Rating: Summary: Unsaintly Treatment of the Original Review: Very loose adapation of Leslie Charteris's original character, the Saint(Simon Templar)who was wonderfully played by Roger Moore in the 1960's T.V. series. Although Val Kilmer plays his own version of the character with a lot of impersonations, the movie overall falls flat with a ridiciulous romantic sub-plot involving a cute scientist (Elisabeth Shue.) As if the movie script was written by a pubescent girl dreaming what it would be like to live in such a fantasy world of espionage. The plot was just too absurd and far-fetched to be credible and was too immersed into an idiotic romance which should have never been. The characters were 2-dimensional cliches that are typical hollywood junk cranked out on the screen year after year.The Saint was a suave debonaire who helped women in distress but was far too mature of a man reduce himself to the idiotic da-da, all over you, puppy-love romance shown in the film. Such a scenario is one that only immature little girls fantasize about before coming of age. It therefore immediately apparent that the script was written for a teen female audience that would drool over Kilmer and dish out their dollars to indulge in their naive erotic fantasies. Although I am a very big fan of Val Kilmer's work and own many of his movies, I haven't bothered even renting this piece of trash. I'd rather spend my money and buy the original Roger Moore mini-series instead.
Rating: Summary: Great modern spy movie Review: I really liked this film, and yes, I have seen the series with Roger Moore. I note that the reviews here so far seem to fall into two camps: people who never saw the series, and loved the film, and people who loved the series, and just can't get over their disappointment that their beloved character wasn't faithfully portrayed on the big screen. No, Val Kilmer's Simon Templar is not the same as Roger Moore's. but this isn't really such a bad thing. The movie is a really nice, underrated spy thriller. It's got action, romance, exotic locals, love-to-hate-em villains, a likeable hero, and a plot that doesn't strain suspension of disbelief too far. What more do you want in a popcorn movie? I'll admit, if you're a real fan of the series or the books it might have been nice to have a movie that reflects the original a little more faithfully. But it might be well to recognize that the series was not without its faults as well. For one thing, it always bothered my about the series that Simon Templar is an unadulterated good guy, who never, ever does anything really criminal or base or rotten, yet everywhere he goes, the local authorities are watching him like hawks, as though he is some kind of arch criminal. I'm also rather thrown for a loop that some of the reviewers here blast the movie for being unbelievable, and then decry Val Kilmer's Simon Templar because he's not like the "real" Saint. True, this version is not all that faithful to the spirit of Leslie Charteris' character, but that Saint was a freelance, adventuring do-gooder, a man who read the papers eager to find a cause to involve himself in. His moral code was strong, and his motives were also pure: he would never hurt, steal from, or kill anyone who doesn't completely deserve it. In short, the Saint was the Robin Hood of the twentieth century. Folks, let's face it, this is not the most believable character in fiction. I grant you, it's certainly fun, and it might have played well in the pulp era of the 1920s in which the character orignated (or even the early to mid 60s when the series was made), but the producers of the film probably felt (and perhaps not wrongly, let's grant) that this sort of thing was just too much for audiences to swallow in today's more cynical era. If you can get over the fact that this is not really Leslie Charteris' Saint, then you will find this movie to be a really fun, entertaining spy thriller. I recommend it.
Rating: Summary: Loved it! Review: The chemistry between Elisabeth Shue and Val Kilmer was great! Great entertaiment and a fabulous soundtrack, my fav is the Duran Duran song. Buy the movie and the soundtrack!
Rating: Summary: WHERE'S THE SEQUEL? Review: I thought that this was one of the best romantic/action thrillers in a long time. Val Kilmer is sexy and mysterious. If they do make a sequel, they better hurry before he gets old and wrinkled like Sean Connery and Roger Moore.
Rating: Summary: By any other name Review: I just wrote a scathing review of the "I Spy" movie, grouping it with the worst of the television-to-big-screen productions. Among those I included "The Saint" and realized that I hadn't warned the unwary about this movie. Tom Keogh's review describes the problem with this movie perfectly. It might be an OK espionage movie but it's a miserable treatment of Simon Templar, as anyone would know who is familiar with Leslie Charteris' knight errant. Where Val Kilmer uses goofy disguises to accomplish his task, Simon Templar would brazenly face the villian with the dare to thwart his imminent undoing. George Sanders and Roger Moore were superior as Simon Templar and enjoyed the benefit of superior writers if not Leslie Charteris, himself. Sadly, who ever sold the rights to this property was only seeing the dollar signs. Simon Templar should have paid them a visit.
