Man on a Ledge (2012)

4/5

Man on a Ledge is a thoroughly preposterous yet eminently entertaining edge-of-your-seat thriller. The man on the ledge is Nick Cassidy (Worthington), an NYPD officer who was framed for stealing a $40mil diamond from David Englander (Harris). Intent on proving his innocence, he walks out on the ledge to draw attention away from Englander's vault, where the supposedly stolen diamond remains. He requests a specific negotiator, Lydia Mercer (Banks), as his brother Joey (Bell) and Joey's girlfriend (Rodriguez) begin to break in to the vault so that they can reveal the truth.

As I said, preposterous. But easily one of the most suspenseful and engaging movies I've seen in a while. This is most likely entirely due to tight editing, which keeps the intensity high and maintains focus on propelling the story forward. Surprisingly, Bell and Rodriguez were the most humorous and human part of the film, and also the most exciting. Their banter kept the relatively hackneyed plot fresh and lively. Worthington and Banks, on the other hand, were fairly bland (despite obvious attempts to suggest complexity and deeper motivations). Everything is well-shot and well-acted, but the script, while clever initially, feels quite contrived. It just doesn't hold water, from simplistic dismantling of security systems to instantaneous assumptions of innocence. While it may be realistic, it simply doesn't ring true to a moviegoer's ear. To make matters worse, everything somehow ties up too neatly in the end while simultaneously being messy in the most unsatisfying way. All in all, however, this is an enjoyable way to spend an evening; just don't think too hard about it.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1568338/

The Debt (2010)

4/5

The Debt is a compelling mystery thriller about missed opportunities and making up for past mistakes. The plot follows three Mossad agents 30 years after killing the Nazi war criminal known as the "Surgeon of Birkenau" (Christensen). Rachel (Mirren), Stephan (Wilkinson), and David (Hinds) have been continually venerated for their contributions, giving talks to the military and television show hosts for years. The movie starts at a release party for a new book, written by Stephan and Rachel's daughter Sarah (Aboulafia), based on their perspective. It then backtracks several times to the events that transpired 30 years ago, and we get to witness the almost-romance between Rachel (Chastain) and David (Worthington) and the truth behind their legendary acts.

The movie works on just about every level it aspires to. It is gripping and tense, keeping you on the edge of your seat with your heart pumping adrenaline into every artery of your body. The directing and editing are calculated and precise, giving us just the right amount of story arc and excitement in each time period before switching back over. The story is thought-provoking and engaging. Though the details of their situation will almost certainly never come up in your life, everybody eventually must grapple with similarly complex ethical dilemmas. The characters are fascinatingly intricate, but hindered by uneven acting that felt too simplistic at times and too complicated at others. The poor casting decisions didn't help; there was a striking similarity between the old David and young Stephan that made it difficult to follow. And while this movie works as a character study, a mystery thriller, and a provocative parable, it is by no means a masterpiece on any of those genres. Still, The Debt is a well-made movie that scores high marks all around.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226753/

Avatar (2009)

4/5

The plot of James Cameron's Avatar follows a wheelchair-bound ex-Marine named Jake Sully (Worthington) as he makes his way to the planet Pandora, which is inhabited by the humanoid alien race of Na'vi and is filled to the brim with precious minerals. He is sent there to control an avatar--a genetically crafted Na'vi body--through a scientific program run by Dr. Grace Augustine (Weaver) whose mission is to understand the aliens' world and culture. However, they aren't the only humans on Pandora. A mining expedition is attempting to extract as much of the precious minerals as they can from Pandora and have recruited military personnel to protect them from the "hostile" Na'vi.

The world is filled with small differences that appear to be minor details but manage to significantly differentiate it from Earth. For example, on the tips of the lengthy Na'vi hair are tentacles that allow them to connect to other animals (and in fact to the planet itself). No, it's not "realistic," but it is believable. There exist no inconsistencies that take you out of the experience and remind you that this is just a movie. While the dialogue isn't particularly impressive, the writing paints the planet in such a way as to make it true to itself and completely immersive. However, Avatar is by no means perfect. The story is extremely conventional--think of it as a sci-fi version of the anti-imperialist Pocahontas story--and therefore quite predictable. Still, there are a few unexpected surprises to the plot and the action is absolutely spectacular. It progresses at a flawless pace and is breathtaking and exciting.

Avatar is a compelling argument for the 3D action film. I was never a huge believer in 3D, since it seemed gimmicky and could easily give you a headache (especially in a film that lasts 2 hours and 45 minutes, as this one does), but Avatar was made to be seen in 3D. And it shows. Every single shot of every single action scene--of which there are many--is enhanced by the depth of the environment and the movement across the planes of action. I heard that James Cameron invented a large part of the 3D technology that's been used in other movies as he was developing this film; I believe it. Simply put, Cameron knows what he's doing with 3D. If you were interested in seeing a 3D movie, this is the one to watch. Just make sure you see it in IMAX 3D, because I only saw it in regular 3D and now I have to see it again. I just have to.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0499549/