Tag: action movie

G.I.Joe: The Rise of Cobra

Posted on December 12, 2009 by Dexter

Year Released: 2009
Directed by: Stephen Somers
Starring: Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans, Incredibly Hot Sienna Miller, Rachel Nichols
Production Company: Paramount Pictures
Release Date: August 7, 2009

I remember when Stephen Somers burst onto the scene with The Mummy. Here was a franchise that hadn’t been touched in long time, and was a classic movie monster. At the time, I was blown away, digital effects were gaining ground, and the story was solid. Pretty good material for its time. G.I.Joe on the other hand is based on the popular American cartoon television series that more Gung, than Ho. It glorified guys with big guns and promoted American Values such as reading (“Knowing is half the battle”) and other forgettable things that I can’t seem to muster up right now.

Take those elements, and the child like wonder of Somers who is able to treat the source material in the same way many 10 year-olds did. The end product is something that is both insulting to the intelligence, and completely non-sense. What a complete waste of money. The only reason I wanted to see this was for Dennis Quaid, and he’s quickly stepping into the realm of B-movie actor in quad leaps after watching G.I.Joe.

I kinda wish I paid more attention to the “Travelling Pants” movies…

As a paying movie-goer, we have to suspend our belief every once in a while, and take what is given to us. I simply cannot accept what happened here, all the dialogue is cookie cutter thin, and the characters are stock representations of their plastic toy counterparts, with as much appeal behind a blister pack. The plot makes no sense the special effects were bargain basement. If Stephen Somers set out to make his movies as uninteresting, and un-entertaining as possible, by Joe, I think he’s hit the perfect note here.

I’m never sure what to expect with a Wayon Brother cast into an action role. You either get “White Chicks” or some variation of the Halloween mash’em ups. With that mind, they’re usually into gross out humor with B-List actors. Well, there’s no gross out humor here, but there’s plenty of B-lister’s on stage strutting their stuff in the hopes an A-list action director comes calling with a casting sheet. Even Dennis Quaid seems to be hamming it up with his serious, gruff, plastic-type mannerism that comes off as cartoonish, and to think he’s got the most serious role. C’mon Dennis, you’ve done so many good films, why choose this one to screw with your karma?

Style takes a backseat to substance here folks, and this is the end product so many of us were waiting for, and now will forever be stuck with. It’s a reminder, that in a time of technological wonders, we can have high expectations, yet have them dashed in a moment. For that, I firmly place the blame on George Lucas for forgetting to write scripts to his prequel movies. For shame people, for shame.

Bet you had to look twice, didn’t you?

The comedy should add to the exciting things on screen, but the comedy here comes completely from the visual effects department. There simply is no consistency when jumping from scene to scene; the backgrounds are straight out the cartoon, complete with brightly colored palettes and bad lightning techniques. Marlon simply shows up the green screen set with his attitude. And at least he’s sporting a character, the rest are either too busy brooding or trying to remember their simple dialogue they’re all played off as foolish and silly. At least Snake Eyes had the good grace to take an oath of silence and let his physicality take the main presence over the rest of the amped up cast.

2009 was a dismal summer of movies, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, one of the most anticipated sequels of the year fizzled, the Terminator prequel/sequel received more attention behind the scenes with Bale’s rant than in the box office, and it just doesn’t seem to add up. Perhaps money doesn’t make a good product (too many cases in point here). G.I.Joe just fails me at every level. At least Transformers believed in itself enough to try to sell me on the idea. The sales pitch falls flat in G.I.Joe, it was more DOA than COD, and that’s from a guy who had to watch a rental.

2.0 out of 10

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Posted on November 23, 2009 by Dexter

Year Released: 2009
Directed by: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, a bunch of polygons
Production Company: DreamWorks Entertainment
Release Date: June 24, 2009

“Transformers Revenge of the Fallen” appeals to the MTV generation in more one way. For the rest of us with longer attention spans, we’re bound to notice the lack of character development, the fundamental story telling flaws, and the visual and auditory assault on the senses that Michael Bay loves to stuff down our throats. Transformers as you might know is the love child of Japanese big robots with the Gung-Ho of Americanism chock full of child loving goodness, broadcast Saturday mornings to children all across North America. The problem with this premise used to be “how can we make giant robots LOOK cool?” Thankfully the geniuses at ILM made the mega monstrosities come to life in 5 storey fashion, but the story falls flatter than Shia LaBeouf’s personality. We have Michael Bay to thank for all this noise, and when I say Noise, I mean it. Sitting in a darkened theatre whilst giant mecha’s duel it out certainly can be grating – 2 and a 1/2 hours worth was plenty for me.

