great Cruise Controlled taxi ride!!

Rating: 9/10 (14 October 2004)

"Collateral" is about a taxi driver (Foxx) who is on the wrong place and the wrong time when a hit-man (Cruise) uses him to escort him to the targets of the night.
The way in which Mann has developed this plot is outstanding. The soundtrack, the scenario, the characters....it is all worked out very well. For example, the disco scene where Cruise attempts to kill a certain target. It is incredible how Mann combined chaos with a smooth and cool conclusion. You should really see this for yourself, because the subtlety of the cinema is hard to explain. The transition to the next scene is very impressive. Here Mann's qualities are seriously tested, since he alters from "action packed image telling tainted film" to "philosophically tainted dialogue controlled film", if you know what I mean. This conversion is done very smoothly; you hardly even notice the change of focus you have to apply. I picked out these scenes in particular because I think it represents the a-class style of this film at its best. It is a great work of cinema that you should check out yourself.
Furthermore, I'd like to say something about the actors performances. The casting is truly great, I believe the contribution of the actors to the "final package" is very important. They provide the finishing touch, so to speak. For example Tom Cruise. In this film, he manages to work with facial expressions that are very convincing. I dare even to compare it with Jack Nicholson who has done excellent performances using this style of acting. Maybe Tom cruise he has even done one of the best jobs so far in his career. Moreover, Foxx does a great job as well. Especially when you consider this to be his most complex character enrolled so far. His earlier roles where rather superficial compared to this one and, as it comes clear, he is able to ascend to a higher level.
9/10