Showing posts with label whodunit. Show all posts
Two great actors and one not-so-great story.By now, you all know my philosophy: try to give a fair review without giving anything away. Especially in this case, since this is a whodunit, so if I give anything away, nobody would probably watch the film anymore.
Basic plot is this: the two former Corleones (of course I'm talking about Pacino and De Niro) play two detectives, who are out to hunt a serial killer. Two younger cops, the brilliant tandem of John Leguizamo and Donnie wahlberg, think the serial killer is one of their own. So everybody is out to find who did it; hence the name whodunit. There's just one problem: either the story was okay and the directing was weak (in which case I'd have to blame director Jon Avnet for the flimsy storytelling), or the script was terrible to begin with (then writer Russel Gewertz would have to take the blame). Anyway, I don't think it was an effective whodunit, as my girlfriend already knew whodidit in the first twenty minutes of the film (she always does that to annoy me).
Let's just focus on the acting, which is this film's strongest selling point. Fans would love to see Pacino and De Niro onscreen together, as their only two movie credits together were 1995's Heat, and before that, 1974's The Godfather Part II, which I wouldn't really count, as they were never actually onscreen together. So this is one of those rare instances when two Oscar winners of this caliber share the same frame.
The acting is spruced up by Wahlberg and Leguizamo, who are two great actors who deserve a break, and they portray the rookie cop-old cop friction just right, practically limiting the show to the four of them. All the other actors didn't really add anything significant. Rapper 50 Cent appears as the gangster Spider, but I could've sworn he just played himself.
There are only three films where Pacino and De Niro acted together, and it's a shame this latest one pairs lousy storytelling with great acting. I hope the producers pair them up again, as both of them are getting old, and they may not have another shot.
*Thanks to Maynard Maleon for the tickets. Good luck on your Bar Exam bro.
Rating: Two and a half stars.
This is what I call a "non-linear whodunit". Writer Barry Levy gives us a spectacular script (those of you attuned to the intricacies of scriptwriting will agree that Levy has done a brilliant job), and it is this script that glues the whole story together. It also helped to have great actors in front of the cameras, who basically just followed the script and did their thing. Vantage Point is a work of art in terms of storytelling and directing, with Barry Levy and director Pete Travis providing the one-two punch.
Dennis Quaid plays the high-strung hero who gets a little too physical in the stunts (seems Mr. Quaid isn't as old as I thought he was), while the ever-serene William Hurt plays the "number one terrorist", a.k.a. the president of the United States. Oscar winner Forest Whitaker does his fair share of running around the streets of Spain, while Sigourney Weaver's very short screen time makes her virtually unnoticeable to younger fans who've never seen her in Ghostbusters. And of course let's give a shout-out to a great supporting cast.
A masterpiece is made when several elements come together to form something which will blow your mind away. This is one such example. The use of non-linear storytelling, great directing, great editing (watch the car scenes, it'll pump up your adrenaline), great sound effects, and actors who do not try to upstage each other all come together to give us one excellent story---and way up to the end you'll still be asking whodunit.
Rating: Five stars.
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