The Saint

Rating:
Summary: Saint's alive!!
Review: The reviewer who compared this film to the Godzilla fim with Matthew Broderick is completely wrong. Why? Because Broderick's "Godzilla" was NOT the character that fans had come to know in any way shape or form. Is the same true of The Saint? Hell no. This works fine as a modern take on the origin of the character. He's an expert criminal who aids the innocent. The cynics who can't accept that should stay away from this, and all versions of the is wonderful character, and stick to colouring books. I've been reading Simon's adventures for decades and have no problems with this version. It's superb.

Rating:
Summary: One of my favorites
Review: A great romantic film. Its cool the way he changes identities, but at the same time remains such a gentle romantic soul underneath.

The chemistry between Val Kilmer and Elizabeth Shue just glows, the same way two people in love do in real life. The way he is with her is just amazing. It made me tingle all over.

The other characters are a bit clumsy at times. But the scenes of russia itself are very interesting.



Rating:
Summary: For mindless mall meanderers only
Review: Val Kilmer's version of the popular sleuth is a disjointed mess. Looks like a patched-together series of music video clips. Elisabeth Shue's performance as beautiful young scientist who perfects cold fusion is positively dumb and dippy.


Rating:
Summary: An Origin Story with Benefits
Review: After six viewings (ok, so mainly the "good" parts, heh) I have analyzed what I loved about "The Saint". Many of the bad reviews for this movie come from folks who seem to think it's an action flick. Er, no.

It's a romance, people. That may not be what the director/scripters originally intended, but that's the way it ended up. A wonderful, stirring romantic origin-story that asks and answers the questions, "Why would someone become a professional thief?", and "Why would he change radically to become a "Saint", using his former talents for good?"

The answer, of coure, being love of a good woman. Snicker if you must, but I still believe this can and does happen -- just with less sexy-looking people than Val Kilmer.

Elizabeth Shue plays the naive physics researcher and does it well. Some critics felt it was ridiculous that she was presented as a genius but couldn't make a public presentation without having heart palpitations. Actually that's 100% possible, I've seen enough brilliant engineers totally fall apart at management reviews.

Having disposed of these objections, I will say that Val's acting skills made the movie. Watching his body language change with his accents and hairstyles was amazing. There is a scene where he actually "morphs", instant by instant, in voice and expression from his thief persona to "Thomas More," the poet/artist/traveler who will steal Dr. Emma's heart. Amazing.

His inner conflict was masterfully portrayed for those who notice subtlety. He knows he can fool Emma - he HAS fooled her, completely - but then, is he "pretending" to fall in love with her or is it real? What is real? His self-doubts, his sudden perception of his inner emotional poverty, his impulsive decision to not steal Emma's cold-fusion notes because "Ahhh, I can't DO this... she's so great." No melodrama, no beating the audience over the head with it, just... Perfection.

Rating:
Summary: Saints are supposed to protect us from things like this
Review: I've read that Val Kilmer and Elizabeth Shue rewrote parts of the film because they apparently had a better grasp of their characters. They should never be handed a crayon again as long as they live.

The films borders on moronic and juvenile and never attempts to reach higher. Elizabeth Shue as a fusion scientist provides some comic relief but not nearly enough. Val Kilmer delves into the Saint as though he is trying to fulfill a contract and ensure there will be no sequels.

The script borrows from the best of the bargain bin. There are no attempts to bring intrigue or even concern to the screen as these characters wander aimlessly from one scene to the next.

I cannot even express my distaste for the finale where Elizabeth Shue delivers an important scientific briefing while Val hams it up in the audience. This scene alone sums up everything wrong in modern film.

I know that this will lie among glowing reviews of this same film on Amazon's website. My only advice is if you find movies like "Independance Day", "Matthew Broderick's Godzilla", and "Steven Seagal's Fire Down Below" (I put some names before the titles because I believe actors should be held accoutable), then you'll love this fun-filled romp through European espionage.

Rating:
Summary: Pure Joyful Entertainment!
Review: I love this movie! It truly has something for everyone. It's an action adventure, a suspenseful thriller, a love story, a comedy, and a moving drama. Val Kilmer is sensational, and Elizabeth Shue does a superb job at playing a scientist who is confident about her research but touchingly unsure of herself in other areas of life. ALL the characters are so well cast, it makes every minute of this movie fun to watch. From the police detectives in Scotland Yard, to the underground art dealer, the Russian president, the prostitute, and, of course, "Trejiak's goons", among many others. And the chemistry between Val Kilmer and Elizabeth Shue is believable and sweet. What's great about this movie is that it's perfect for viewing with one special person, by yourself, or with a group of friends. Don't miss it.