A average, but not bad thriller in a kind of Hitchcock-mood. Dillon think his brother is killed, but off course we know better... and soon he is hunted for the McGuffin: A disk of spy names from the Torn Curtain-time. There are many failures in this movie, but if you can accept them, you get a good Dillon, a lovely Roth and first of all a fine story. 5½/10
8 Reviews
great potential....
toronto_bill29 December 2006
Simply put, The movie asks a lot of the viewer. If you play along there are moments to be appreciated. It's easy to follow, but...you need to participate fully.
Matt Dillon, Christopher Plummer, Paul Soles, J.T. Walsh are some great actors. They held up their parts I believe....so that leaves the writer, editor and director to account for the lack of ??? Flow maybe. Pace? There are some scenes which seem out of place or maybe they're uneeded. I'm clearly not an insider or movie production buff...but it feels like the Special Features "Making of..." might have been more entertaining.
There clearly is potential given the basic storyline....but for whatever reason...it didn't make it to the final product. In my mind, a post war thriller is a fairly easy story.
Matt Dillon, Christopher Plummer, Paul Soles, J.T. Walsh are some great actors. They held up their parts I believe....so that leaves the writer, editor and director to account for the lack of ??? Flow maybe. Pace? There are some scenes which seem out of place or maybe they're uneeded. I'm clearly not an insider or movie production buff...but it feels like the Special Features "Making of..." might have been more entertaining.
There clearly is potential given the basic storyline....but for whatever reason...it didn't make it to the final product. In my mind, a post war thriller is a fairly easy story.
He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother
wes-connors6 December 2008
Brawny Kevin Dillon (as David McLean) takes a plane to Germany, where he plans to meet his estranged brother. Upon arrival, he is told what we've seen open the film, that brother Rod Wilson (as Michael McLean) blew up in a car. Mr. Dillon identifies his brother's burned-beyond-recognition body by observing his tattooed arm. You'd be suspicious, and Dillon is too. He discovers his brother was (is?) tied up in a web of espionage. The Berlin morgue makes room for more bodies, as unsavory types search for a missing computer disk, thought to be in one of the McLean brothers' possession.
Dillon befriends pretty blonde motorcycling Andrea Roth (as Monika Engelmann) who, of course, is also interested in finding the disk. Supporting actors Christopher Plummer (as Ulrich Steiner), J.T. Walsh (as Jonathan Zanuck), and Michael Wincott (as Larry Gleason) give the picture some weight. Mr. Plummer works out of the Berlin police department; in a sex shop, he suggests a nuns in bondage video. Mr. Walsh and Mr. Wincott are situated at the American Embassy. Wincott is soft-spoken, but powerful. This was dependable character actor Walsh's last filmed appearance. So, Iain Paterson's "Hidden Agenda" is, appropriately, "Dedicated to the memory of J.T. Walsh."
**** Hidden Agenda (1998) Iain Paterson ~ Kevin Dillon, Andrea Roth, J.T. Walsh
Dillon befriends pretty blonde motorcycling Andrea Roth (as Monika Engelmann) who, of course, is also interested in finding the disk. Supporting actors Christopher Plummer (as Ulrich Steiner), J.T. Walsh (as Jonathan Zanuck), and Michael Wincott (as Larry Gleason) give the picture some weight. Mr. Plummer works out of the Berlin police department; in a sex shop, he suggests a nuns in bondage video. Mr. Walsh and Mr. Wincott are situated at the American Embassy. Wincott is soft-spoken, but powerful. This was dependable character actor Walsh's last filmed appearance. So, Iain Paterson's "Hidden Agenda" is, appropriately, "Dedicated to the memory of J.T. Walsh."
**** Hidden Agenda (1998) Iain Paterson ~ Kevin Dillon, Andrea Roth, J.T. Walsh
A Spy Thriller Without Many Thrills...
MetalGeek7 November 2010
I had never heard of "Hidden Agenda" and probably never would've if it hadn't been on 4-movie compilation DVD I recently bought called "SCI-FI COLLECTOR'S SET." After watching the film I wonder why it's included on a "Sci-Fi" DVD, because "Hidden Agenda" has absolutely no science-fiction elements whatsoever, it's a fairly standard spy/espionage caper. I didn't mind, as I also happen to like these types of films when they're done well. UN-fortunately, "Hidden Agenda" is not one of those films.
David McLean (Kevin Dillon) travels to Berlin, Germany, to meet his estranged brother, whom he hasn't seen in several years. Unfortunately when he arrives at the airport he's met by some folks from the American embassy, who sadly report to him that his brother was killed in an "auto accident" the night before. We the viewers know that it was no accident, as we saw his brother Michael get in a shoot out and then blown up in a car before the opening credits even rolled. As Dillon goes through his brother's possessions, it becomes clear to him that his bro was in the middle of some shady business. Eventually it becomes clear that his brother was working for the CIA and was in possession of a computer disc that could be embarrassing to people on both sides of the former Iron Curtain, and therefore a lot of bad guys want the disc. David and his new friend Monika (Andrea Roth) spend the rest of the movie running from one place to another, getting shot at and being chased by a variety of bad guys. For a movie with so much going on you'd expect it to be action packed but it's not. It's very slow and talky and even though the film is only about 100 minutes long it seems to run about twice that.
