I didn't know much about this thriller when I sat down to watch it; just what I'd read on the DVD box
and that is seldom the best source of information! As it turned out I rather enjoyed it. The opening got me interested very quickly; who was the mysterious woman being watched by French police and what had she done? It must have been serious as Scotland Yard are also after her. She gets a note from a man called Alexander Pierce telling her to take the train to Venice and sit next to somebody who looks a bit like him; she does this and meets American tourist Frank. He thinks he is getting lucky when he is invited to her hotel suite but doesn't realise the danger he is getting into
Alexander Pierce has stolen a lot of money from a gangster and used a small portion of it to buy a new face; now that gangster thinks Frank is Alex! In what follows he will be shot at, chased over the Venetian rooftops, arrested and even dragged behind a speedboat, but even though it appears he has been used he falls for the mysterious Elise. Before the films climax there are a few more twists but I won't spoil them here.
This might not be the most believable thriller ever made and the twists weren't the most shocking but it was good mindless fun; Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie do decent jobs as Frank and Elise, they are supported by several well known actors including Timothy Dalton, Paul Bettany and Steven Berkoff who are fine. The action is well directed and even though one must be willing to suspend ones disbelief it isn't too ridiculous. It helps that it is set in a beautiful city which provides some stunning backdrops but that is de rigueur in a film like this; after all it was never going for gritty realism. If you want something serious give this a miss but if you want some good mindless fun you could do a lot worse.
This might not be the most believable thriller ever made and the twists weren't the most shocking but it was good mindless fun; Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie do decent jobs as Frank and Elise, they are supported by several well known actors including Timothy Dalton, Paul Bettany and Steven Berkoff who are fine. The action is well directed and even though one must be willing to suspend ones disbelief it isn't too ridiculous. It helps that it is set in a beautiful city which provides some stunning backdrops but that is de rigueur in a film like this; after all it was never going for gritty realism. If you want something serious give this a miss but if you want some good mindless fun you could do a lot worse.