a perfect Hollywood team-up

Rating: 8/10 (2 August 2005)

So, imagine you're Doug Liman. You've made some enjoyable smaller movies (Swingers, Go) And your first venture into the blockbuster zone was a welcome relief that already spawned an even better sequel (The Bourne Identity/Supremacy) So then, what is your logical next step? Well, considering that you've proved your bank-ability to the people in Hollywood, you can now have loads of fun with other people's money, and make pretty much any movie you damn well please. And that's exactly what Dougie did!
Two elite assassins, working for separate employers are married to each other without having a clue about their better half's secret life. When their next mission blows both their covers, they have to decide whether to kill each other, or team up against a mutual enemy.
It's a simple storyline, perfect popcorn movie fodder. Mr and Mrs Smith delivers exactly what the audience expects. Now even tough that is a plus, it's also a slight downside ... you KNOW what's coming, so that's half the fun gone. It's only originality lies in the exquisite way it feeds off of Pitt and Jolie's star power. It's a joy to see them on screen together delivering one-liner after one-liner in a "plot" that grows more and more ridiculous towards the end. And on a technical note: the editing seems rushed and unfinished. Maybe Liman has a whole bunch of deleted scenes he's keeping for the DVD release.
I enjoyed it very much, but where "Bourne" sticks to the retina for a couple of days, this one is too volatile and dissolves from the mind too quickly. But if you're like 90% of the world's population, and can't get enough of a well made Hollywood flick then this is without a doubt your thing.