There's nothing wrong with any of the performances; Dillon and Roth make a good team and there's able support from such dependable character actors as the late J.T. Walsh as an American Embassy employee who may or may not be on Dillon's side and the great Christopher Plummer as a crusty old German detective. However, the pieces of "Hidden Agenda" never really come together.
This could've been a tight, compact thriller but "Hidden Agenda" rambles on way too long and in too many directions for its own good. Pass on this one.
David McLean (Kevin Dillon) travels to Berlin, Germany, to meet his estranged brother, whom he hasn't seen in several years. Unfortunately when he arrives at the airport he's met by some folks from the American embassy, who sadly report to him that his brother was killed in an "auto accident" the night before. We the viewers know that it was no accident, as we saw his brother Michael get in a shoot out and then blown up in a car before the opening credits even rolled. As Dillon goes through his brother's possessions, it becomes clear to him that his bro was in the middle of some shady business. Eventually it becomes clear that his brother was working for the CIA and was in possession of a computer disc that could be embarrassing to people on both sides of the former Iron Curtain, and therefore a lot of bad guys want the disc. David and his new friend Monika (Andrea Roth) spend the rest of the movie running from one place to another, getting shot at and being chased by a variety of bad guys. For a movie with so much going on you'd expect it to be action packed but it's not. It's very slow and talky and even though the film is only about 100 minutes long it seems to run about twice that.
There's nothing wrong with any of the performances; Dillon and Roth make a good team and there's able support from such dependable character actors as the late J.T. Walsh as an American Embassy employee who may or may not be on Dillon's side and the great Christopher Plummer as a crusty old German detective. However, the pieces of "Hidden Agenda" never really come together.
This could've been a tight, compact thriller but "Hidden Agenda" rambles on way too long and in too many directions for its own good. Pass on this one.
rather flat spy flick
Bob718 November 1999
This movie is called Secret Agenda at our cable rental store. Although Chris Plummer does a good job as the inscrutable German detective, the movie is like a standard TV flick. It's a pretty good story, but the acting is rather flat, and it doesn't really draw the viewer in. It's really not worth rental money, and it should be on regular TV sometime soon anyway. It's better than Act of War with Jack Scalia, but not much.
Only worth it for the cast
Leofwine_draca11 July 2018
Warning: Spoilers
An interesting cast is the only good thing about HIDDEN AGENDA, a boring and dated Canadian thriller released in 1999 with some of the technological mumbo-jumbo that filled turn-of-the-century thrillers back in the day; there's some stuff about a stolen computer disk, for instance. The setting is Germany, where an ever-youthful Kevin Dillon (of THE BLOB fame) investigates his brother's murder and comes up against a murky conspiracy. The film is cheap and dated looking and it's hard to believe that in just three years time THE BOURNE IDENTITY would come out and revitalise the genre. Cast-wise, we get turns from the underrated Michael Wincott, old-timer Christopher Plummer (who at least seems to be enjoying himself) and the great J.T. Walsh, for whom this was sadly his last role before his untimely death.
You have to ask yourself a question .....
merklekranz25 October 2018
Why would Kevin Dillon, who is about to become a Doctor, immerse himself in foreign country intrigue? James Bond he is not, and that immediately begs the question of believability. The audience is challenged right from the git-go trying to make sense of the severely disjointed story line. Making matters worse are the fake German accents, which only add to the confusion. "Hidden Agenda'" is one of those movies that after the credits roll, you will be wondering what you just saw. Despite the presence of the always interesting J.T. Walsh as a U.S. Embassy Representative, and Christopher Plummer as a German Policeman, even they cannot save this film from it's lackluster and murky plot. I' would pass on this one. - MERK
so-so eastern block who-dunnit
ksf-218 May 2015
The script appears to be someone's first attempt at an Eastern-block who-dunnit-spy-intrigue mystery. Kevin Dillon is "David McLean", in our story, on his way to visit his brother. Apparently, the brother has been murdered, but David meets lots of folks who knew Michael. We aren't given any clues as to what's really going on, just lots of secretive looks and car chases by "people" coming after him. The CIA seems to want a disk he finds in a locker, and "Monika" (Andrea Roth" ) knows more than she is telling, but instead of telling David what's going on, he (and us, the viewers) are left in the dark so more people can chase him around. The Stazi secret police are involved, and the bodies start piling up. It pretty much comes to a screeching halt when then they hole up in an apartment about halfway through the film. It's less than satisfying, but it IS part of a four- film thriller set I found, so it is mildly entertaining. Very clichéd, even down to the sound levels jumping way up and way down throughout the film. So typical.
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