Ready, Set, SALT!

'Salt'

Review: 2/5

Director Phillip Noyce has a slew of reputable action-thrillers to his name; foremost among those being the Jack Ryan films, 'Patriot Games,' and 'Clear and Present Danger.' Unfortunately, his venture into the world of 21st century pyrotechnics is alarmingly static, suggesting that his retro 90s-inspired directorial sensibilities have been rendered archaic. The camera-direction is shy and often unmotivated, the aesthetic is overtly bland, expositional dialogue reigns paramount over visual storytelling, and gifted actors Liev Schreiber and Chiwetel Ejiofor are reduced to one-dimensional CIA caricatures. The queen of the show, of course, is Angelina Jolie, whose enigmatic character alters frantically between heightened panic and brooding allure - it's a conflicting duality.

The story is centered on Jolie's character, Evelyn Salt (Why such an odd last name? No explanation in the film. It must have sounded pretty cool on paper). She's, supposedly, a member of the CIA. Or is she? When an ominous Russian spy, who's apparently psychic, tells her that she's going to kill the US President (yet another histrionic character given ludicrous dialogue), she flees and the chase ensues. Granted a few of the stunts are exciting, we don't know enough about Salt's character to truly care for her. The premise is an obvious excuse for gratuitous action, which could have possibly been the film's redeeming attribute (come on, it's summer), but the inept script demands a serious devotion to political realism, contradicting the silly warfare that ultimately ensues.

All this being said, it's only fair to commend Noyce for his willingness to redefine his spy-thriller roots. Look at the man's credits: he's clearly talented (his 2006 thriller 'Catch a Fire' was arguably one of the best of the year). Regrettably, this suspense-caper is highly forgettable, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to the director's next undertaking.