updates | Updated: Aug 03, 2025 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 | 
| Name | Character | 
|---|---|
| Sidney Poitier | Warren Stantin | 
| Tom Berenger | Jonathan Knox | 
| Kirstie Alley | Sarah Renell | 
| Clancy Brown | Steve | 
| Richard Masur | Norman | 
| Andrew Robinson | Harvey | 
| Kevin Scannell | Ben | 
| Frederick Coffin | Ralph | 
| Michael MacRae | Fournier | 
| Robert Lesser | Minelli | 
| Milton Selzer | Mr. Berger | 
| Les Lannom | Sheriff Arnett | 
| Walter Marsh | Sam Baker | 
| Frank C. Turner | Crilly | 
| Sam Hiona | Inspector Hsu | 
| Michael Chapman | Lawyer | 
| Janet Rotblatt | Mrs. Berger | 
| Ken Camroux-Taylor | |
| Howard Storey | |
| Fred Henderson | |
| Jerry Wasserman | |
| Gloria Lee | |
| Freda Perry | |
| Kevin McNulty | |
| William S. Taylor | |
| Ric Reid | |
| Claire Vardiel | |
| Blu Mankuma | |
| Gary Hetherington | |
| Allan Lysell | |
| Michele Goodger | |
| Beatrice Boepple | |
| Andrew Rhodes | |
| Bill Croft | |
| Noah Beggs | |
| John Molnar | |
| John Ryan | |
| Jim Van Dijk | 
| Name | Job | 
|---|---|
| Roger Spottiswoode | Director | 
| Daniel Petrie Jr. | Screenplay | 
| Michael Chapman | Director of Photography | 
| Henry Kingi | Stunts | 
| Gilbert B. Combs | Stunts | 
| Harv Zimmel | Screenplay, Story | 
| George Bowers | Editor | 
| Richard Sylbert | Production Design | 
| Curtis Petersen | Second Unit Director of Photography | 
| Richard Bruno | Costume Design | 
| Michael Burton | Screenplay | 
| Penny Perry | Casting | 
| John Scott | Original Music Composer | 
| Sidney Ray Baldwin | Still Photographer | 
| Jim Erickson | Set Decoration | 
| Joann Wabisca | Makeup Artist | 
| Garth Craven | Editor | 
| John Willett | Art Direction | 
| Bob Akester | Still Photographer | 
| Michael Genne | Camera Operator | 
| Roy Sidick | Hairstylist | 
| J.J. Makaro | Stunts | 
| Tony Brubaker | Stunt Double | 
| Name | Title | 
|---|---|
| Daniel Petrie Jr. | Producer | 
| Philip Rogers | Executive Producer | 
| Ron Silverman | Producer | 
| Fredda Weiss | Associate Producer | 
| Organization | Category | Person | 
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 13 | 21 | 8 | 
| 2024 | 5 | 19 | 29 | 8 | 
| 2024 | 6 | 14 | 25 | 9 | 
| 2024 | 7 | 18 | 35 | 7 | 
| 2024 | 8 | 14 | 40 | 9 | 
| 2024 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 6 | 
| 2024 | 10 | 11 | 15 | 7 | 
| 2024 | 11 | 10 | 22 | 6 | 
| 2024 | 12 | 10 | 13 | 7 | 
| 2025 | 1 | 10 | 18 | 6 | 
| 2025 | 2 | 9 | 18 | 3 | 
| 2025 | 3 | 6 | 15 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 
| 2025 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 
| 2025 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 
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I guess I'm giving it a 10, I mean, Sidney Poitier is always believable. I think that is the best thing you can say about him. But the problem here is that he has a legendary reputation and this is just a throw-away cop movie. So you see his name attached and you start thinking it's going to be O ... scar worthy off the bat, and, it's not. But, at the same time, Sidney Poitier is believable, and Berenger is creepy is just the right sort of way. And that is not a complaint, because he really is the hermit that is oddly uncomfortable and still perfect for the role. So, if you ask me, this is one of Tom Berenger's better roles in a not Oliver Stone flick. It's just Alley that is sort of an eye roll. She doesn't do a bad job, but Berenger nailed it and Poitier was as believable in the role as always... and then Alley was just playing 80s girl, and that is sort of the killer. That is sort of what takes it from a great movie to another throw away genre movie. But, you have two actors, Berenger and Poitier, who repentantly looked at the script and thought, this is a challenge, lets see if we can bring more to the roles than anyone expects. And they are VERY generous with each other, and it sort of kills me that they weren't in more films together. So, what you have is an 80s throwaway that two people really stepped up to sell, so it sticks with you despite it being just another cop movie. And that sort of determines my score for me.
"Shoot to Kill" makes extremely good use of some absolutely breathtaking outdoor locations. It is also a very well paced and totally engaging film throughout and it features an admittedly heart stopping stunt that will literally take your breath away when Knox falls from a rope suspended over a pict ... uresque and deadly gorge after he has been struck by the trolley used to transport people across the head spinning and nausea-inducing gulf. There are also a wide range of wilderness survival tips and tracking techniques employed which help to place you in Poitier's predicament and it leaves you feeling as lost as he so obviously is when these necessary techniques come into play. It also teaches us the valuable lesson that if we were ever stranded in the unforgiving wilderness we would be incredibly lucky to survive for five seconds.