With "The A-Team" last week, it surprisingly found itself under heavy comparison with other similarly themed films of this year "The Losers" and "The Expendables". Quite odd seeing that all were produced and released around the same time showing that none of them can be accused of ripping off each other. Hollywood has a history of releasing similar films during the same year. You only have to look to "Deep Impact" and "Armageddon", "Antz" and "A Bugs Life", and "Dantes Peak" and "Volcano". Which brings me to "Knight And Day". While the wise-cracking, tough guy action ensembles seems to be one of the filmic trends of the year, then so too, is the action, romantic comedy. Joining "Knight And Day" this year was "The Bounty Hunter" and "Date Night". These films all offer the same things and cynically, could be looked as simply ticking off boxes for multiple demographics. Action and excitement for him and sweet romance for her. Comedy is the thing that can link these two conflicting themes together. You can't blame Hollywood for trying really, as it seems a sure thing to get both genders to the same movie, as opposed to being dragged along to "Sex & The City 2" or "Iron Man 2" by your other half depending on your sex. The result for all films in this mould have all been the same. In struggling to balance so many conflicting themes, and trying to appeal to such a broad audience something gets lost or falls behind in the final mix.
Tom Cruise plays Roy Miller, a spy on the run from his own agency and accused of going rogue. Cameron Diaz is June Havens, a sweet simple, girl next door. Through events they are brought together on the same flight. June is believed to be with Roy and as a result, the two are forced to go on the run together, getting into various scraps and scrapes all over the world, all the while harboring a 'will they, won't they' relationship. Peter Sarsgaard turns up as the agent tracking Cruise's and Paul Dano gets a fleeting part as a junior scientist genius. Despite the talents of those supporting actors, both are wasted. Focus is kept primarily on our leads and as a result, the film lacks a decent antagonist or MacGuffin. Why get actors of that caliber only to have them so wasted in their respective roles? Lucky then, that Cruise and Diaz share decent chemistry. This is the only film of the Summer relying on simple star power to sell to audiences. It does not carry the hype of other films falling back on iconic characters, or previous tried and tested material. Thank goodness then that both leads deliver. Diaz is as spunky and proficient as she has been in a while while Cruise provides the main draw to the films charm. This is as likeable and charismatic as he has been in years. He has far too many knockers in the world and despite what many think of his private life, the fact remains that he is never less than reliable and constantly delivers decent performances. Here he is affable and charming and shows just why he has managed to stay on top of his game for so long. That the film was not a huge runaway hit in the States (despite the fact it has made twice its budget back internationally) shows that his wattage might unfortunately be dipping. I myself still thinks he has what it takes to carry a major motion picture and when he is on form there are few who can match his charisma.
Director Mangold has been steadily working in wildly different genres for the past few years now. To take a look at his CV shows just how versatile he is. Results from him are never less than watchable. Here in his first major Hollywood release he proves very adept at handling the many action scenes. However there are points when the laughs just doesn't seem to blend with the large body count on screen. While remaining fairly bloodless (censorship is odd like that) Cruise still manages to mow down his fair share of agents and other interceptors after our two heroes. Another problem is the fact that while Cruise is one of the main reasons to see the film, he is absent for a large chunk of the films third act, leaving Diaz to carry the film on her own. The comedy dries up and events grow tiresome waiting for Cruise to appear again (the film paints him as an almost super-hero agent, completely incapable of getting badly injured). So while the action crackles along, Cruise shines and Diaz acts her best 'normal girl caught up in this mess' the film never rises above watchable. Shame as there was certainly talent in front and behind the camera. The final result seems wasted.
Verdict: 51%
Cruise reminds just how adept and competant he is at the action, laughs and old fashioned leading man status and Diaz shows genuine chemistry with her fellow co-star, but supporting characters are wasted, the plot soon wavers and the incredible body count is at odds with the films comedy and romance. Mangold is a talented Director but lets events get out of control and the result becomes tiresome. That final bike chase is good fun though.
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