Rating: Summary: Exciting action-adventure! Review: This film was surprisingly entertaining and interesting, it had a nice story with plenty of twists and turns. Val Kilmer makes the perfect action hero as the Saint. He manages to outwit and outsmart the bad guys by adopting a variety of disguises and funny accents. Elisabeth Shue is beautifully stunning in this film, she actually adds some wit and charm into her character. The soundtrack was an absolutely amazing work of art! The Saint has all the elements that sustain the entertainment with plenty of action, suspence and romance. All in all I would recommend this movie for an evening when you have nothing to do and want to watch a movie that you'll definitely enjoy.
Rating: Summary: Val Kilmer -- need I say more?! Review: This is one of my favorite action adventures of all time (right up there with Indiana Jones and The Mummy). Val Kilmer is SO perfect and Elizabeth Shue is adorable and intelligent and quirky. I guess I should give up waiting for a sequel, though?
Rating: Summary: Val Kilmer is 'the Saint'... Review: "The Saint" is an action and romance packed movie, featuring veteran actors Val Kilmer and Elizabeth Shue. "The Saint" was originally a television series in the 1960's featuring Roger Moore as the Saint. But as most cases are, this 1997 new movie version of the character of the Saint is only remotely close to the original. And again as most cases are, it isn't really such a bad thing. My suggestion is that if you have seen the original series and you are about to watch this movie, keep an open mind in that the character and the feel of Simon Templar is a bit different. Val Kilmer plays Simon Templar, the man of many faces and names. Though none other than a mercenary spy and a thief, he is always in the right as he thwarts enemies while giving British authorities a merry chase. The country of Russia is in chaos as there is a severe oil shortage. The people are rising in a revolution, the leader being Ivan Tretiak (Rade Serbedzija) who is in actuality cheating and lying to all his 'fellow countrymen'. In fact he and his son, Ilya (Valeri Nikolayev) are your average power-hungry bad guys, in fact the ones who started a fake oil shortage! Their plan is to steal Dr. Emma Russell's (Elisabeth Shue) fusion power theory with the help of Simon Templar, thus getting more support from the people of Russia. But as Simon falls in love with the beautiful doctor (and she with him), he changes plans and helps her escape the Tretiak's while saving the Russian people dying from the cold. Val Kilmer does a marvelous job in his character, all of his disguises and fake accents completely well-done. His many disguises change from a long-haired artist, a peppered gray mustache for a Russian, thinning hair and dorky face and glasses for a reporter, and more. His accents are the most well-done and range from a thick Russian accent, bright Australian accent, soft South African accent, and more! And Elizabeth Shue for me has certainly grown up, since I've only seen her as a teenager in "The Karate Kid" and "Adventures in Babysitting". Her acting is pretty good but I didn't really like her that much as I like most other heroines in other movies. The story line is averagely good, and as some people have mentioned, at times the movie was a bit tedious and long-drawn. In my opinion, I think they could have cut out more of the romantic scenes and included more espionage, action, escapes, fights... you get the idea. I just felt that just when it was getting exciting, it was either suddenly cut short or the suspense was taken out. What action there was though was fantastic! Very exciting, the best scenes include the Saint stealing a microchip in the beginning and all the escapes from Tretiak's henchmen. I feel that all action movies should always have a bit of humor instilled and "The Saint" does have its funny moments. I love the part in the beginning where Simon is just about to break into a building, discovers that the door isn't locked then remarks, "I love this country!" The ending is pretty funny also as he has a run in with some inspectors from Scotland Yard. Simon Templar's car horn is pretty cool! Put it all together, "The Saint" is pretty fantastic if you have a free 2 hours to spare. As I said, if you've been a fan of "The Saint" and you're about to watch this movie, keep an open mind if you hope to enjoy it! The PG-13 rating is for adult situations and the action. A bit of trivia: In the end of the movie, Simon turns on the radio and listens to an announcer. I wasn't sure but I was able to confirm that the radio announcer's voice is none other than Roger Moore, the man who played The Saint in the television series!
Rating: Summary: Val Kilmer is my Saint Review: The Saint is the best movie ever. Val Kilmer was awesome in his portrayal of so many people. Joel Schmacher totally ruined him in Batman: Forever. The Saint is so much better. My favorite Saint that he faked was the Gay guy in the cafe with Trediak. Val Kilmer and the Saint is any movie to fall in love with...
Rating: Summary: James Bond Redux Review: This a great action flick starring a well cast Val Kilmer and a very well cast Elizabeth Shue! A lot of this recalls a good James Bond movie. Val Kilmer playes Simon Templar, a spy who has several different identities. His newest mission is to get the recipe for "Cold Fusion", energy, precisely. Along the way he meets the gorgeous Elizabeth Shue, a scientist who has invented the recipe. I'll say no more so as not to give away important plot points but I end by saying that this is a very well done action flick that recalls parts of the recently released, and better, The Bourne Identity. Nevertheless, I recommend this.
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