A Quickie: Salt

Salt


Release: 07.23.10
Rated PG-13
1 hour, 40 minutes


Matinee

Evelyn Salt (Angelina Jolie, Mr. & Mrs. Smith) is a Susie SuperSpy for the CIA by day, but tries to be little Holly Homemaker to her scientist hubby (August Diehl, Inglorious Basterds) by night. Before she can tie on her apron, she must interrogate a Russian defector, Vassily Orlov (Daniel Olbrychski), who has casually waltzed into the CIA's secret headquarters. Orlov reveals Salt is actually Debbie DoubleAgent planted by the Russians to initiate the heinous 'Day X'. Panicked dinner won't be ready in time, Salt escapes. Agent Peabody (Chiwetel Ejiofor, Serenity), a.k.a. Bobby By-the-Book, grabs Salt's friend and coworker, Ted Winter (Liev Shreiber, Manchurian Candidate), and pursues her. The race to stop Salt before 'Day X,' while Salt rushes to save the ham from overcooking.

Okay. Maybe Salt isn't so much worried that she'll burn the pineapple, but rather that her husband has been abducted, but six and half-a-dozen, right? Salt is writer Kurt Wimmer's (The Recruit) mad dash of a story full of twists; some surprising, most obvious. To properly enjoy the story you must first accept that the US Government's most secure agencies have shit hiring practices. More damn Russian spies crawl out of the woodwork than cockroaches from a dumpster.

On the flipside, actual, dyed-in-the-wool, highly-trained 'Mericans can't stop this one woman. Jolie sells Salt's determination and skill, which is why Salt works as well as it does. The fight choreography makes Salt a believable, and sometimes exceptionally violent, ass-whooping wonder. However, the dull chase sequences and watching her survive one impossible jump after another negates much of that excitement.

Director Phillip Noyce (The Bone Collector) creates a decent action thrill-ride by this summer's standards; not saying much given the summer of '10 scorecard. Most disappointing is how the ending begs for a sequel. If the studio had truly been looking to franchise Salt, a more flavorful and unique beginning would have been preferable to post-story pandering.

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Wanted is Just What I Needed!

Wanted

Release: 06.27.2008
Rated R
1 hour, 50 minutes

FULL PRICE ($$$$)


Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy, The Last King of Scotland) is a pussy. Maybe it'd be more appropriate to call him a little bitch. His life sucks. He gets pushed around by his boss and his girlfriend every waking day. His best bud is a mega-douche who's screwing his girl. Of course, Wesley knows all this but he's too chickenshit to do or say anything about it. Instead he keeps his anxieties in check with a stew of medication. That is, until a wild lady named Fox (Angelina Jolie, Mr. & Mrs. Smith) shows up bearing gifts. Wesley is given a sense of history, of significance, of mad skills and as the newest member of the assassin's guild, the Fraternity, he starts to make up for his pathetic existence.

Director Timur Bekmambetov tweaks the tale of Wanted with the visual stylings of his vampire films, Nochnoy dozor (Nightwatch) and Dnevnoy dozor (Daywatch). As with any supernatural -superhuman tale, establishing the parameters of your new world is as important as telling the story itself. From the onset, Wanted brands its violence as humans who not only live above the law, but also react beyond the limits of the natural law. The assassins can run faster, heal quicker and literally sling bullets; feats far beyond those of the sheep of the world.

It's not all about the expanded limits of the assassins. It's also about crafting characters that remain true to their nature and beliefs. Wanted follows Wesley as he emerges from his fragile shell into a cold-blooded killer struggling with the moral implications of his new life. His tutors, Fox and Sloan (Morgan Freeman, Lucky Number Slevin), guide him in the ways of the Fraternity even as he is tested by those whose oppose the guild. It's the sense of order within the madness that gives Wanted more of a kick than your garden-variety summer fluff.

Dirty Undies
Though his part is very small, I'm glad Bekmambetov brought 'Watch star Konstantin Khabensky to play Wesley's other compatriot, The Exterminator. He adds some emotional moments to a film that would be sorely lacking otherwise. But it's not really about the emotion; it's about the flurry of wickedly awesome chase scenes and kick-ass bloodbaths that overload your senses. Killing for the sake of carnage. Wanted is not for the weak of stomach; McAvoy is seen being beaten to a bloody pulp that's reminiscent of Fight Club beatdowns. McAvoy and the crew also drop, and in some cases, spell, F-bombs liberally. All in all, my kind of movie.

The Money Shot
I'll say it again. Wanted is my kind of movie. My only sticking point I had was that it veered greatly from the premise of the comic upon which it was based. I liked the more palatable story used in the film. However, I wish Wanted the film could have abstained from Wanted the comic's condescending slant towards its audience.