El Engaño

This was a pleasant surprise. I really didn't know what to expect, but what I got was a very intelligent movie with more than enough twists and turns to keep things rather unpredictable. It took a little too long to get everything set up properly, and it perhaps had one twist too many, but overall, it was a great film with strong performances by Alessandro Nivola and Reese Witherspoon. Definitely worth checking out.

What a shame that someone decided to make this movie. It attempts to be clever, it attempts to be deep, and it attempts to be dramatic, but fails on all counts. The director attempts to make a poor mans Usual Suspects, with a suspensful opening, including a extreme close up on a cigerette starting a fire. We think it will play into the evil plot further down the line. The characters are then shown close to the end of the story and play out a few of the scenes. They then cut back to the beginning. We are supposed to put together a puzzle. The movie's puzzle starts out interesting enough, but by the end we are left with a cop out. A weak ridiculous ending where there are no consequences for the actions taken, a happy hollywood fairy tale. And the cigerette imagery at the opening, barely plays into the plot at all. An excuse to put a cigerette starting a fire at the beginning of a movie. Suffice to say, this movie sucks. The performances of the actors are intelligent and well played.

Long live Mike Barker! This fairly fresh feature director has pulled off one of those rare tributes to the film noir scene, which once coloured the movie scene in the past. There have been worthy efforts, but this one seems to have it all right. The movie starts as most movies from Mike Barker start. Circumstances found as in the traditions of working class realism found in the films of Ken Loach and the novels of Alan Silitoe, colour the first couple of scenes. The story starts with a scene in which is explained that Bryce (Josh Brolin) has 'accidentally' raped a minor. He calls his old university buddy friend Nick (Nivola) to help him out. At this moment the story rewinds to 4 months earlier and we can peak in the history to see how this problem started. Nick has just lost his father, found out he doesn't get any money, and works at a recycling plant. He than engages in some criminal activities, which turns horribly sour and he ends up owing 15,000 dollars to a local criminal. Now, that's all you need to know about the storyline, there are so many plots and twists that even the most critical movie fan would be impressed by the surprises that are being thrown at you. The last time I experienced such a feast, was during the Usual Suspects, and that is quite a compliment.

Reese Witherspoon (Lissa, nick's girlfriend and the 'raped' minor) pulls off one of her more impressing acting roles since 'Freeway' Although a bit more constraint than her role in Freeway, her presence definitely enriches the movie. Allessandro Nivola (Nick) will await a big future. His nonchalance acting and worried looks, will make him the perfect actor for sub-blockbusters. Finally one of his bigger roles after movies such as Inventing the Abbotts and Face/Off. Josh Brolin is less appealing, but even he is not bad enough to ruin this movie.

Mike Barker continues his strong line of work, after The James Gang in '97. And in a sort of way, this movie resembles his previous to some aspect. In both movies poor families take center stage, and in both movies they are resulting in criminal activities because of the financial trouble they are in. Barker is definitely one of the most artistic directors around (up there with Scorsese), but one wonders if he doesn't overdue it a bit sometimes. Even these minor negative things can't make me change my mind that this is a great movie, cinematic wise, with a well written script, that the characters are well thought out and acted, and that Barker has proven himself once more that he is a major talent. Bravo!

Screenwriter Ted Griffin takes a page out of the David Mamet book with this story of the things we do for love and money, and how desperation has a way of leading even the most forthright among us into regions beyond the known. And the fact that there is no such animal as a sure thing is pointedly expressed in `Best Laid Plans,' a drama/thriller directed by Mike Barker, and starring Reese Witherspoon and Alessandro Nivola.