You can’t blame Steven Spielberg for this one, he has the executive producer rights, but his name, his image is nowhere seen close to or on this product at all. Like every other Michael Bay movie, the action is frenetic, choppy, and bright without any sort of shyness when it comes to being full bore on insane. And just like any other Bay-hem film, the action is tough to track; the enemies and good guys mix it up so frequently you can’t keep track of who is kicking whose butt. Other nuances, such as the average lifespan of a shot must be less a second, watching Sam (Shia LaBeouf’s) and Mikhela (Smoking Hot Megan Fox) say their respective good-byes to each other had so many tracking shots I nearly got motion sickness.

Bumblebee: missing a pair of converse high tops and a sweet kentucky waterfall

It’s simply mindless, it spends more time trying to build on non-existent back stories and continually going back to characters that don’t add to the overall plot, or contribute anything further than being racist stereotypes that Bay finds amusing. I’m of course talking about Skids and MudFlap, the Autobot twins annoying their way in each scene, showing up only to be more bothersome and irksome than actually adding to the storyline. Personally, the movie could have done without them. A,s I mentioned before, new characters are hastily introduced and just as quickly killed off without even any proper introductions. I wish I could have said the same about Sam’s parents, as their little escapade at Sam’s University was blown out of proportion and borderlines on fantasy of ‘what drugs can do to you’.

The one saving grace was and should always be the Transformers themselves, the stars of the show, who comfortably have more speaking lines than the last, and compared to the mindless banter of the humans is by far more welcome. Some approximated render times are far more fictitious in the age of Quad Core Computing, yet the finished product is something to awe. Especially worth watching in high definition television.

The Gundam happily crunched the racism-bots where they stood.

There’s been a lot of Michael Bay bashing over this movie, some I can understand, while others I’m little more lenient to dissuade. Mainly the naysayers that are advocating that he should stop making films altogether. Now, I’m a fair guy, and I like explosions, and The Rock was actually pretty good, even after a few viewings. People want him to stop because he’s inflicting more pain on the movie going-public than he should be. I for one think all that is absolute crap. Because, complain all you want, you have to admit the guy is a mega cash cow with regards to any movie he’s directing. Some small faction might not like his in your face, shoot-for-the-edit style of film making, but he’s pulling in the revenue to generate more mindless action vehicles.

And to prove a tired point, wouldn’t your 8 year old self want to reveal in watching gigantic mechanized Godzilla’s slugging it out on the big screen?

4.5 out of 10.0

Tropic Thunder

Posted on November 25, 2008 by Dexter

Year Released: 2008
Directed by: Ben Stiller
Starring: Ben Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey, Brandon T, and Tom Cruise(!)
Production Company:
Studio: Dreamworks SKG

When Tropic Thunder was released, all the buzz was about Robert Downey Jr. playing a black man. Different groups were all in upheaval about the charade of a man willing to do something like this in the name of comedy. There was a lot of talk about racism and Hollywood’s easy acceptance in the name of a buck. If you watch the movie, you’ll actually find it’s done quite tastefully and it fits the character Downey Jr is portraying. And if you think Hollywood cares who they’re offending in the name of the almighty dollar, you’re dead wrong. Just take a look at ‘White Chicks’ a gross out comedy starring the Wayan brothers as two blonde heiresses. No one even batted an eyelid when that premise was announced. Even the title was honest in what the content was about, yet you didn’t hear about any petitioning groups against it.

The rabid fans of ‘Envy’ find their way onto the set…

I’m sure the double standards community online agrees with me.

It’s been a while since Ben Stiller was behind the camera, his last directoral movie, Zoolander was the satire of the world of male modeling. This time around, Stiller is a little more honest and has a lot less slapstick in Tropic Thunder. It’s a movie within a movie concept complete with fake trailers with the title characters playing to their strengths. If you give it a chance you’ll have a fun time keeping up with the insanity of movies and vices that each actor can have.

Start the engine, Katie Holmes found out where Tom got to at night!

