Collateral
2004
This is a rare twist for Tom Cruise
who plays a villain in this film, as opposed to the heroesque personas he
normally portrays. His character, Vincent, is a hit man who has a major
job in Los Angeles. To ensure he leaves no tracks he hires Max (Jamie
Foxx), a quiet and remarkably honest cab driver to drive him around all
night. He tells Max that he’s a real estate agent who needs to close
several deals that evening (what realtor closes deals after
nightfall? --but that’s beside the point). Blissfully unaware of the real job that Vincent is out to
complete, Max conveys his fare around the city. However, after a body falls onto his cab, he’s rudely awakened
as to what he has just become an unwitting accomplice to. It seems that
Vincent isn’t
the only one who is not what he says he is...Max, who has a dream of
owning a limousine company that caters to the rich and famous, takes care
of his ailing mother, who he visits faithfully every night. However, she
believes that Max is indeed a successful proprietor of a car service and
rubs elbows with music stars. She has no idea that he’s still just a
lowly cabbie who barely pulls down enough per shift to get by, nor does
she have any idea that she’s sitting next to a hired murderer, as she so
proudly brags about her son’s accomplishments to Vincent. While
Collateral is partly billed as an action film, the significance of
the action takes place in the cab, where the two men debate each other
about their lives, line of work, and criticize each other’s character.
Collateral has a solid script and keeps you interested and in
suspense. The cast, including Jada Pinkett-Smith and Mark Ruffalo, does a
great job. Jamie Foxx stands out in particular because he takes on a
serious, non-comedic role and does so with ease and fluency. Surprising,
given his previous unpredictable roles in sketch comedy, stand-up
specials, and marginal urban films. Although the final third of the
film moves into the conventional cat-and-mouse mode, the pace is
consistent and
the ending, albeit unoriginal and clichéd, gives some enjoyable closure to
the story. I personally wished that director Michael Mann would have gone
out on a limb and done something unusual or out of the ordinary, but
instead he just used a cookie cutter Hollywood ending to a film that was
strong in all other respects. For this reason, I will give it a B+, but
it’s a great movie and a refreshing change of pace for both Cruise and
Foxx. Grade: B+
Czarina's Caustic Comment or Captious
Compliment: A viewing of Collateral pays a nice dividend.
The Clearing
2004
Based on a true story about the
kidnapping of a Dutch industrialist, The Clearing is a story of how
one man’s dream can become another man’s nightmare. Wayne Hayes (Robert
Redford) has a great life: a loving, dedicated wife, two wonderful
children, a booming business, and a grand home in the affluent outskirts
of Pittsburgh. Although things appear ideal from the outside, on the
inside Wayne has grown distant from his children and especially his wife,
Eileen (Helen Mirren). He keeps a younger mistress (Wendy Crewson) on the
side--a former employee who he helps support. One morning as he is
leaving for work, he is approached by Arnold (Willem Dafoe), another
former employee, and after a brief conversation, he overpowers Wayne at
gunpoint and abducts him to a wooded area. Arnold treks Wayne through the
forest to the location, a clearing in the woods, where the people who
hired Arnold to abduct Wayne will be waiting. During the march, the two
talk about their families, lives, work and their successes and failures in
each. Meanwhile, Eileen has involved the authorities and summoned her
children for support. She must painfully reveal to FBI Agent Ray Fuller
(Matt Craven) that she knew of her husbands affair, but begs him not to
tell her children (Alessandro Nivola and Melissa Sagemiller) of their
father’s indiscretions.
Redford does an exceptional job as Wayne, and
forgoes the indulgences of make-up and a stylist…looking worn and aged for
this role; something given his vanity, he does not normally allow. Willem
Dafoe comes through in his usual style, and Craven was adequate for his
role, although a little too matter-of-fact. Helen Mirren gave the
strongest of all performances, suffering with a quiet dignity and
composure. She manages to keep her poise and self-control not only when
she finds out that her husband was still having an affair, but when she
confronts his paramour for the juicy details. The movie builds
anticipation slowly, letting you discover bit by bit about each of the
principal characters. As you learn more, your sympathies will slowly
transfers from the prosperous Wayne to the destitute Arnold – or maybe
not. The idea of the rich impresario being confronted by the broke
blue-collar worker is by no means original. However, Dafoe and Redford
carry the conflict marvelously. Their chemistry was absolute. The ending
of the film, which could have taken several paths, will either surprise,
shock, or disappoint—or perhaps all three. The movie moves in a unique
time scale, as you see both stories unfolding, however, the time frames
of each are not congruent. The Clearing is not exactly a thriller,
but more of a drama exploring the favor and flaws of people and
relationships. More for the over 40 crowd, but mature minded
30-somethings may appreciate it too. Grade: B
Czarina's
Caustic Comment or Captious Compliment: This is clearly one of Redford's
better works.
I, Robot
2004
I, Robot was entertaining, although I
expected a little more out of it, but I wasn’t disappointed by the film as
a whole. The year is 2035 and the industry of robotics has made great
strides and has integrated well into the world. This is much to the
chagrin of Detective Del Spooner (Will Smith), a Chicago police officer
who has an extreme dislike and suspicion for the ubiquitous bots who serve
mankind in a variety of ways. Spooner is summoned to the headquarters of
US Robotics, the leading manufacturer of robots, where Dr. Alfred Lanning
(James Cromwell)—who wrote the laws governing the behavior of robots, has
committed suicide. Spooner doesn’t believe the good doctor killed himself
and suspects that a robot is behind his friend’s death. He soon learns
that one of the robots, Sonny (voiced by Alan Tudyk: A Knight’s Tale), not
only had a part in the doctor’s demise, but is not in compliance with the
3 laws governing robots, one of which is not to injure a human. As
Spooner searches for answers, he meets with Dr. Calvin (Bridget Moynahan),
a robot psychologist who seems to have the answer to everything, except
what’s really happening with the robots. I, Robot had the potential to be
more than your typical man-vs-machine tale, but it doesn’t go that way.
It tries to redeem the spirit of the original work its final few moments,
but in reality, it’s nothing more than a predictable story of a hero
running recklessly about, causing destruction and endangering others in
pursuit of a murky hunch, and then finally solves the mystery in time to
save the city/mankind/earth from a colossal devastation. Will Smith, was
basically playing the same character as he does in most of his movies;
smart-assed and comedic in the delivery of his lines. Bridget Moynahan
got on my nerves, as her character was too cold towards humans and seemed
to be more concerned with the well-being of robots, even if it were at the
detriment of humans. Tudyk’s personification of Sonny was touching and
noticeably more human than Moynahan’s. I, Robot sported some wonderful
CGI and moves a good pace. Despite the plot-holes and departure from the
originating foundation, the film hits the spot for entertainment
value.
Grade: B+
Note:The 3 Laws featured in the movie, were cerated by Issac Asimov, but he is not credited with it in the movie.
Czarina's Caustic Comment or Captious Compliment: Domo Arigato Mr. Roboto....er Smith.
