I was originally going to watch Doctor Zhivago while donating this week, but then I saw that it was 3.5 hours and decided to peruse the clinics movie selection instead. I stumbled upon Collateral and went with it.
What I knew going in:
Tom Cruise with grey hair and Jamie Foxx drives a taxi. Action movie......Nominated for supporting actor and editing.....I had the impression it would be gritty....I think that's pretty much it
Why I watched it:
When looking at the available movies, the only options I saw that fit my normal criteria (Oscar nominated and about two hours long) were Collateral and Savages. I was definitely more in the mood for a thriller than a family drama, so here we are.
Collateral (2004)
Noms: Supporting actor (Jamie Foxx) and Film Editing
For an action movie/thriller that takes place largely in a taxi cab, there was a distinct lack or car chases in this movie, and I am super grateful for that. Thriller is definitely a better genre than action movie to describe this. There is a relatively small amount of action moments peppered throughout a morally ambiguous suspenseful thriller. One of my favorite Tom Cruise roles to date: badass mercenary mixed with a sociopath, but has moments of clarity that really question the morality of Max (Jamie Foxx) - and the audience. The conversations about the "correct-ness" of the killing that occurs are some of the most interesting moments of the film. I also love how he relates to Max as a friend: telling Max to call the girl, or the interactions with Max's mother, or when he forces Max to stand up for himself when his boss is taking advantage of him (pictured above). Also, he looks pretty badass as a silver fox. Jamie Foxx did a great job playing a slightly dorky guy (pretty against type) that is forced to engulf himself is the seedy underbelly of LA and get his hands dirty. The journey from the establishing montage of his fastidiousness to the climactic chase scene is huge - and definitely makes the Oscar nod understandable, though I don't see how he is considered a supporting actor when he is clearly the star. Whatever.
I love movies like this where I have little to no expectations going in, and then it turns out to be pretty awesome. It was a super fun movie that skillfully told a complicated story of a hitman and the cops investigating the murders and the FBI that get involved and the innocent bystander that gets drawn in (hence the title). Watching the different pieces interact and collide was engaging and handled in a way so as not to make it confusing. Editing FTW. I especially loved the fake-out when you are led to believe that Bruce McGill is Felix, the druglord, and then *surprise* he's actually the FBI agent in charger of the investigation. At least I got faked-out, maybe that was clear to everyone else. I loved the writing also. Sharp and funny in a lot of moments. It was great to have some laughs to break up some of the intensity.
Surprise appearances: Within the first scene, Jason Statham has a cameo - actually pretty surprised when his character didn't come back, until I realized that this was made before he was well known, right?
Another actor who is much better know now: Mark Ruffalo! I loved seeing him in this playing a cop. Totally different role from what I've seen him do, and I think this movie probably helped launch his career.
I also didn't know Jada Pinkett-Smith was in this either. I didn't actually recognize her at first, because I honestly haven't seen her in much. Oops. Her scene with Max at the beginning was so charming! Also impressive: running through the metro in those heels - damn!
Javier Bardem! I also spotted Coop from Private Practice as one of the FBI agents.
This movie had a lot or surprises for me obviously - it became one of the big pleasures about it actually. It was so much more interesting that a thriller was full of (now) well-known actors instead of a bunch of unknowns. Not that unknowns aren't compelling to watch, but it can be an indicator that this is not going to be just another action movie, but will be more interesting and have more developed characters.
"da fuh": The moment when the stop the taxi while two coyotes cross the street....that was random.
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