Keep 'em coming, Niccol

Rating: 8/10 (23 May 2008)

If not necessarily by the start, then by the end, of the opening credits, you should be well aware of what the point of view driving this movie is. Like this piece or not, it doesn't really try to pass itself off as anything but what it is. I've liked all that I've seen of Niccol's(not always equally much), and this was the one I looked the most forward to. It lived up to my expectations. With an ironic tone lasting the duration, this takes you through the world of gun-running, with Yuri being our guide, also filling out the role of obvious metaphor, something not exactly foreign to Andrew(do not worry, this is by no means another S1m0ne... that would turn making fun of it into a ridiculously easy task, what with it featuring the actual, real-life kid of the director and star of said other effort). While there are moments of see-through material, and the occasional poor lines of dialog, this is a solid contender for the best film helmed by the man. It's fun, it's dramatic, it's fairly unpredictable and it does build tension when it seeks to do so. And when all's said and done, like the rest of his movies(again, to varying degrees), this'll provide something important to think about. The plot is great, and develops well throughout the running time. Pacing is rather good, neither boring nor in a hurry at any time. The acting is pretty spot-on for the whole thing. Music isn't bad. This has violence, language and sexuality, and plenty of them, for anyone either avoiding or seeking out such. I recommend this to any fan of Andrew Niccol, Nicolas Cage and/or their respective(heck, throw in the respect-less ones, too) works. 8/10