Solid film.

Rating: 9/10 (7 April 2005)

This is Michael Mann's best recent movie. He can still do something that just draws you in and holds your attention throughout. That is what "Collateral" does. The movie shoots off the moment Tom Cruise and Jamie Foxx link up.
As for the principals, Foxx is the one who does best. One wonders why this performance wasn't also nominated for an Oscar. His cab driver, Max's shift from submissiveness to heroism is completely believable. He is every bit the frightened victim of circumstance and the defiant everyman put together.
Tom Cruise, although a little bit less convincing, fills the role effectively. His total and utter lack of remorse and human empathy turns Vincent into a monster that the audience only fears and roots against. Except for his incongruous gray hair contrasted with his still fairly-boyish looks, Cruise's work here is totally on the mark.
As good as this movie is, "Heat" (1995) is even better- and more realistic. That's a movie in which the police are just as smart as the bad guys, and professional criminals are defeated by law enforcement, not by a guy on the street.