The story follows a group of actors with engorged egos cast in the most expensive war movie ever made. Each actor is at the top of their game in the three major film genres: Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black) the comedic actor with a spiraling drug problem, Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller) the action juggernaut with one last chance to show he’s got some acting talent, and Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey Jr.) the five time oscar winner method actor who gets a little too involved in his roles. In the mix is a up and coming rap superstar Alpo Chino (Brandon T. Jackson) and the unknown actor (Jay Baruchel) who actually reads the source material and script. The source material in question was written by double arm amputee Four Leaf Tayback (Nick Nolte) whose experience in Vietnam and horrific injuries are a result of a top secret mission, which now is being turned into a high-concept overblown Hollywood movie.

The director is fed up trying to get his all-star cast to gel together to get the project done, and at Four Leaf’s request, puts them into the jungle filming them guerrilla-movie style. As you’d expect, something happens and it’s no longer a movie, as the group finds themselves in real danger.

Downey Jr. is magnificent as the dude playing a dude, disguised as another dude.

If you’re going to spoof a major tent pole film, you might as well make it look the part: it’s shot and lit incredibly well. The in-jokes come mainly from the actor’s attachments to their paycheques and lifestyles than they are creating art. All the supporting cast seems to be in on the joke, Matthew McConaughey as Tugg Speedman’s agent is more concerned about getting his client TiVo instead of working on his acting skills. Keep you ears unplugged for an unmistakable voice in Tom Cruise, as Les Grosman, the overweight vulgar, obscenity spewing corporate executive looking to pad his wallet at the expense of any actor or film. This was supposed to be the hidden gem; Cruise is hilarious in his execution, his dance moves and appearance a stark contrast to his otherwise pretty-boy image. His appearance would have dominated the movie, except for:

Robert Downey Jr. Say what you will, his performance walks the line between good taste and comedic timing. He’s got pathos and creates empathy for his fictional character, african American staff Sargent Lincoln Osiris, played by Kirk Lazurus. There’s so many layers behind that performance it’s hard to peel back one after another and not be astounded by the amount of effort he put into those character(s), especially in a movie satire, let alone a comedy film meant to generate laughs instead of buzz. There’s so much conviction in what he’s doing, as his own character states “I only break character after the DVD commentary”. Downey Jr. still shines when he’s playing the Australian Oscar winner and it almost takes away from the films overall tone of irony and sarcasm.

If you looking for a movie that’s light on conscience pick up Tropic Thunder, the laughs are well earned and the filming is beautiful.

7 out of 10

Movie Review: Hancock

Posted on July 5, 2008 by Dexter

Hancock

Year Released: 2008
Directed by: Peter Berg
Starring: Will Smith, Charlize Theron, Jason Bateman
Production Company: Sony Pictures

Something must have happened during production on Hancock. I’m talking about the great first act, the build up of the character, the Superman complex: a God trapped in a man’s body, the initial hurdle Hancock had to overcome and the title character’s progression into becoming the God everyone needs, rather than everyone hates. It was artfully handled, I felt for Will Smith. His portrayal of a Superhuman trapped in the everyman’s world of L.A., a crime infested city where each time he helps, and he’s causing more property damage while trying to stop the bad guys. He’s an alcoholic, but we still like him. He’s easily hateable, but there’s the one guy that truly believes in him, and gets him to reform (Jason Bateman). Instead of being grateful, the city is more satisfied pointing out his drinking habits and the whole ‘flying-while-drunk’ problem. So, to reform, his newly self-appointed P.R agent Ray (Bateman) makes it his mission to create a friendlier, family centric, professional Hancock. On good faith, he asks Hancock to do some time in a federal prison; reluctantly he complies – until the mayor needs his help in a downtown bank robbery/ hostage situation.

“Didn’t y’all like ALI?”

Okay, so at this point I’m not giving away too much, but he saves the hostages, puts the bad guys in jail and treats the people he’s saving with much more dignity and respect. He even asks a lady cop if it’s “Okay to have physical contact with her”. Seriously. So, at this point, you’d think the movie goes into a nice blue sky where Hancock flies away and we’re all happy that he’s become a round character and overcome his demons.

Wrong.

Instead, we’re treated with what seems like a half finished storyline involving Charlize Theron being his super-being wife. The twist here is that they can’t be in too close contact otherwise they start to lose their powers. Cue in some weird tornado’s in downtown L.A. when the two fight each other, and the fact that even though the movie sets the ground rules that: the closer they are, the weaker they get, the movie does a great job of not following this formula.

“I sooooo need to piss.”

