Entertaining Action with Throwback Plot

Rating: Null/10 (17 March 2011)

The movie's action sequences are very entertaining, and it's unique to see a woman in a Bourne-style action role. However, many elements of the plot are not unique, since the idea of the forgotten Soviet sleeper agent has been used many times before (Telefon, Little Nikita, etc). 80s flashback nostalgia is very appealing right now on US television (see Chuck, Fringe) and makes an audience-friendly way to tie the action together. Complaints about the plot aside, the suspense works and the actors do a fine job.
Watching the endings of the two alternate versions provided on the DVD (extended version and director's version) really show how much a film can change with a few simple tweaks. The director's ending, with its voice over and the additional gunshot scene in the control room, raises the stakes higher for the characters. Makes me wonder what the process was - audience testing, etc they used to arrive at the theatrical ending.