With his previous movies - Born on the Fourth of July ( 1989), Far and Away ( 1992), Eyes Wide Shut (1999) and Vanilla Sky ( 2001), he played against type, and while a few were successful, he was never believable to a public which demanded he remain that upstanding, straight and narrow handsome guy - The equivalent of the quintessential blonde - pretty to look at, but without much depth or substance.
The Last Samurai, his last attempt to play against type in 2003, came closer than any of the others. He succeeded in stretching his chops with some degree of believability, but the very premise of the movie was flawed and worked against him. Despite a valiant effort, his character came off as presumptuous and melodramatic; saddled with a script I found insulting to the Japanese - The idea that he could come from a totally different culture, but because of his sincerity, and superiority could become more skilled than those who’d lived the culture for centuries was preposterous. It’s what I call the “Tarzan Syndrome.”
But Collateral makes no such mistake. This movie is not only pretty to look at thanks to cinematographers, Dion Bebe and Paul Cameron, it has been well thought out, from the sweeping overhead panoramic view of Los Angeles, in contrast to the stifled interior of the taxi, in which most of the action takes place, to Tom Cruise’s spiked salt and pepper haircut, which aptly results in a more harsh appearance. Framed with this haircut, Cruise’s smile is no longer sexy and seductive, but rather cold and sinister.
This movie contains action, but not too much, some dialogue, but every sentence an exposition, some killing, but each a meaningful addition to the telling of an intricate yet simple story. Confused? Don’t be.
Michael Mann, who replaced Janusz Kaminski(Lost Souls) who replaced Mimi Leder (Pay it Forward) on this project, is a skilled director, and is at his best with this kind of material.
This movie brings to mind, the smoldering and taut suspense and psychological interplay between Deniro and Pachino in 1995’s, Heat, which Mann also directed - No line is wasted, and no scene is superfluous.
<The Plot:>
The premise of the movie is simple, Max (<Jamie Foxx>, who was chosen after talks with Adam Sandler were unsuccessful)), dreams of one day owning a limousine service, and is temporarily driving a cab. Driving a cab is a temporary job that has now lasted 12 years. Foxx, an actor from whom we’ve come to expect comedic quips, is very controlled and effective in his role as Max.
The movie begins with Max picking up his first fare, Jada Pinkett, who plays an assistant prosecutor. She gets in preoccupied, on her cell phone, and obviously stressed out. Max initiates conversation, calms her down, and soon a rapport develops. Being the dreamer he is, he kicks himself for not asking for her telephone number as she exits the cab, but then she taps on the front window, smiles, and gives him her business card. Maybe things are finally going his way, or are they?
Vincent (<Tom Cruise>) jumps into the cab as she exits. He persuades Max to be his cabbie for the evening while he makes five stops, and he will double his usual nights take, plus add one hundred dollars more if he gets him to the airport the following morning to catch his flight. Reluctantly Max accepts.
The earlier promise Foxx showed in movies such as Any Given Sunday, and Ali is even more realized here. His upcoming turn as Ray Charles should fulfill that promise in full, and cement his career as a dramatic actor. believe it or not, most of the sardonic quips in this movie were not delivered by him but rather by Tom Cruise, and quite skillfully.
At the first of the five stops, Max waits in the cab in the alley as Vincent goes into the building. Suddenly, while waiting , Max is jarred from his day dream by the crash of a body onto the roof and windshield of the car. He jumps out of the cab terrified, and when Vincent returns rather quickly to the alley. Max shouts, “You killed him.” “No, ” Vincent replies, “I shot him . . . It was the bullets and the fall that killed him.”
We learn soon after that Vincent has been hired by a drug dealer named Felix, to kill the five people, including four witnesses who are testifying against him in an up coming trial. So methodically, he drives from one hit to the next, showing no remorse, no guilt, and offering no apologies, or excuse for his ruthlessness. Wisely, the screen writers resist the temptation to create some contrived story to elicit our sympathy.
While at one point, Vincent confides in Max that his mother died when he was young, and his father was an abusive alcoholic, he does so in a matter of fact, nonchalant manner. We come to understand and accept that Vincent is who he is because he chooses to be. To paraphrase, a line uttered by Max during one of their many exchanges, ‘parts that come standard in people you are just missing’.
As the movie progresses, it becomes evident that each character is having an effect on the other. Vincent, we come to see, is developing a soft spot for Max. Max, once a timid dreamer, becomes more forceful, when he is forced by Vincent to pretend to be Vincent to obtain the last 2 names on the list. Names Max discarded by flinging Vincent’s briefcase off an overpass and onto a busy highway. It seems Felix has never met Vincent, and he wants to keep it that way.
To get Max to comply, Vincent threatens the life of Max’s mother (Played by the great <Irma P. Hall>), who he forces Max to visit in the hospital, as he does each night, so as not to rouse suspicion. The hospital scene offers a little comic relief and somewhat relieves the mounting tension, as Max struggles to stop Vincent from reaching his goal. As we near the end, we learn the final name on the list.
The pace quickens, it becomes a race to the end as Max escapes, tries to warn and save the final victim, and Vincent is intent on fulfilling the contract. The end seems almost evident, though not anticlimactic, but I won’t reveal it here.....If you are wise, you will see it for yourself.
<Starring:>
Tom Cruise Jamie Foxx
Jada Pinkett-Smith Mark Ruffalo
Peter Berg Bruce McGill
Barry Shabaka Henley Irma P. Hall
Paul Adelstein Javier Bardem
Director: Michael Mann
Producer: Julie Richardson
Michael Mann
Screenwriter: Michael Mann
Stuart Beattie
Frank Darabont
Cinematographer: Dion Beebe
Paul Cameron
Composer: James Newton Howard
Executive Producers:
Robert N. Fried
Frank Darabont
Chuck Russell
Peter Giuliano