Pursuit (1972) a Michael Crichton film

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Another film I remember from the 1970s.  This one I caught on ABC on its first showing.  What I remembered all this time was the "sniffer," which appears to be a hand held gas chromatography–mass spectrometry unit, and the field-expedient plastic explosive.  Some of this is a bit exaggerated.  If there is a handheld GC-MS unit now, I would love to know about it.  Actually, if there was a unit that could detect nitrates and such out of the air in 1972, that would be nice to know also.

Binary chemical weapons are completely real and were around in 1972.

The plot, is a "Right Wing" terrorist gets tired of the way the country is headed, so he makes a boobytrapped binary nerve gas device.  His escape from questioning is a bit far fetched.

In reality in 1972 (unrelated to this movie), a group called R.I.S.E. plotted a biological warfare attack centered in the Chicago area.  They had already inoculated themselves against the agents they planned to use and were poised to steal and grow enough for their plot just before they were caught.  They were later dubbed a "Right Wing" group because they wanted Earth to be ruled by a master race of environmentalists.

Back in the good old days, you could smoke a cigarette almost anywhere you please.  Like Ben Gazzara does throughout the film.


Pursuit (1972) - Ben Gazzara - Feature (Drama... by FilmGorillas

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