For instance: During the fight between Hancock and Theron, she at one point throws a dump truck directly on Hancock. He’s able to get back up, no problem. Later on, in a hospital part, he’s getting the snot beat out of him by a couple of thugs: and for some reason Theron feels Hancock’s pain(?). To say the least, the inconsistencies of powers, the magical additional events that happen when the couple is together, and the lack of support of story adds up to a dismal second act, and a confusing third act. The only saving grace for me was seeing Charlize Theron alongside Jason Bateman again: I was hoping for some reference to ‘Arrested Development’, sadly, I was disappointed.

So we have a movie with an A-list star, major blockbuster bucks and a great marketing campaign. The videos were viral, and the public was pumped to see this as it’s been in development hell for at least 5 years. And for a movie in development that long, it sure felt rushed. The mythos isn’t properly explained, the Wolverine-esque amnesia back story that’s conveniently never revealed by Theron is never flushed out. The additional element such as the heat given off from Hancock and Theron together isn’t explained, and neither is the fact of how they were made or what the exact origins are. I’m sure the movie was written this way to get the public salivating for more, but the way the subject is handled is clumsy and we’re more annoyed than curious.

That being said, if were to grade Hancock on the first 40 minutes, it would stand alone as a pretty good movie. Taken with all the parts, it’s much more baffling, rushed and incomplete.

5.0 out of 10.

Movie Review: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Posted on May 30, 2008 by Dexter

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

Year Released: 2008
Directed by: Steven Spielberg
Starring: Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Shia LaBeouf
Production Company: LucasArts
Review done: 7:41 AM 6/23/2008

At some point after doing the Star Wars Prequels, Lucas must have been searching in his front pocket for change and found the script to Indy 4. Hey, I’m not saying it was done horribly, I just wish it came out a little bit earlier – as in before Shia LaBeouf started to make a name for himself in movies. I’m not a huge fan of the kid, and it’s plain to see why he’s there in the first place: to gap the generations, and to pull in the younger audiences. I could have done without his false bravado, as convincing as Spielberg’s direction was, that kid simply annoys me.

Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is a throwback to the adventure serials of the 40’s and 50’s. Indiana Jones this time around has shown his age and the era has made a shift from 1940’s Nazi enemies to late 1950’s Cold War Russians. Harrison Ford as the titular character is back as the most Bad Ass bullwhip cracking, fedora wearing Archaeologist ever. For a guy in his 60’s he can still hold his own, throwing punches and doing most of his stunt work (even if it is done primarily in front of a blue screen). The storyline departs radically from the original series use of biblical and religious roots; this time around the plot point focuses on Aliens. That’s right, it sounds even a little bit harebrained to me; but you think about it- Spielberg has done ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ and ‘E.T’, so at least he can make it look convincing. The Russians want to get their hands on a Crystal skull (yes, an Alien Skull) to make use of its powers for the U.S.S.R’s power arsenal. And it’s up to Indy and company to stop them.

“Spielberg promised this would all be blue screen!”

There’s a great deal done to keep the same feeling as the older Indy movies; the sets seem to be cut from the same cloth, the soundtrack feels the same, but the visuals are certainly different. Remember in Raiders of the Lost Ark, that part where Indy comes face to face with a cobra? In that scene you could see the reflection of the snake for a split moment. For the moment, that little imperfection, it was what made the movie for me, all the little things. These days the green and blue screen techniques used cover up all the imperfections and it looks a little layered. Believe me, you’ll notice it in the jungle scenes, especially when Shia LaBeouf is swinging through the trees Tarzan style with a bunch of CGI MONKEYS. If you think that sounded as ridiculous as it’s written, imagine my surprise that this movie spawned a catchphrase for a whole new generation.

I’m willing to forgive a lot since this is one of those adventure characters I fell in love with as a kid. That’s saying a lot, I can tolerate what’s going on between LaBeouf, a Boris and Natasha style Cate Blanchett, and a bunch of cartoony Russians in a comic book style plot. I mean, it’s still Indiana Jones; just sexed up for the 21st century with an X-Files twist. The first act, the need to find the Crystal Skull, the introduction of the main characters is worked beautifully; Spielberg has always masterfully given us characters we can care about no matter what the subject matter. The second act brings us further into this new Indy world, but by the third act, Jones doesn’t really have any motivation rather than to just get it over with. If it’s because he can get the seniors dinner discount at Applebee’s I can understand you got an obstacle to overcome buddy, but seriously: I wasn’t pulling for him in the last half hour. I think the problem was with Lucas’ script, did he really need the money? Obviously not. I’m sure he was digging around in his pocket and came out with the script treatment for Indy IV. Be that as it may, the other writers do pull their weight and at least make the dialogue somewhat plausible.

