Collateral

Phil, Sarah and I went to see Collateral tonight, which was surprisingly good. I normally have very little time for the smarm-bucket, ego-fest that is Tom Cruise, but in this he’s OK – or as Phil puts it “not too Tom Cruisey”. He is however acted off the screen by his co-star Jamie Foxx, who puts in a startling debut major film role as the taxi driver having the worst night of his life.

Above all though, this movie belongs to Michael Mann. His hallmarks are all over it: the pace, the motion, the attention to location, the mood, the use of music etc.

We’re agreed though that the final scene lets the film down badly. I won’t include any spoilers here, but the final acts just don’t ring true and it’s a shame that a fairly fantastical tale successfully manages to suspend one’s disbelief, only to falter at the final hurdle. It’s too big a price to pay for the ‘neat’ ending.