“Salt” review
Angelina Jolie stars in the latest action movie, “Salt”. This is the latest in a seemingly endless cycle of action films this year where government agents go on the run for a crime they supposedly didn’t commit, such as “Knight and Day”, “The A-Team”, “The Losers”, the upcoming “Red”, and now this. Now, the quality of these aforementioned films have been hit-or-miss, so I had mixed expectations for this movie. Which makes me somewhat happy to tell you that “Salt” is a wholly enjoyable, though equally forgettable action romp.
Angelina Jolie plays Evelyn Salt, a CIA operative who goes on the run after she is accused of being a Russian spy. Jolie delivers a great performance here, blending the dramatic intensity she brings to films like “Changeling” with her action-girl-persona she’s cultivated in “Wanted” and “Lara Croft”. Jolie is easily the best, most interesting part of the movie and I am very impressed with her work here. Liev Schreiber plays Salt’s CIA superior who is convinced of her innocence, and continues to prove he is one of the more underrated actors working today.
The action sequences are quite thrilling and are capably shot, although not particularly memorable or original. The twist with this particular film is that throughout the majority of the running time, we don’t know if Salt is who she says she is, or as accused, a traitor. This uncertainty adds a certain mystery and to an extent, intensity to the first two-thirds of the film that really sets it apart from most recent action films.
Now onto the complaints for “Salt”. My biggest gripe with this movie is that plot twists and developments are hurled at the audience non-stop, and after a while they become infuriatingly nonsensical. For example (minor spoilers ahead), a character who is very, very close to Salt is shot in the head in front of her, and she simply shrugs it off and forgets entirely about it. It’s events like this that ultimately unravel a good deal of the film’s character development, which is a shame. Also, the ending is left unresolved, and I don’t really mind a cliffhanger, but it makes the film feel incomplete, which is quite frustrating.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the majority of “Salt”. Despite some huge gripes with plot and character development, there’s lots to be enjoyed here, such as the compelling action and Angelina Jolie’s great performance.
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