Deception

(Movie Reviews)

I've written about this before, but living out in Japan I'm not always as tuned into pop culture as I used to be, and a lot of these kind of minor B-grade movies I never hear about until I see them in my video shop.

So, on nights when I'm bored, I tend to gamble on movies based just on the pictures on the case.

When I saw this movie, I thought, "Hmmm, looks like a sleek thriller. Probably some interesting twists and turns. Some major Hollywood actors: Hugh Jackman and Ewan McGregor. Okay, sounds good, I'll check this out."

After I got home, I decided to first checkout Rotten Tomatoes, and saw all the bad reviews this stinker got (link here). But, I had already rented the thing by that point, so I decided I might as well pop in and give it a try.

The first few minutes pulled me. Ewan McGregor plays a lonely accountant without any friends. Hugh Jackman is a charming successful lawyer who, for some reason, is overly solicitous of Ewan McGregor's friendship. Where was this going? I was mildly intrigued, so I decided to sit through a bit more. Maybe the critics were wrong about this movie.

By the time I realized that, yes, it really was that bad, I was already halfway through it so I just decided I might as well just watch the whole thing.

I don't really have the energy to write down all the holes, incredible coincidences, and contrivances in this movie's plot. I suspect a comprehensive list of the all the plot holes probably exists somewhere out there in Internet land anyway. And even if it doesn't, if you watch the movie for yourself you'll spot them easily enough without my help. They're pretty hard to miss.

On the plus side, the acting in this movie is pretty good. Ewan McGregor really sold me on his character as the lonely accountant. It was easy to see why someone like him would fall so easily for Hugh Jackman's charm. And for that matter, Hugh Jackman played the charmer to a tea. He was friendliness personified as he invited McGregor out, laughed at all his jokes, and showed him every kindness, all while maintaining a casual attitude as if this were the sort of thing he would do for anyone.

My only big compliant (acting wise) is their fake accents.
Ewan McGregor, a Scottish actor, has played American characters before and has previously always seemed to do a decent job on the accent. However in this movie, for whatever reason, he does a really terrible imitation of a New York accent.

And then there's the script. Both characters end up doing a lot of things that don't make a lot of sense. And the dialogue at points can be pretty awful too. The romantic scenes especially are horribly written.

Far from the worse movie I've ever seen. Mostly held my attention all the way through. But I don't recommend it.

Link of the Day
Season of Travesties: Freedom and Democracy in mid-2009.

Deception: Movie Review (Scripted)