Lacking Logic, but Filled with Cool Action

Rating: 7/10 (14 August 2010)

It may have been a long Cold War, but Angelina Jolie is definitely quite hot. In Salt, Jolie does quite a bit of ass-kicking and also manages to give a good performance. Unfortunately, Jolie is unable to completely save Salt, which falls victim to the classic mistake of poor writing in the third act. Though it makes so little sense that it probably lowers one's IQ in the concise 99 minutes that it runs for, Salt makes for an enjoyable ride until the multi-twist finale that runs unnecessarily long.
Salt is named after the title heroine, Evelyn Salt (Angelina Jolie). Evelyn is happily married to her husband and enjoys a somewhat normal life as a CIA agent. And then one day she has a really bad day, one that rivals those that Jack Bauer manages to survive in "24." In an interrogation session, a Russian spy reveals a plot to assassinate the Russian Prime Minister, which is a part of an even larger plot to destroy the United States called "Day X." He also reveals that Evelyn is a Russian spy. Even though she claims this to be false, Evelyn stupidly decides to go on the run and murders quite a few people in the process. But is Evelyn really the person she seems to be? A great supporting cast includes Chiwetel Ejiofor and Liev Schreiber.
Angelina Jolie is responsible for many of the reasons why parts of this film are successful. Salt was originally named for Edwin A. Salt and Tom Cruise was set to play him. After reading the script, Tom Cruise felt his character was too similar to Ethan Hunt, his other character from Mission: Impossible, and detached himself from the film. And it is a great thing that he did. Jolie plays her role with so much intensity and mystique, something that women in action films can rarely pull off. At her best, Jolie acts with ferocity and sexuality, and that is just what she does in Salt's slick action sequences.
Unfortunately for Jolie, the story often falls flat. Although most action films (with the exception of movies like The Dark Knight and Inception) are not meant for people who are extremely smart, movies should still have a coherent and linear plot. Salt certainly lacks an understandable plot and, to make it worse, has absolutely no logic. The motivations are never clear for any character in the entire film and the plot twists around three too many times. It is obvious that Phillip Noyce, the director of two James Patterson adaptations, can stage a nice action sequence, but there has to be a stable plot to support a scene. Most of the time, Kurt Wimmer's mediocre script cannot support the intense action that unfolds on-screen. The last half hour of the film is so outlandish and unnecessary that it almost loses any respect from some audience members. Many viewers might not react positively to an ending that does not completely satisfy. (Note: A rumor is going around that a sequel is on its way.)
At times, Salt is exactly what is should be: a nice diversion. But at other times, it is so extremely nonsensical that it proves detrimental to the movie's overall effect. Angelina Jolie does her best as Evelyn Salt and almost always succeeds in surprising the audience, but a so-so script sometimes weighs her performance down. Salt mainly suffers when its story begins to unravel in the final half hour. The ending, unfortunately, lacks a punch, but the first hour is still good enough to keep the viewer high on an adrenaline rush throughout the entire movie. Even though Salt is not nearly as good as it should have been, it still remains an enjoyable experience.