MOVIE REVIEWS: A PERFECT GETAWAY

Tuesday, February 16, 2010
MOVIE REVIEWS: A PERFECT GETAWAY

ON DVD

A PERFECT GETAWAY

Honeymooning newlyweds Cliff (Steve Zahn) and Cydney (Milla Jovovich) are hiking an 11-mile trail in Hawaii when they cross paths will ex-military man Nick (Timothy Olyphant), who earns their trust by helping them navigate a particularly treacherous mountain cliff. A few yards later, the trio runs into a group of girls whose parents are begging them to return home following reports that a honeymooning couple has been murdered on one of the other islands. The suspects in the killings are a young white couple, and when Cliff and Cydney meet Nick's frees-spirited girlfriend, Gina (Kiele Sanchez), tensions start to rise. The further the foursome walks together, the more delicate the balance of trust and suspicion becomes. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide


Cast: Timothy Olyphant, Steve Zahn, Milla Jovovich, Kiele Sanchez, Marley Shelton.


Director: David Twohy


Release Date: Aug 07, 2009


Rated R for graphic violence, language and some drug use.


Runtime: 1 hr. 38 min.


Genres: Action, Thriller


Review:

David Twohy returns to form after his lackluster follow up to Pitch Black, The Chronicles of Riddick, with a surprisingly effective thriller. Twohy serves as writer / director here as he usually does and what he creates with A Perfect Getaway is an intriguing if occasionally overly self aware yarn that’s far better than it deserves to be. Twohy doesn’t spend too much time with unnecessary build up or excessive fluff. He gets right into the meat of the story and lets it run in a very lean and well paced manner. He makes great use of the local and shoots some wonderful views of the vistas both as beautiful yet dangerous. The characters he creates are intentionally one dimensional at a glance but as the film proceeds they become more and more ambiguous, keeping the audience guessing. Performances from the cast are decent with most delivering what you’d expect. Steve Zahn and Milla Jovovich play it straight, for the better part of the film, as the naïve newlywed couple. Both have major character shifts in the films third act, something Jovovich handles better than Zahn who goes a little overboard. Timothy Olyphant is a ball of crazy eyed enthusiasm. Kiele Sanchez is plays it lower key and probably the most forgettable of the main cast. Twohy direction and script keep you off balance and when the major turn occurs in the final act he loses a bit of steam as he feels the need to over explain the situation. He over does it and the entire sequence feels like it could have been trimmed down significantly without losing effectiveness. Regardless, A Perfect Getaway is stronger than expected and delivers an intriguing thriller.


B-