Harrison Ford shines a light on LaBeouf’s future career.

Indiana Jones is back and Harrison Ford is better than ever with his bad ass fedora. Bring some popcorn and tune out your mind for the ride. The parts where you have to suspend your belief are still fun, and heck the possibility of another Indy film keeps me coming back for more.

7.5 out of 10

Movie Review: Iron Man

Posted on May 20, 2008 by Dexter

Iron Man

Year Released: 2008
Directed by: John Favreau
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, Gweneth Paltrow
Production Company: LivePlanet

As farfetched as having a guy build an exo-suit that can fly, punch through tanks, is bullet proof, and filled with more technology than the state of California, sounds pretty out there. But John Favreau and Robert Downey Jr. sell it, and sell it excellently. The Marvel comics roots are still there, yet thankfully, the realism is intact and the physics and storyline all make perfect sense. Bravo, Marvel studios, Bravo.

“I was sure I left my keys in here somewhere…”

Iron Man is the story of billionaire industrialist Tony Stark, played to perfection by the fast talking, ingenious Robert Downey Jr. whose company, Stark Industries supplies the United States military with high tech armaments. Stark is kidnapped by a Middle Eastern faction during a weapons test, and must find a means of escape with only his mechanically inclined mind. During the kidnap, his own manufactured weapons are to blame for shrapnel coming perilously close to his heart; as a result he’s tethered to a car battery powering an electro magnet making sure the shrapnel doesn’t kill him. He’s being kept alive by the terrorists so he can build them a weapon of mass destruction, a little something his company whipped up that can basically destroy a whole shit load of towns.

“Dammit, I just want to use the john”

With a little bit of physics, Stark creates a miniature Arc Reactor with which he can ‘power his own body for 50 lifetimes, or something really big for 15 minutes’. So what’s a billionaire industrialist to do? Build a sweet looking gigantic monster suit that can shoot 50 foot flames and can fly short distances. That’s what. Well, he does and it can. And it’s all believable (in the confines of this movie world at least). Stark high-tails it back to the good old U.S. of A and first thing he does is chomp down on a hamburger. At which point, he calls a press conference to tell the world he’s no longer making weapons of mass destruction. The decision doesn’t sit well with business partner Obidiah Stane (one bald Jeff Bridges), who’s in the business for pure profit rather than the consequences of destructive weapons. Meanwhile, Stark takes his original prototype used to escape and improves it with some bad ass technology; namely Marvel’s repulsor ray, coupled with a newer, more powerful arc reactor attached directly to his heart. The new exo-suit itself if believable and ultra-cool. Take the Robocop suit, add in super mobility, flight and the fact that Downey Jr. isn’t a re-animated corpse and you got yourself Iron Man.

Stark sets his sights for on Gweneth’s tight sweaters

Being a comic book geek, I should point out that Iron Man is Marvel comic’s version of the classic Batman. Batman was a billionaire son of Gotham city, who lost both his parents in a brutal robbery, and dedicated his life to improving his mind, body and fighting crime with the aid of bat-fear symbolism. Iron Man lost his father to a heart attack, was always mechanically inclined, had a shit load of money and used his cash to finance wars, and build an indestructible suit to fight crime. So, Tony Stark is who Bruce Wayne would be if his parent’s weren’t killed in front of him, and he enjoyed a drink or two once in a while. If I could pick between the two, I’d have gone the Iron Man route.

The real gem comes from the comedic timing of Downey Jr.’s attempts at creating the suit; between test flights in his garage where there’s at least a million dollars worth of classic cars, he’s shooting repulsor rays, falling through ceilings and getting a fire hose in the face from his pet robots. He’s able to weigh down his heavy pathos and genius mind with the carefree spirit needed to imagine these fantastic toys. Plus, he’s got a smoking hot assistant in Pepper Potts (Gweneth Paltrow), why a guy whose worth more than most third worlds would rather give it to Vanity Fair reporters instead of his assistant is beyond me; it could have been a writing flaw.

“Can you point me in the direction of Canadian Tire?”

The special effects are awesome, try picking out the parts that are CGI versus live action. The late, great Stan Winston himself had a hand in creating the goliath first prototype suit; sadly it was the last project he was involved in, and the mythos of special effects wiz Winston was just the icing on the cake. The pacing is adult and doesn’t once make you feel like you’re watching some kids movie repackaged into a re-release, all the parts fit together nicely, and if you watch past the credits, you’ll be in for a little treat.

