Extraordinary Measures

If Extraordinary Measures reminds viewers of a TV disease-of-the-week tearjerker, it may be because it's the first theatrical release from CBS Films, a network division that's testing whether audiences will pay box office prices for cable-caliber melodramas. Pharmaceutical executive John Crowley (Brendan Fraser) and his wife, Aileen (Keri Russell), have three children. While their oldest (Sam M. Hall) is healthy, the younger two—eight-year-old Megan (Meredith Droeger) and six-year-old Patrick (Diego Velazquez)—suffer from Pompe's disease, a rare genetic form of muscular dystrophy with no treatment or cure. Terrified that the children may die at any time, John learns of an eccentric University of Nebraska professor, Dr. Robert Stonehill (Harrison Ford), who believes he has isolated an enzyme that can arrest the disorder, which generally kills children before the age of 10. Crowley agrees to finance Stonehill's drug therapy experiments, setting up a nonprofit foundation, but with time and funds running out, Crowley proposes selling Stonehill's findings to a big biotech company, a suggestion the cantankerous doctor resists even though it will propel the experimental drug to a first trial much faster. Inspired by actual events and adapted from The Cure by Geeta Anand (with Ford's character a composite of several real-life scientists), director Tom Vaughan's Extraordinary Measures never rises above a straightforward TV-movie-level offering. Optional, at best. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include “The Power to Overcome” making-of featurette (11 min.), deleted scenes (10 min.), a “Meet John Crowley” character featurette with costar Brendan Fraser (5 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release are the “movieIQ” trivia track and BD-Live function. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a disappointing film.] (S. Granger)