The Tourist

Written by Alex Sukhoy for Film Slate Magazine. Friday 1o December 2010.

by Alex Sukhoy

Some movies make the audience think and some movies deliver pure escapism, demanding a suspension of disbelief that, if properly seduced, a filled movie theater will agree to sit back and enjoy. “The Tourist,” starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp, delivers visual eye candy so delicious that viewers may not necessarily realize there are numerous plot holes and inconsistencies.

Shot in Venice, written and directed by German writer, director and producer Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck (“The Lives of Others”) and co-written by screenwriting A-listers Christopher McQuarrie (“The Usual Suspects”), Julian Fellowes (“Gosford Park”) and Jerome Salle, who wrote “Anthony Zimmer,” the French film on which “The Tourist” is based, it would seem that the overseas influence would drive the international look and feel of this film.

However, as frequently happens, the American versions of their European counterparts often have a watered-down resonance. Americans don’t like subtitles, consider Europe elitist and, frankly, want a certain kind of simplicity from their cinema. Heightened sex and violence? Yes. Emotional depth and psychological intrigue? Not so much.

“The Tourist” opens with Jolie, who looks stunning in every frame of this film. She plays Elise, a British femme fatale, sitting at an outdoor café and reading a just-delivered hand-written note from her lover Alexander. The government agents watch her. The Russian mob watches her. And everyone wants her to lead them to Alexander, who has stolen billions of dollars from the latter. Elise, recognizing all the surveillance, leaves the café. She then takes a train and on it meets Frank (Depp), an American math teacher looking for a break from his routine life.

Frank soon finds himself involved in a series of chases, accusations and life-threatening situations because of his new friendship with Elise and given the emptiness of his life back home, plays along in this place where no one knows who he is. In fact, no one is quite sure who Elise is, either, and while some want to keep her alive, others want her dead.

Part romance, part action-adventure, and even a bit campy in tone–mostly because of Depp, who, refreshingly, is sans any costume or character makeup vs. most of his films– “The Tourist” never truly reaches its beat. Even the seductive dance scene falls short of the much better orchestrated sexual tension tango by Jolie and her now life partner Brad Pitt in “Mr. and Mrs. Smith.” In fact, there’s little chemistry between Jolie and Depp during most of “The Tourist.”

To be fair, the cinematic beauty of this movie alone creates a fantastic moving brochure of Venice. This film is armchair travel at its best. Additionally, the dialog, often quite witty, really flows and there’s an emerging banter between Depp and Jolie. Finally, the great cast, including Paul Bettany (“The Da Vinci Code”), Timothy Dalton (“Toy Story 3”), and Steven Berkoff (“The Rapture”) lends credibility to the underdeveloped supporting characters.

In this holiday season, “The Tourist” delivers solid entertainment for adults during the otherwise kid-friendly plethora of cartoons and family movies. There’s humor, there’s gorgeous scenery and there’s good acting by two beautiful and bankable Hollywood stars. And, it takes the audience to a completely different world. No passport required.

DIRECTOR: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck SCREENWRITERS: Christopher McQuarrie, Julian Fellowes, Jerome Salle PRODUCERS: Ron Halpern, Lloyd Phillips CAST: Angelina Jolie, Johnny Depp, Paul Bettany, Timothy Dalton MPAA RATING: PG-13