Marvel studios is gearing up for something big; since they own most of Hollywood, thanks to titles such as X-Men, Incredible Hulk and to a lesser extent Fantastic Four, the company is more on the lips of the populace. The comic book giant is keeping the characters and storylines canon in the movie universe and there might be a little mixing and collaborations in the future, so just keep your eyes peeled for that little special mega-blockbuster all the fanboy geeks have been waiting 20+ years for.

If Iron Man is any indication of the level of quality to come from the house of words, then I’m sold on the plan.

8.5 out of 10

Movie Review: Déjà Vu

Posted on November 30, 2006 by Dexter

Déjà Vu
Year Released: 2006
Directed by: Tony Scott
Starring: Denzel Washington, Val Kilmer, Jim Caviezel
Production Company: Touchstone Pictures

Déjà Vu: The feeling you’ve done something before. There’s a much wordier version of the definition, but for the purposes of my own dumbing-down, this will do fine. So, it feels familiar: Tony Scott teams up with Denzel Washington in another action flick. However, this movie deals with time travel, alternate realities and touches on fate. Pretty heavy fodder for adventure movie fare; In any case, it all works pretty well.

For you Action Jackson fanatics out there, you’ll have to wait until the third act when things like bullets start flying, it’s not super intense like old Scott movies, but it gets that fix in there. What’s really weighed pretty well is the balance of story, theory and physics. It’s all grounded in a very real reality that could be right now, if only you weren’t taking orders from a very fat Val Kilmer.

Déjà Vu starts with a literal bang, more like a boom actually; a New Orleans’ ferry is blown to bits: with all the passengers on board. The stakes really couldn’t be raised any higher. Washington is the ATF agent Doug Carlin, part of the explosives task force encompassed with the job of identifying the explosive and finding the culprit – albeit, the case becomes more and difficult with the lack of clues. In comes Agent Pryzwarra (Kilmer) with a fresh perspective; armed with a group of physicists, they’ve have successfully created a viewing tunnel (or rather, wormhole) four and a half days ago. It’s pretty cool technology, and the amount of additional filming must have been hell – the concept is that while you’re able to look four days in the past, you’re also able to view from any angle. Normally, this might present a problem to any normal filmmaker. Thankfully, Tony Scott has much experience in making use of beautiful camera angles, so it plays off beautifully and seamlessly. The case becomes personally for Carlin as he is smitten with Claire, a supposed victim of the ferry bombing, as he suspects she had expired a good hour before the bomb exploded. Using the very cool time leaping/folding technology, he focuses his time looking at Claire’s last days. As events unfold, he tries to send himself clues to the past, some of them with disastrous results: the message is there – don’t mess with the past! With hours remaining, and culprit in sight, Carlin decides to take matters into his own hands (what, you thought he was going to sit around?) and steps back into time itself. From there it’s a paradox within a paradox, within a tightly wound story.

The use of time and ability to watch events unfold in the past is a risky one, but it pays off. There’s a particular scene where the camera can go mobile attached to a Humvee – it’s a chase that happens in the present and the past. And yes, it’s both trippy and cool. Just trying to watch two screens at once in a completely black theatre will either make your head spin or give you attention deficit disorder.

In using the time line plot, everything else certainly helps serve it: the equipment, setting, even the characters. And that’s why I think this movie loses a few points. No one really matures to become a rounded character; everyone is basically static and helps along the story one piece at a time. Don’t get me wrong, when you see Adam Goldberg talk about the Wheeler Boundary, you get the feeling he’s given the speech to a bunch of MIT undergrads. They’re all very convincing, but they only help out this time folding technique. I even caught myself enjoying Val Kilmer’s performance for a change: could be because he’s taking a back seat to what could have easily been his own starring vehicle. Hey it could happen – if I told you back in 1990 that the star of Turner and Hooch would win an Oscar, you’d shoot me in the face.

Anyhow, Déjà Vu is gladly not the definition of the contents: you don’t get feeling you’re headed down the same path a hundred times before, rather you’re treated with some nice ooh’s and ahh’s that only Tony Scott can bring you. It’s just a good thing he got away from his over saturated color and blow out lighting done in Domino. Geez, that thing was a technicolor nightmare.

7 out of 10