"Knight and Day:" How Much Action Is Too Much?
By KARINA MITCHELL
"Knight and Day" is aptly titled. Having opened in theaters earlier this week, reviews have been all over the place, with a New York Times reviewer calling it "overblown" and "hysterical," while another reviewer called it cute.
Where the film does score an A is for its A-List cast and its all-out action sequences. It heads somewhat south after that
Even top billing actors like Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz had a hard time elevating this movie. It's not Diaz' burden to bear, though; she spends most of the film being knocked out and dragged around by Cruise in this "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" meets "Mission Impossible" adventure. It's clear from the beginning that this film is on Cruise control.
June Havens (Diaz) is sucked into a madhouse of international intrigue after a couple of chance encounters at a Kansas airport with rogue FBI spy Roy Miller (Cruise). Little does she realize that when she keeps bumping into him, it's not mere coincidence.
On a flight with Miller from Wichita to Boston, she finds herself in the middle of a onboard shoot-out. The plot is predictable. Miller comes to the rescue, saving the day and she finds herself falling for his wit and charm, but has no idea he's being chased by federal agents (Peter Sarsgaard and Viola Davis).
Guilty by association, she finds herself being shot at by federal officers and the arms dealer's thugs out to hunt down Miller. The duo find themselves jet-setting all over the world, while trying to keep themselves alive and protecting an inventor (Paul Dano) and his top secret 'Zephyr' invention from falling into enemy hands.
Haven tries multiple times to get away from Miller, but her attempts are futile and lead to her getting knocked out repeatedly by a "protective" Miller.
Therein lies the first problem with the film. Diaz is no stranger to action adventures, having starred most notably "Charlie's Angels". She knows how to kick butt.
Director James Mangold didn't take advantage of her abilities, instead choosing to make her rant and rave repeatedly in the first half of the film. Cruise literally has to carry her though the first 45 minutes. Her first real chance to display the charm and humor she's known for isn't until late in the film, when her character, June, is injected with a truth serum and professes she thinks Roy is hot.
The action is non-stop and intense. Cruise, 47, looks in great shape and reportedly did quite a few of his own stunts. Cruise does a good job. His somewhat quirky disposition and "Bond's a wimp" persona are made more believable by some of his off-screen antics, like jumping on Oprah's couch and his sometimes controversial involvement in Scientology. After getting a poor reception to "Valkyrie," he needs a vehicle to show off his charisma and charm.
The problem he and Diaz are forced to face is the non-stop frenetic pace, scene after action scene. With so much high-voltage action taking place all around them, it's find to find a quiet moment to see the two characters connect. Spurts of humor from Cruise with quips like "You've got skills", after June effectively shoots at a car are about as close as you are likely to get in this spy flick on steroids.
But if you are in summer action mode and want to see planes explode, high-speed car chases and over-the-top shootouts, then you will definitely not be disappointed.
Check out this week's Showbuzz to see what competition "Knight and Day" will face at the box office this weekend and watch out next week as we tackle all the "Eclipse" mania and fan frenzy.