This is one of those films that do some things really well and others terribly. The story is a slick action techno-thriller, although it is not particularly original. It is essentially `Dog Day Afternoon' meets `The Matrix'. A mysterious cyber terrorist known as Gabriel (John Travolta) is recruiting renowned hackers to pilfer $9.5 billion from a secret fund of a long defunct FBI black ops group. Stanley (Hugh Jackman) is a brilliant hacker, recently busted and forbidden to touch a computer as part of his parole. He is lured into the plan because he is promised that he will be able to be reunited with his daughter, whom he is prevented from seeing by court order. The sticky part is that to access the network, they must commandeer a computer in the World Banc which requires taking over the bank and holding hostages while Stanley does his magic. The plot has a number of surprises as it twists along, keeping the viewer thinking and engaged, although it requires a healthy suspension of disbelief in many parts.
Joel Silver (of `Lethal Weapon', `Die Hard' and `Matrix' fame) produced this film, so it was a given that it would push the envelope on action and pyrotechnics. He hired Dominic Sena to direct, still juiced from his success in `Gone in Sixty Seconds'. Clearly Sena brings great enthusiasm for the action genre, which was responsible for putting him on the map. From that standpoint, the film is a complete success. The action sequences are intense and the visual effects are outstanding, including explosions in panoramic slow motion and a flying bus. Sena also does a good job developing the characters, peeling away Gabriel's motivation slowly and keeping the viewer guessing as to whether he is good or evil. I was also impressed with Sena's visual interpretations, giving us interesting angles, rich blends of color and extremely innovative lighting.
On the unfortunate side, we have the shameless sexploitation of Halle Berry and other female characters for the sole purpose of pumping up the box office with the 18-45 male demographic. We are insulted with such unrealistic scenes as Stanley trying to break into the DOD computers in 60 seconds while being fellated and having a gun to his head. Berry is forced to do a completely gratuitous frontal topless scene (twice), and numerous scenes in various states of undress to land a role where most of her best lines involved references to the male organ. I have no problem with explicit sex if it bears some relationship to the story, but this was unabashed objectification of women, having no reason for being there other than titillation.
Another thing I found particularly ironic was Travolta's opening dialogue discussing the lack of realism in Hollywood films within a film that in many ways typifies the very aspects of filmmaking he is reviling. I'm not sure whether Sena and Silver were poking a little fun at themselves here or just didn't realize that this film really didn't differentiate itself from the criticism.
From an acting perspective, John Travolta finally re-enters his own body after two consecutive abominations (`Battlefield Earth', `Lucky Numbers') where he seemed to be inhabited by some nefarious being with no acting ability. Travolta returns to his brilliant bad guy form reminiscent of `Face Off' and `Broken Arrow', only here he is even bolder, more arrogant and utterly remorseless. Hugh Jackman turns in his best performance to date as the cyber jock. Jackman exudes maleness without sacrificing the softer side as seen in the touching scenes with his onscreen daughter Holly (eleven year old Camryn Grimes). Jackman also gives a virtuoso performance trying to crack the government system in a scene where he is the equivalent of Jerry Lee Lewis on a computer keyboard.
Don Cheadle turns in another solid performance as the FBI assistant director. Cheadle always impresses me with his dramatic skills. Hopefully he will land some meatier roles. Finally, there's Halle Berry. Berry is a skilled and beautiful actress who has a lot more talent to offer than was tapped by this film. Here she only had to be sexy and talk trash, the first being automatic and the second requiring no special skill. It is a pity that she is relegated to parts such as this and her role in `X-Men' to get work after turning in such a brilliant dramatic performance in `Introducing Dorothy Dandridge'.
This film features some promising direction by Sena, excellent performances by Travolta and Jackman and some top flight action sequences, but suffers from a derivative and overly fantastic story and a profusion of sexual non sequiturs. However, even with its drawbacks I rated it a 7/10. Action junkies will definitely get their money's worth.
Joel Silver (of `Lethal Weapon', `Die Hard' and `Matrix' fame) produced this film, so it was a given that it would push the envelope on action and pyrotechnics. He hired Dominic Sena to direct, still juiced from his success in `Gone in Sixty Seconds'. Clearly Sena brings great enthusiasm for the action genre, which was responsible for putting him on the map. From that standpoint, the film is a complete success. The action sequences are intense and the visual effects are outstanding, including explosions in panoramic slow motion and a flying bus. Sena also does a good job developing the characters, peeling away Gabriel's motivation slowly and keeping the viewer guessing as to whether he is good or evil. I was also impressed with Sena's visual interpretations, giving us interesting angles, rich blends of color and extremely innovative lighting.
On the unfortunate side, we have the shameless sexploitation of Halle Berry and other female characters for the sole purpose of pumping up the box office with the 18-45 male demographic. We are insulted with such unrealistic scenes as Stanley trying to break into the DOD computers in 60 seconds while being fellated and having a gun to his head. Berry is forced to do a completely gratuitous frontal topless scene (twice), and numerous scenes in various states of undress to land a role where most of her best lines involved references to the male organ. I have no problem with explicit sex if it bears some relationship to the story, but this was unabashed objectification of women, having no reason for being there other than titillation.
Another thing I found particularly ironic was Travolta's opening dialogue discussing the lack of realism in Hollywood films within a film that in many ways typifies the very aspects of filmmaking he is reviling. I'm not sure whether Sena and Silver were poking a little fun at themselves here or just didn't realize that this film really didn't differentiate itself from the criticism.
From an acting perspective, John Travolta finally re-enters his own body after two consecutive abominations (`Battlefield Earth', `Lucky Numbers') where he seemed to be inhabited by some nefarious being with no acting ability. Travolta returns to his brilliant bad guy form reminiscent of `Face Off' and `Broken Arrow', only here he is even bolder, more arrogant and utterly remorseless. Hugh Jackman turns in his best performance to date as the cyber jock. Jackman exudes maleness without sacrificing the softer side as seen in the touching scenes with his onscreen daughter Holly (eleven year old Camryn Grimes). Jackman also gives a virtuoso performance trying to crack the government system in a scene where he is the equivalent of Jerry Lee Lewis on a computer keyboard.
Don Cheadle turns in another solid performance as the FBI assistant director. Cheadle always impresses me with his dramatic skills. Hopefully he will land some meatier roles. Finally, there's Halle Berry. Berry is a skilled and beautiful actress who has a lot more talent to offer than was tapped by this film. Here she only had to be sexy and talk trash, the first being automatic and the second requiring no special skill. It is a pity that she is relegated to parts such as this and her role in `X-Men' to get work after turning in such a brilliant dramatic performance in `Introducing Dorothy Dandridge'.
This film features some promising direction by Sena, excellent performances by Travolta and Jackman and some top flight action sequences, but suffers from a derivative and overly fantastic story and a profusion of sexual non sequiturs. However, even with its drawbacks I rated it a 7/10. Action junkies will definitely get their money's worth.