Fiery Ford

The action hero of the AARP set

Computer security expert Jack Stanfield had a good job and a comfortable family life, but that all changed when [insert family-kidnap plot here in gravitas-drenched movie trailer voice]."

It's the preview you've seen 100 times. Suspense! Intrigue! People with duct tape over their mouths! And it usually stars Harrison Ford.

Next comes an exploding boat, someone leaping through a pane of glass and a hero-turns-the-tables line like, "You'll get your money when I get my family!"

Then - Wham! - in big block letters, the incendiary one-word title: "Firewall."

That's when everyone in the theater looks at their date, shrugs and reaches for the popcorn. Haven't we seen this before? Yes, last year when it was called "Hostage" with Bruce Willis.

It's the classic story of the dad-hero, the good guy dragged into a bad situation by goons who mess with his family. And Ford, above all, has made a career out of the genre, from "Frantic" to "Air Force One" to "The Devil's Own."

"He has tried to diversify some lately, with movies like 'What Lies Beneath, and 'Hollywood Homicide,' but those haven't done so well at the box office, " says entertainment analyst Paul Dergarabedian, president of Exhibitor Relations Company. "This is Ford returning to the kind of role that made him a star - he's the reluctant everyman put into an extraordinary situation."

Ford stays in great shape by working the land at his 800-acre ranch in Jackson Hole, Wyo. But now 63 years old, you've got to wonder: How many beatdowns does this no-quit punching bag have in him?

"I don't know if anyone else his age could pull this off," Dergarabedian says. "Most other actors at this age would've transitioned."

When Sean Connery was 63, he played a sagacious expert on Japanese affairs in "Rising Sun," letting Wesley Snipes do the ass-kicking. Even Clint Eastwood at that age was reaching for scripts like "The Bridges of Madison County."

"The thing that works for Harrison Ford," Dergarabedian says, "is that he's never been a typical action hero. He's always been good at playing the ordinary guy."

Here's a blow-by-blow on the most pounded actor in Hollywood.

The Empire Strikes Back (1980): Han Solo goes from being the coolest character in the sci-fi trilogy to the coldest after he's frozen solid in carbonite.

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981): Indy gets whaled on by many villains, including the huge moron who forgot to duck a whirling propeller blade. Indy also gets dragged down an Egyptian dirt road while clinging to the undercarriage of a truck.

Blade Runner (1982): Goes toe-to-toe with a group of angry Replicants, including Rutger Hauer and Daryl Hannah. Adding insult to injury, the ex-cop gets dragged out of retirement without even getting to finish his noodles.

Witness (1985): As Det. John Book, he boils over and trades blows with an Amish hater, then later uses a grain silo as a deadly weapon.

The Fugitive (1993): For starters, a train runs into his bus. That had to hurt. Plus there's the 100-foot swan dive out of the drainpipe to evade Tommy Lee Jones.

Patriot Games (1992) and Clear and Present Danger (1994): As Tom Clancy's uber-hero Jack Ryan, Ford goes to battle against IRA assassins ("Patriot Games," 1992) and a Colombian drug cartel ("Clear and Present Danger," 1994).

"Air Force One" Ford plays a pugilistic president who saves his family, and some appreciative staffers, from a group of gun-toting Russian hijackers.

- By Michael Kane