Night and Day

Great blend of action and comedy. I never felt that the humor and the small bit of romance (that they had to throw in to make the relationship between the two protagonists believable) detracted from the action. It seemed that every time I was about to think "when's the next action scene" the movie would stop the thought with a well timed laugh or another action sequence making me never feel like I was waiting for the story or the action to resume.

It was also refreshing to see Tom Cruise play a part that wasn't meant to be almost completely emotionally impotent. I've never before seen him play a character where his face actually SHOWED such a full spectrum of emotions. Cameron Diaz also runs a gamut of emotional and psychological states as she progresses from the sheltered, Midwestern blonde who's in way over her head to the semi-savvy (albeit awkward) companion/sidekick of a rogue spy trying to clear his name.

I found myself applauding at the end.

While not a success at US cinemas, the film performed very well overseas and is enjoyable romp, which does not take itself too seriously. Despite the fact that the film's script went through as many as ten different writers, the final script, no doubt with the director James Mangold having a pretty big influence, is fun and entertaining, despite some typical tent-pole summer release plot contrivances (most notably a crass attempt at playing a plane crash for laughs, and silly plot twist at the end of the film that leads to a corny and stereotypical climax).

These weaknesses are largely offset by fun performance of Tom Cruise, who is very good in the role of a darker, shiftier, wittier and a more morally ambiguous version of his Ethan Hunt persona from Mission Impossible. He handles himself very well throughout the film and his character makes for a good foil for Cameron Diaz , who has fun playing a car mechanic version of Cameron Diaz. The trajectory of her character in the film is far too obvious, but despite this there is a lot of fun to be had watching her get there, and the on screen chemistry between her and Cruise is charming and draws the audience along.

The plot, as I have already mentioned is hardly original, but despite the aforementioned problems it is pretty impressive for one that has gone through a whole slew of writers. Normally these scripts come out very bad. Director James Mangold is the individual who deserves credit for fashioning the script into an entertaining and satisfying caper film, even if the fate of Peter Sarsgaard (the CIA/NSA type operative sent to apprehend/kill the Tom Cruise character, and who is pretty good in the role) is obvious almost within the first ten minutes of the movie.

Action sequences are well handled, (kudos to second unit director Brian Smrz)and the digital visual effects are by and large pretty good, being handled by a variety of different companies. Editing is polished , and Jon Powell's score helps keep the proceedings brisk and enjoyable, and there are subtlety amusing nods to both Bourne and Bond in the music. Director Mangold, as usual, marshals all these elements together with style and panache to produce a slick, fun final product that while hardly original, is very enjoyable and leaves you feeling emotionally satisfied when it is over.

This is a film that if you simply allow yourself to lap up the experience, will find it to be a fun and entertaining experience, albeit hardly a profound one.

"Knight and Day" revolves around Cameron Diaz, who is boarding a plane to see her sister April get married. At first, she is forbidden to board the plane, but then the flight attendant finds a seat for her. And guess who Diaz sits next to? The inevitable Tom Cruise. After having a little "talk" with the pilot, the passengers, and the flight attendant, him and Diaz seek out to hunt down the antagonists, one which is played by Peter Sarsgaard. Although, Cruise warns Diaz that the bad guys will say that they are the "FBI" and will pretend she's in a safe place. However, through further investigation, Diaz may think that Cruise is unto something. In the meantime, the bad guys are looking for the battery and are not too thrilled about who holds its possession.

First, let's get to the positives. First off, I liked that this movie established character development. Most action/comedy films fail to fully flesh out are leads and then we aren't registered with them. 3:10 to Yuma director makes us care about these characters, and when put in a tough situation, we just hope the best. Second of all, I thought the script was great. I thought this movie had some really funny one-liners and the film had great comic timing. It couldn't have been better. Thirdly, I thought that the performances were great. All the characters did their job and even stood out, especially Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise. Diaz and Cruise also had wonderful chemistry and their relationship never felt forced or phony. It came out as very authentic rather than artificial and syrupy. Moreover, I thought the film's pacing was excellent. The film is shy of two hours, yet feels like half of that. After the film was over, I thought there would be at least another hour added. Furthermore, I thought the action was awesome. It definitely delivered and this is the best action I've seen in a long time. And lastly, the cinematography was just amazing. I loved the scenery and great production values I must add.

There are very minimal flaws with this movie. However, there are some. First of all, I know this film is intentionally nonsensical, but some scenes went so over-the-top, that when it occasionally was meant to be serious, it came off as cheesy or laugh worthy, fortunately, like I said, occasionally. Second of all, I enjoyed this movie so much that I just wish it were longer.

Overall, "Knight and Day" is a great film because of its fresh script, great performances, amazing action, great comic timing, breathtaking cinematography, and a fascinating direction. And for the first time, it's actually not mindless! If you keep your brain on, you'll still thoroughly enjoy it. If you were disappointed by "Killers", don't worry, so was I, because you will still like this movie. Shoot, I enjoyed it so much I think it's even better than "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" which I liked. "Knight and Day" is one of those rare movies that just works on every level and is one of those rare movies that is worth full admission. See it at night with a large crowd, with a big bucket of popcorn, and a drink, and you'll have a blast. I enjoyed the movie so much that I wanted it to last from "Knight" to "Day". It comes highly recommended.

June Havens'(Cameron Diaz) life turns upside down when she meets with secret agent Roy Miller(Tom Cruise) on her way to Boston. Roy is on the run and all the federal agents are after his life. Soon, they realize that the only way out for survival is to depend on each other. Amazing chases, rib smashing fight scenes with absolutely anything on the planet(fists, guns, knives, glasses, seat belts and what not),plenty of comedy and quite a chemistry between the leads.There is absolutely nothing in the world that Roy cannot do. (I feel Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz should make more movies together!) Although most of the action scenes seem a bit too implausible, Tom Cruise manages to pull it off with charisma. Cameron Diaz provides the right amount of laughs with her comic timing. All in all, an entertaining film, if you are looking for a movie with mindless action and some exotic scenery.

I was sort of influenced by the somewhat bad reviews I had read about this movie, but decided to watch it anyway, because both Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz usually make good movies. So I sat down and watched it, and I am glad that I did.

There is action all throughout the movie, from the beginning till the very end, and it is the sort of action that is in your face and keeps your adrenalin pumping without being too much over the edge. And the action scenes were well choreographed and worked well.

Also, the comedy in the movie was well used at the right times, adding a lot of flavor to the movie. This aspect gave the movie so much charm and it worked wonderfully. Both Cruise and Diaz were good with these comedy twists.

The story is pretty straight forward and easy to follow, leaving some up for you to guess and speculate about, and that was good.

As for the cast, well as always, Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz put on magnificent work. I personally think that this is actually one of Tom Cruise's best movies. But of course, we all have our own preferences. The supporting cast also did well.

My friend said that this movie seemed like an imitation of the "Mission Impossible" movies, but I think it is in a whole other league. This one is an action-comedy while the others are pure action.

This movie is good for an evenings entertainment with lots of action and laughs. And the chemistry between Cruise and Diaz makes it worth it just for that alone. If you haven't seen this movie already, get to it!