Knight and Day

Written by Jonathan Jacobs

There are two actors worth paying attention to in Knight and Day and they are Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz. Everybody else is extraneous at best and a nuisance at worst. Yes I am looking at you Peter Sarsgaard. Is there any actor who is as grotesquely inadequate as Sarsgaard is that has received so much praise from off-the-wall critics? This is a rhetorical question people! Despite the announcement that Knight and Day is off to a slow start at the box office the studio (New Regency Pictures) has no reason to be alarmed. The film is intense and its two megastars are superb.

     Tom Cruise plays former FBI agent Roy Miller. Roy has gone rogue on account of what he perceives to be corruption within the agency. He suspects that his old partner Fitzgerald (Sarsgaard) is interested in stealing the technology commandeered by the FBI from their physicist in protection, Paul Feck (Paul Dano). Cameron Diaz’s character is that of the all-American blond sweetheart, June Havens, who has a sweet tooth for 1960s Pontiacs. She has once again become America’s darling. Who plays this role better than Diaz? When our movie commences an ostensible happenstance brings Roy and June together at an airport.

     Roy twice bumps into June; both times seem to be accidental. Later we discover that he used her to smuggle in a battery that is the center of attention throughout. This battery is the size of a AA and has been engineered by Feck. It is capable of powering a small city in perpetuity. For obvious reasons this interests arms dealers and black market thugs of all varieties. Roy has not only rescued and protected Feck, he has been harboring him for weeks against the express wishes of the FBI and internal security.

     Now that the premise has been established let’s return to the action because there is plenty of it. Roy warns June not to board the airplane but the FBI calls in a favor and she is escorted onboard to his chagrin. They strike up a conversation and it seems they have a great deal in common. Both are brave and impulsive and most importantly, incredibly sexy. For a 38 year old woman Diaz has a ravishing body and her eyes are penetrating. I hate to sound curious but being a lifelong Tom Cruise fan, can anyone deny his hotness? The guy looks half his age, has a six pack at 47 and by all appearances will never act in a movie without at least one trademark running sequence. June excuses herself to the restroom to freshen up and decide how to romantically pursue Roy. While she is beautifying Roy is busy assassinating all of the passengers and both of the pilots. His fighting skills are badass.

     When June is finished freshening up Roy is waiting for her with two cocktails. He gently breaks the news to her that the pilots are dead as are all of the passengers that were assassins themselves. Talk about turbulence in the airways! This entire sequence of events is hilarious and the chemistry between our two megastars is palpable. Meanwhile Roy decides to land the plane on a surface that can only be described as the agrarian set to the movie Signs. Just kidding, it is a regular crop acreage with a few scarecrows, wow they frightened me! You directors you! This is the first time when Roy begins protecting June. This is a recurrent theme throughout the movie. All of his actions are selfless and courageous but June continues to harbor doubts about his authenticity. He is a trained killer and therefore her suspicions are understandable.

     The other action chains include several exhilarating car chases, an attempted murder onboard a high speed train, a motorcycle chase with bulls attacking, rooftop jumping, machine gun shootouts, bombings, coed half naked swimming and a diner shooting that caused only a flesh wound so it is all good! Roy never intends to hurt anyone unless absolutely necessary. He is a phenomenal secret agent with special skills that make him for the most part invulnerable. His only weakness is his willingness to be a sacrificial lamb to protect his friends.

     As the film progresses Roy and June fall in and out of love and trust. She causes his island to be firebombed due to her distrust. He superficially is in collusion with an arms dealer to sell the battery he has sworn to protect. Appearances are always deceiving here. All the while Roy is a romantic who loves his parents and he falls madly in love with June. Their romantic connection is really sweet.

     Not for a moment does Knight and Day pretend to be a James Bond film. It is simply an action film with the greatest actor of his generation (Tom Cruise) and one of the best leading ladies in Hollywood (Cameron Diaz). For all of the flak this picture has taken from smug critics it is any wonder the studio will turn a profit at all. For my money I enjoy watching hot stars in a blazing action movies. Go see Knight and Day without any reservations, no really, do not call ahead just go to the theater!

Jonathan Jacobs

Member FFCC

www.screenspotlight.com