Deja Vu

Rating: 6/10 (7 September 2007)

From director Tony Scott (True Romance, Enemy of the State), this is quite a clever action thriller combining past and present. Basically in Algiers, New Orleons, a ferry has exploded and killed over 500 people, and ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives) Agent Doug Carlin (Denzel Washington), along with FBI Agent Paul Pryzwarra (Val Kilmer) is investigating. Impressed with Carlin's skills, Pryzwarra invites him to join a new team with highly sophisticated satellite technology that can look backwards in time for 4-1/2 days. With this technology, they try and capture sight of the terrorist by looking into the private life of a woman victim to the crime, with unusual death circumstances. Soon enough Carlin knows that it is not satellite imagery, but somehow a time warp/machine. This is where when they find the terrorist, Carroll Oerstadt (The Passion of the Christ's James Caviezel) they can combine past with present, best example is a car chase with special goggles. There is also a moment where Carlin tries to warn himself in the past of the event, but his partner is victim to finding the note and being killed by Oerstadt. Eventually Carlin takes the risk of going into the past with the special scanner they used to send the note, and he is transported a few hours before the incident to meet the woman they found, and he has fallen for, Claire Kuchever (Paula Patton). When she eventually believes him knowing her and the future, they head to the scene of the crime to stop Oerstadt blowing up the ferry. The bomb (in a car) goes off the ship, and Claire escapes, but Carlin dies in the explosion, but don't worry, he's back to investigate the explosion where no-one died. Also starring Adam Goldberg as Dr. Alexander Denny, Elden Henson as Gunnars, Erika Alexander as Shanti and Bruce Greenwood as FBI Agent Jack McCready. There are tiny moments where it gets slightly complicated and you have remember past or future events, but it is still quite a clever film. Good!