This is the sixth post in the 90 from the 90s series, exploring overlooked and underrated flicks from the great movie decade. To be eligible for this series, movies must have been released January 1, 1990 – December 31, 1999, and earned less than $20 million at the U.S. box office.
After being released from prison, Doc McCoy (Alec Baldwin) wastes no time reteaming with his wife, Carol (Kim Basinger), and former partner, Rudy (Michael Madsen), for a heist. But things don’t go according to plan and they end up on the run.
Initial Reception
Universal dropped The Getaway in theaters on February 11, 1994 (a month commonly referred to as “Dumpuary” because studios unload movies they have little confidence in). While it opened in second place at the domestic box office with $5.8M, the movie quickly sank like a stone—earning just $16M total (on a reported $37M budget).
Bad reviews likely played a part in the movie’s performance. In his Entertainment Weekly review, Owen Gleiberman gave the movie a “C” grade, calling it a “true throwaway”.
Key Moment
In the middle of a city street with cops hot on their heels, Baldwin and Basinger jump into a dumpster to hide. A garbage truck comes around the corner at that very moment. The pair are dropped into the truck, where they have to scurry around to avoid being compacted. They are then unloaded into piles of trash at the local dump.
Killer Line
“Well, you should’ve married a dentist.”
Standout Player
Michael Madsen (and his wild mullet). This movie was made in the middle of Madsen’s peak and he really sinks his teeth into the role. Playing a ruthless, abhorrent criminal, Madsen uses his craggy voice, squinty eyes, and sheer heft for maximum menace. He’s like the younger, scrappier, less-beaten-down cousin of his Kill Bill character—a wildcard where you never know what you’re going to get (which is why he’s so much fun).
Achilles’ Heal
It’s a minor one, but the movie could use a better Harold. James Stephens is nebbish enough, but veers too much into caricature. He’s out of step with the rest of the movie.
Why This Movie Still Matters
There’s a long history of real-life couples appearing in movies together. Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Hell, Zendaya and Tom Holland are doing it right now in Spider-Man: Brand New Day.
Along with being a publicity boom, the bleeding of real life into fiction can add layers of verisimilitude, subtext, and voyeurism to a movie. This can be an alluring proposition for studios, filmmakers, and audiences. For actors, they get to spend more time together (for better or worse) and flex their power couple aura.
So it was with Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger. The two met on the set of The Marrying Man in 1990 and were married in 1993. Shortly after their wedding, the duo stepped into the roles made famous by another Hollywood couple (Steve McQueen and Ali MacGraw)—remaking 1972’s The Getaway, based on Jim Thompson’s 1958 novel.
The 1994 film uses the bones of Walter Hill’s screenplay for the 1972 movie (with updates by Amy Holden Jones). Unfortunately, aside from a steamy sex scene where we get glimpses of boobs, butts, and some silhouetted bush, Baldwin and Basinger are probably the least interesting thing about The Getaway.
While they both look great—Baldwin has amazing hair and Basinger might be at her blonde-tanned peak—their characters (or characterizations) are pretty bland. Baldwin occasionally has to deliver some old-timey gangster dialogue and it just doesn’t work. Basinger does a good breathy look, and not much else.
Their characters are a lot more sketched out in Thompson’s book (though, in fairness, a lot of that comes through internal monologue). You also get a better sense of the tension and mistrust between the husband and wife in the novel—something that doesn’t really have any weight in the movie (though this scene of them slapping each other is fun).
Still, despite the leads not really revving up the movie like you’d hope, The Getaway is an enjoyable ride. This is a fast, violent, adult crime movie like we used to get in spades in the 90s. It’s got a lot of tough-talking characters, a pretty exciting heist at a dog track (that, expectedly, doesn’t go according to plan), and a high-speed car chase that includes vehicles flipping over and exploding.
It’s also got a great cast. Along with Baldwin and Basinger, we get James Woods, Michael Madsen, Jennifer Tilly, David Morse, and a very young Philip Seymour Hoffman. When Tilly enters the movie in the second half, becoming entwined with Madsen’s Rudy, The Getaway really takes off. Bringing these two performers together creates a sort of wild electrical storm.
Watching Madsen and Tilly—two subversive, inherently interesting actors who are more in line with the down-and-dirty nature of Thompson’s material—you get a glimpse of an alternative version of The Getaway. While it would never have happened with a major studio involved, if the roles were flipped, and Madsen and Tilly took the leads and Baldwin and Basinger played the supporting roles, this would be a much better movie.
Baldwin and Basinger would get to dive into the types of character roles they later proved more adept at—while also getting to play against type and still getting to portray lovers. And Madsen and Tilly would automatically bring a more dangerous and unpredictable vibe to Doc and Carol. We all would win in this scenario.
Quick Takes
Neither Basinger nor Baldwin had a major hit as a lead in a feature film after The Getaway—though I would argue they both found more of their mojo as actors. Basinger experienced success with smaller parts in 8 Mile, Cellular, and L.A. Confidential (which won her an Oscar). Baldwin found his groove with supporting roles in movies like The Departed and It’s Complicated, and playing iconic character Jack Donaghy on seven seasons of TV’s 30 Rock. The couple separated in 2000 and officially divorced in 2002.
Michael Madsen appeared in a whopping 37 movies in the 1990s, along with a number of TV movies and the series Vengeance Unlimited. In the early 90s, following parts in The Doors, Thelma & Louise, and Reservoir Dogs, Madsen had some heat. Unfortunately, he couldn’t take the Vincent Vega role in Pulp Fiction (which Tarantino wrote with him in mind) because he was already committed to Kevin Costner’s Wyatt Earp. A few years later he would miss out on another key role—turning down the part that eventually went to Russell Crowe in L.A. Confidential (which also starred Kim Basinger). Madsen passed away in 2025.
Nine of Jim Thompson’s novels or short stories have been made into movies. Two of them have been made twice. The movies are: The Getaway (1972, 1994), The Killer Inside Me (1976, 2010), Série Noire (1979), Coup de Torchon (1981), The Kill-Off (1989), The Grifters (1990), After Dark, My Sweet (1990), Hit Me (1996), and This World, Then the Fireworks (1997). The only significant box office hit of the bunch was 1972’s The Getaway—though both The Grifters and After Dark, My Sweet earned critical acclaim.
I remember watching this as a kid with my parent, the scene of Jennifer Tilly getting it on with Michael Madsen while her husband is watching and crying was so upsetting. It’s one of those movies that isn’t afraid to be mean.
A mid-90's HBO rotation classic!