Director: Pierre Morel
Running Time: 89 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15
Genre: Action/Thriller
UK Release Date: 26th February 2010
Watched on Sky+ Saturday 2nd April 2010.
PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.
Based on a story by Luc Besson, this is an action thriller set in modern-day Paris. What, at first, seems to be a run-of-the-mill shoot-‘em-up does improve towards the end, but it’s still no masterpiece. A plot involving the U.S. Embassy, the C.I.A., drug dealers and terrorists twists and turns it’s way through the streets of Paris at a break-neck speed, only pausing every now and then for you to catch your breath. Here’s a brief summary before I give you may thoughts (summary haters, and those that don’t wish to know about the plot, please check the room for bugs while I write the next paragraph).
James Reece is the personal assistant to Ambassador Bennington in the U.S. Embassy, not surprisingly, in Paris (France). He has a girlfriend, Caroline, who he lives with, and he does the odd job for the C.I.A.; swapping number plates, planting bugs… etc. Having just got engaged, he receives a call from his C.I.A. contact telling him that if he has a job, and a new partner. Reece is keen to move up in the organisation and so is pleased to get this chance. He picks up his new partner, a very brash agent called Charlie Wax, at the airport and they immediately set to work. Following a trail starting at a Chinese restaurant supplying drugs and ending with a terrorist cell, the body count mounts up quickly as Wax gets to work. Reece, a very intelligent man, sometimes finds it hard to keep up, but eventually finds a way when events turn on those close to him. I’ll leave it there so as not to offend the Spoiler Police too much.
This is a pretty well made film with some nice cinematography and some decent stunt work. The action sequences are all very well done, although there isn’t really anything we haven’t seen before here. Decent performances all round, particularly from; John Travolta as Charlie Wax, Jonathan Rhys Meyers as James Reece and Kasia Smutniak as Caroline.
Although it won’t live long in the memory, I did find this film quite entertaining. It starts off like an 80’s action blockbuster and continues in that vein for quite a while. The plot, although it twists and turns quite a bit, is a tad predictable which doesn’t really add to the enjoyment. It’s not until the final scenes that we see some more intelligent dialogue and a slightly less predictable twist. If you can switch you brain off for 90 minutes and like to watch Travolta blow the bad guys away with gusto, then this is the film for you. Personally, with a hang over on a Saturday morning, waiting in for the meter reader, it was perfect! Recommended.
MY SCORE: 5.7/10
LINKS:
(RT = Rotten Tomatoes)
IMDb Page: http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1179034/
RT Page: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/from_paris_with_love/
Official Site: http://www.frompariswithlovefilm.com/
Trailer: http://uk.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1726415897/
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