SummaryA coverup and witchhunt ensue after a politician (Gene Hackman) accidentally puts his mistress (Sean Young) in jeopardy.
Directed By:Roger Donaldson
Written By:Kenneth Fearing, Robert Garland
No Way Out
Metascore
Generally Favorable
77
User score
Generally Favorable
7.4
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
83% Positive
15 Reviews
15 Reviews
17% Mixed
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
100
A thriller that grabs you even before the ironies of its plot kick in is a thriller you don't want to miss. No Way Out is that sort of movie, a thriller that's thrilling throughout.
100
No Way Out is a superior example of the genre, a film in which a simple situation grows more and more complex until it turns into a nightmare not only for the hero but also for everyone associated with him. At the same time, it respects the audience's intelligence, gives us a great deal of information, trusts us to put it together and makes the intellectual analysis of the situation one of the movie's great pleasures.
User score
Generally Favorable
73% Positive
35 Ratings
35 Ratings
25% Mixed
12 Ratings
12 Ratings
2% Negative
1 Rating
1 Rating
Sep 17, 2023
10
No Way Out (1987) offers the cinema-goer a new sort of villain: worse than Russian spies disguised as American Naval Heroes, worse than prostitutes, worse than ex-assassins from shadowy black ops death squads. He is the Evil, Well-Groomed Scheming Homosexual in the corridors of the Pentagon, secretly in love with ungrateful Gene Hackman. The beating heart of the defense establishment where the computer is supplied by Radio Shack. An armed, unblinking Homosexual so heinous he would shoot a man in a wheelchair in a rectilinear gymnasium supposedly within a pentagonal building. When he blows his wig off, we can neatly load up every crime ever committed and pin it on him!
Apr 23, 2019
9
No Way Out is one of those movies that'll get you in suspence. The theme song from No Way Out is pretty good also, and yeah, years ago I love this film since I watched it and the chase scenes are a lot of fun and the twist in the end really messes the audiences up. Other than that this is one of the favorite films of all time and Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman are good in it.
90
Gripping...A very convincing nightmare, and if Hackman gives too rounded a performance to approach the omniscient evil of Laughton's original, Patton assumes the mantle as Brice's henchman, while Costner confirms his arrival as a star. Clearly, they can remake 'em like that any more.
75
Timeliness aside, it's an electrifying and erotic film-noir thriller in the Hitchcock tradition - James Stewart could have been cast as Tom Farrell - right up to the final five minutes, which feature a surprise ending that is a shock primarily because it makes little logical sense; surprise endings should click satisfyingly into place once the shock has worn off, but this one stirs up questions that refuse to settle. [14 Aug 1987]
75
The action is tight and suspenseful, and the plot culminates in the most astounding last-minute switch of the decade. Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman shine as the main characters, and Will Patton leads a solid supporting cast.
70
The preposterous plot is riddled with holes, and Patton, as the psychotic homosexual aide, badly overplays his hand. Nonetheless, Australian-born director Roger Donaldson does a bangup job tightening the suspense screws inside the Pentagon. Costner, much more vibrant than he was allowed to be in "The Untouchables," brings great dash and conviction to material that probably doesn't deserve it, and Hackman finds pockets of humanity in his badguy role. The result is taut, stylish and, for those willing to suspend about three tons of disbelief, a good deal of fun. [24 Aug 1987, p.60]
40
Indeed, viewers who arrive at the movie five minutes late and leave five minutes early will avoid the setup and payoff for the preposterous twist that spoils this lively, intelligent remake of 1948's The Big Clock.
Dec 16, 2017
9
It is getting good, better and better by the time and when it's over you ought to say: Brilliant Noir. The cast makes it spicy, especially Kevin is the live-wire.
May 2, 2022
8
The reds are in the building. They still are. One of the best movies sorta ever, sorta.
Sep 21, 2025
6
Average thriller with a fantastic cast and decent production quality/cinematography. The screenplay feels loose as things switch between geopolitics and the personal dramas in the love triangle. Very silly illogical ending! Worth a watch for genre fans /fans of Costner/Hackman etc.
Nov 11, 2023
6
Its a decent, and very era specific, thriller that features on the more meaningless and stupid ending scene twists of all time.Hackman not given nearly enough to do.
Jan 25, 2019
5
One of the strangest movies I've seen in recent memory, and for many reasons. Firstly, it happens to be one of the rare filmic occurrences where a second act can tower largely over its bookending acts in terms of quality. "No Way Out's" central conceit -- once it finally gets going -- is a perfectly engrossing game of cat and mouse, featuring a valued use of dramatic irony and some terrific plotting. Acts one and three, however, are far from perfect, with the former falling into the realm of humdrum 80's cheese and the latter implementing a mindbogglingly unnecessary twist that honestly leaves more questions than answers. Throw in one of the most distractingly dated scores I've ever heard and you've got yourself quite the experience. Was it an experience that I regret? Not at all. But its flaws are just too flagrant to ignore.
Production Company:
- Orion Pictures
Release Date:Aug 14, 1987
Duration:1 h 54 m
Rating:R
Tagline:A tightly wound and engrossing thriller!
Awards
Jupiter Award
• 2 Nominations
