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Smiling all the way through...
by Roy (movies profile)
Apr 1, 2006
4
of
5 people found this review helpful
Extremely well done caper movie with enjoyable building romance between adversaries. Fantastic casting. The chemisty between Pierce Brosnan's character and that of Rene Russo is obvious. Acting was excellent, but Russo is the one that really makes this movie (and they thought she wasn't sexy enough to carry it off). Dennis Leary as the detective and the smiles of his sidekick, as well as Faye Dunaway as Brosnan's psychologist, all add much to the success of this version.
As soon as I saw this remake, I rented the 1968 original starring Steve McQueen and Faye Dunaway, and thought it didn't come close (not everyone agrees with this--see TV guide synopsis). McQueen seemed miscast and Dunaway didn't compare to Russo. There didn't seem to be any real chemistry between these two. Here the caper was well-executed bank robbery by a hired crew, whereas in the 1999 remake it was art theft. The story line of the original was outstanding, and it did show how the robbers were anonymously hired.
Brosnan plays a rich but bored M&A tycoon who steals a $100 million painting from an art museum by anonymously hiring a crew of robbers who act as decoys/cover and who are sacrificed to cover the real theft by Brosnan. For him, "It's all a game, love... just a game." Russo is the always-successful bounty hunter hired by the insurance company who centers on Brosnan as the culprit. It's enjoyable to watch these two antagonists "fall in love." An outstanding highlight of the movie for me was the sailplane scene. Another is the way he "puts the painting back."
The 1999 version is R-rated for sexuality and nudity, but was easily converted to PG for TV by omitting about 2 minutes in the middle. There is no violence or bad language. The 1968 version was PG. Both are well worth seeing for comparison; they are totally different movies, but based on the same concept.
The 1999 remake is great fun. It is by far the best, and is a movie I can--and have--watched over and over, and am still "smiling all the way through it." :>) |
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