The film begins with a meeting in a bar between Nick (Nivola) and Bryce (Josh Brolin), old college chums who have not seen one another since graduation. Over a few rounds of drinks, they get reacquainted; Bryce is back in town to teach, while Nick has secured employment at the local recycling establishment. They do the good-to-see-you-again thing, and Nick leaves. But at about two o'clock in the morning, he gets a call from Bryce, who begs him to come over to his house (actually one he's watching for some friends who are out of town). Nick doesn't want to go, but Bryce sounds desperate and he can't refuse. What he finds when he gets there is something totally out of left field. Suffice to say, it involves a young woman named Lissa (Witherspoon), whom Bryce picked up in the bar just as Nick was leaving. It's not a pretty situation, and Bryce doesn't know what to do; so it falls to Nick to figure it out. And now, having crossed that proverbial line in the sand, Nick's involved, too. Or so it seems. But then again, maybe there's more to this than meets the eye. There's just something about this whole set-up that instinctively tells you that what appears to be, ain't necessarily so. The question is, what is it-- and who is doing what to whom exactly?

Barker has fashioned a fairly involving film from a story that initially seems somewhat convoluted, but which evolves, and later can actually be regarded as having a plot that is quite intricate and credible, making the comparison to Mamet entirely valid. The difference between this film and one of Mamet's, however, lies in the fact that Barker simply doesn't have that Mamet touch when it comes to presenting the material. He does a decent job, but lacks the finesse, the eye for detail and the grasp of what it takes to achieve that necessary sense of mystery that could have taken it to a much higher level. It lacks that sense of fear and menace, and the urgency it needed to be really effective. Barker does manage to give you enough to sustain interest, but his pace is wanting; there are moments when the pulse of his film simply flatlines.

Nivola is clearly the star of the show, and his performance is passable, but he lacks that extra something, that quality, that would have made his character anything special or memorable. Nick is believable, but too common; there's simply nothing distinctive enough about him to make you care much what happens to him one way or the other. On one hand, it's good acting-- the character is real-- but he's a guy who leaves you fairly nonplused; he needs a hangnail, as it were, a flaw that would have at least made him interesting.

Witherspoon gives a good performance, but this character is certainly not a stretch for her, by any means. Lissa, like Nick, is rather nondescript, and Witherspoon does little to spark much interest in her. In her defense, however, Barker really doesn't afford her the time nor the opportunity to do much exploring by way of characterization. But she is watchable, and fans of hers, especially, will no doubt find her work here satisfying.

As Bryce, Josh Brolin is disappointing, giving a one-note performance that is flat and forced. Granted, his character is supposed to be something of a nerd, but he puts nothing into it; a bit of nuance would have done wonders for his portrayal, and it's the kind of character that is ripe with opportunity, like a blank canvas just waiting to be shaded and textured. But Brolin dropped the ball, and Bryce ends up being completely forgettable.

The supporting cast includes Gene Wolande (Lawyer), Jonathan McMurtry (Vet), Rocky Carroll (Bad Dude), Jamie Marsh (Barry), Michael McCleery (Recycling Owner), Michael G. Hagerty (Charlie), Terrence Dashon Howard (Jimmy) and Sean Nepita (Freddie). A very average movie, but with enough twists and turns to keep it interesting, `Best Laid Plans' nevertheless comes off as inexplicably lackluster, given the storyline. This one had the potential of being a real edge-of-your-seater, but instead fails to stir the blood much at all. Performances aside, the story alone makes it worth a look; just don't expect too much. It takes some effort to get into it initially, and by the end you'll be reflecting on what a great movie this `almost' was. I rate this one 6/10.

Like the title might suggest, I'm sure there were some great ideas behind this movie, but they got lost trying to come together. It's a fairly watchable thriller for most of the running time, mostly due to Nivola and Witherspoon giving muted performances. But the problem with this kind of thing is that it just isn't clever enough to really outsmart the audience. It isn't necessarily that you know what's coming, but the fact that you know SOMETHING is coming, some kind of twist, that it has to be pretty off the wall to take you in. Unfortunately, here the movie plunges into farce and it's a let down after an often tense, and well calculated build-up.

Still, Nivola is always nice to watch :-)