The story starts off well and does set off expectations of some eventful occurrence, paving the entrances and involvement of a diverse cultural breed of principle characters. And from start to finish, Dennis Quaid exhibits some of his finest hours of performance as Barnes, bringing a perfect contrast to Forest Whitaker's calm and gentile Howard. Oooh, a refreshingly cool format to expect one same event revealed in 8 eye-witnessing accounts.
The dizzingly and bouncing virtuosic camera work and the over-use of flashback-scene technique never cease to test my nerves. Action packed, the story rolls at rapid pacing to serve like caffeine for the audience's adrenaline to kick. A horrendously chaotic situation with a confusingly scrumptious multi-colored environment and atmosphere, infused with crowds and crowds of people, secret agents, protesters, activists, and camera crewmen to add to the color. Images are aplenty with characters clinging dearly onto either deadly weapons, or palm pilots, or recording devices, or TV screens as if these machinations provide the only meaningful existence in their terror-saturated, contemporary world. Yep, the story is seeped with multifaceted visual actions and activities, bombs exploding, shootings, panic screams, haphazard movements, mess over mess, to satisfy the pyromaniacs.
Director Peter Travis hasn't missed out anything to keep the audience from picking up the film's bloopers, artistic flaws, or weaknesses. Too bad, the stereotyped bad guys, in every imaginable clichéd scenes, are way too predictable. Alas, one phone call and the observation of the 'window' scenes become an immediate throwaway for solving the mystery thriller! The use of car chases and little Anna in peril to round up the story is a cheesy tactic of the scripting trade. Oh yes, there's plenty to put the audience on constant panic and on edge but sadly, nothing really original in substance.
Frankly, it's an eye-witnessing, but not a thought-provoking mystery thriller!
The dizzingly and bouncing virtuosic camera work and the over-use of flashback-scene technique never cease to test my nerves. Action packed, the story rolls at rapid pacing to serve like caffeine for the audience's adrenaline to kick. A horrendously chaotic situation with a confusingly scrumptious multi-colored environment and atmosphere, infused with crowds and crowds of people, secret agents, protesters, activists, and camera crewmen to add to the color. Images are aplenty with characters clinging dearly onto either deadly weapons, or palm pilots, or recording devices, or TV screens as if these machinations provide the only meaningful existence in their terror-saturated, contemporary world. Yep, the story is seeped with multifaceted visual actions and activities, bombs exploding, shootings, panic screams, haphazard movements, mess over mess, to satisfy the pyromaniacs.
Director Peter Travis hasn't missed out anything to keep the audience from picking up the film's bloopers, artistic flaws, or weaknesses. Too bad, the stereotyped bad guys, in every imaginable clichéd scenes, are way too predictable. Alas, one phone call and the observation of the 'window' scenes become an immediate throwaway for solving the mystery thriller! The use of car chases and little Anna in peril to round up the story is a cheesy tactic of the scripting trade. Oh yes, there's plenty to put the audience on constant panic and on edge but sadly, nothing really original in substance.
Frankly, it's an eye-witnessing, but not a thought-provoking mystery thriller!