Collateral

Collateral (2004)
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, and Mark Ruffalo
Directed by: Michael Mann
Nominated for Academy Award: Jamie Foxx - Best Supporting Actor
SC=2 V=7 C=4
Grade: B

This was a good movie overall. The only thing I didn't like was seeing Tom Cruise as a bad guy. (Hello, Maverick? He can't be a bad guy!) This movie is about LA cab driver Max Durocher (Foxx), who is dedicated to his job. So dedicated, that he keeps his cab in perfect shape. After giving a ride to a pretty US Attorney (Jada Pinkett Smith), he picks up a mysterious man named Vincent (Cruise), who tells him he'll pay him hundreds of dollars to drive him around to different meetings through the night. At their first stop, a body falls onto the cab, understandably freaking Max out. Things go from bad to worse when he realizes that Vincent killed him and his "meetings" are other killings he's been hired to complete. While the two speed through the streets of LA, with Vincent trying to complete his job and Max trying to stay alive, a tough detective named Fanning (Ruffalo) is on their trail. The FBI thinks that Max is in on it but Fanning isn't so sure. Fanning has to try to find Max before either the FBI or Vincent kills him in order to prove his innocence. Great performance from Tom Cruise, as usual. Jamie Foxx is also great. Mark Ruffalo is almost unrecognizable in this role; I only recognized him because of his voice. Great cast, and good movie.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol (2011)
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, and Simon Pegg
Directed by: Brad Bird
SC=4 V=5 C=4
Grade: A++

I have always loved the Mission: Impossible movies. The first movie is strictly an espionage movie, the second is just bad, and the third is more of an action movie. This one is much more like the third. Although I always like Tom Cruise and Ethan Hunt, the addition of Jeremy Renner as Brandt makes the movie even more exciting. The movie starts with Benji (Pegg) breaking Ethan Hunt (Cruise) out of jail in Russia. The other member of the team, Jane (Paula Patton), informs Hunt that she and Benji's original partner, Hanaway (Josh Holloway), was killed during a seemingly routine op by an assassin. This same assassin plans to sell the documents that she stole to an unstable terrorist. Hunt's team is given the mission (should they choose to accept it) to invade the Kremlin and find the file on this terrorist. But, during their escape, the Kremlin is blown up, which is blamed on not only Hunt but the entire IMF. The secretary of defense picks up Hunt and tells him that the president has initiated Ghost Protocol and the IMF has been disavowed. After their car is hit, Hunt narrowly escapes with the secretary's chief analyst, Brandt (Renner). As they try to get to the assassin before she sells the documents, it becomes clear that there is more to Brandt than meets the eye. Overall, great movie, my favorite M:I so far. I'm excited to see what will happen with Brandt if they make more movies.

Vanilla Sky

Vanilla Sky (2001)
Starring: Tom Cruise, Penelope Cruz, and Cameron Diaz
Directed by: Cameron Crowe
SC=7 V=5 C=6
Grade: B-

This isn't exactly an enjoyable movie...at all. A lot of Tom Cruise's movies are cool, action flicks that are fun to watch...this movie does not fall into that category. David Aames (Cruise) is a wealthy publisher. He's dating Julie Gianni (Diaz), a famous actress. But, one night at a party, he meets the mysterious and beautiful Sofia Serrano (Cruz) who came to the party with his best friend Brian Shelby (played by Jason Lee). But Sofia hits it off with David right away. After they talk all night, he leaves, both of them feeling like there could be something real between them. As David is walking to his car, he is approached by Julie, who has been feeling like he doesn't love her anymore and tells him that all she wants to do is talk. As she drives, it becomes clear to David that she has gone crazy and he tries to get her to stop the car. But, the reason she wanted to go for a drive becomes clear when she launches the car off a bridge, killing herself instantly and disfiguring David permanently. As time goes on, David withdraws more and more from the world. After trying to see Sofia again, she agrees to go out with him. When he shows up at the bar and sees that she brought Brian along, seemingly to protect her from David, he gets aggravated and gets into a fight with both of them, after which he passes out on the street. The next morning, Sofia comes to get him and they go home, after which they officially become a couple. As the story goes on, it is revealed to the viewer that David is telling his story to a psychiatrist named McCabe (Kurt Russell) because he is in prison for murdering someone. David has to try to convince McCabe that he didn't commit the murder, which is harder than it seems because of David's creepy prosthetic mask...