Rock solid entertainment.

Rating: 7/10 (20 August 2010)

It's a credit to Jolie's star power that she was offered the part of Evelyn Salt – originally conceived as Edwin Salt – after Tom Cruise pulled out of the production, however it's a testament to her talent and hard work that she delivers a powerhouse performance that makes it hard to imagine the role as a man. Jolie is front and centre of this enigmatic film, the success of this thriller relying solely on her mysterious nature, and she comes up trumps. Whilst it's pleasing to see her convince in the hard-hitting action scenes – some of the close-quarter combat is brutal – her genuine acting chops carries the movie to another level. When you think you have her pinned as either good or bad, a small look here or a change in tone there completely trips you up and you're straight back into ambiguous territory.
Jolie is helped immensely by crafty direction from Australian filmmaker Phillip Noyce, this marking the second time they've paired up (both times successfully) after working together on The Bone Collector. Noyce shoots in such a manner that the dark evasiveness of the proceedings are emphasised and the audience's pre-conceived notions of the picture are utilised against them. The situation presented on paper may be familiar, the method in which we're thrown in to witness it on screen is entirely dissimilar though. There's no easy choices to be made, no neatly wrapped conclusion, the opening scene warns you of this instantly.
There's plenty of excellence elsewhere too. Director of photography, Robert Elswit, boosts the ominous atmosphere with his dusty cinematography as James Newton Howard provides an immensely exciting original score that captures the to-and-froing storyline perfectly. Schreiber and Ejiofor round out the trio of known actors on the cast list, the latter establishing himself as a major star of the future with yet another thriving turn. Appearing opposite Jolie isn't always easy going thanks to her gargantuan star-wattage, however the class of these two supporting men ensure they have a part to play in the striking accomplishment of Salt.
Rock solid entertainment.
4 out of 5 (1 - Rubbish, 2 - Ordinary, 3 - Good, 4 - Excellent, 5 - Classic)