Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, November 23, 1995                   TAG: 9511220046
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 9   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: MIKE MAYO CORRESPONDENT
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

HITCHCOCK COULD HAVE MADE 'NICK OF TIME'

It's a good suspense film - one of the most carefully constructed in years - squarely in the Hitchcock tradition. The "real time" aspect refers to the plot's chronology. All of the action takes place within the film's 88-minute running time.

It begins at noon in Los Angeles' Union Station where two threatening figures, Mr. Smith (Christopher Walken) and Ms. Jones (Rona Maffia, from ``Disclosure''), are looking for a victim. When they spot accountant Gene Watson (Johnny Depp) and his young daughter, Lynn (Courtney Chase), they know they've found their mark.

In short order, they take the little girl and force Gene into a choice. They give him a revolver and a photograph of a woman (Marsha Mason). She'll be coming to a nearby hotel. If he doesn't shoot her by 1:30, they'll kill his little girl. The clock is ticking and they're watching.

Yes, the premise may lack plausibility, but it quickly plugs into the paranoia of assassination/conspiracy theorists and good thriller plots. Why is the stranger hanging around with a camcorder? Which shadowy forces are at work? Who's giving the orders?

The less potential viewers know about the rest of the story, the better. The other key player is Huey (Charles S. Dutton) a one-legged shoe-shine guy who's the only person in the hotel that Gene might be able to trust.

Once they've established their situation, writer Patrick Sheane Duncan (also responsible for the video cult hit ``84 Charlie MoPic'') and veteran producer/director John Badham do ingenious things with familiar material. Some scenes have the rushed, unrehearsed feel of a documentary, and throughout, the filmmakers play by the rules they've established. Time constraints are never stretched too far, and the action never becomes too fantastic.

The performances are right on target. This is one of Walken's most effective and restrained villains. Johnny Depp is surprisingly good, too, proving that he doesn't need the excesses and eccentricities of "Edward Scissorhands" or "Ed Wood."

It's also worth noting that Duncan and Badham give the story an unashamedly liberal political bias. That may be enough to put off some partisan moviegoers, but anyone who appreciates old-fashioned suspense - the kind of movie that Hitch made with Cary Grant and Jimmy Stewart - will love "Nick of Time."

Nick of Time ***

A Paramount release playing at the Salem Valley 8 and Valley View 6. 88 min. Rated R for violence, strong language, subject matter.