Loosely based on true events that happened a decade ago in Cambridge, “Extraordinary Measures’’ is entertaining enough. It’s the first horse out of the gate from CBS’s new theatrical division, and, without a trace of shame it plays like one of the network’s movies of the week, despite the off-the-rack medical-thriller title. But the screenplay by Robert Nelson Jacobs affirms life and jerks tears with welcome degrees of humor and muscle.
“Extraordinary Measures’’ is basically a love story between two men. Fraser’s executive, John Crowley, secures funding that helps Dr. Robert Stonehill, a crusty scientific genius played by Harrison Ford, develop the drug. Stonehill is a maverick who’s been working on a treatment for years but lacked the budget to realize his breakthrough.
When Crowley tells Stonehill that he had to cut a deal for the first round of funding, they start growling at each other. It’s the sort of screaming match that, were Fraser a woman, would have ended with the two in each other’s arms. Instead, the doctor helps the executive rinse a cut. It’s adorable. Cuter is the way Stonehill calls Crowley “Jersey,’’ after Crowley’s home state. It’s just like Ford would do for Karen Allen or Michelle Pfeiffer.
For the record, Crowley has a wife (Keri Russell). She appears only half as saintly as her husband, and Russell’s chemistry with Fraser is only half as good as his is with Ford. All the good writing is saved for scenes among the men - Jared Harris plays one of the uptight executives at the biotech company that winds up bringing Crowley and Stonehill into its fold.
