Collateral
2004 Directed by Michael Mann
Synopsis
It started like any other night.
A cab driver finds himself the hostage of an engaging contract killer as he makes his rounds from hit to hit during one night in LA. He must find a way to save both himself and one last victim.
Cast
Popular reviews
More-
Film #6 in Driver’s December Death Penalty AKA The December Project , which is part of Cinebro's The December Challenge. 1 month, 100 movies.
120 minutes
"Okay, look, here's the deal. Man, you were gonna drive me around tonight, never be the wiser, but El Gordo got in front of a window, did his high dive, we're into Plan B. Still breathing? Now we gotta make the best of it, improvise, adapt to the environment, Darwin, shit happens, I Ching, whatever man, we gotta roll with it." - Vincent
This film is about seeing people in ways we've never seen them before. While everyone is pretty much playing against type here, let's start with appearances. Jamie Foxx wears geeky glasses…
-
What do you get when you take a scientologist and a stand up comic and put them in a dark gritty film like Collateral? I wish I could think of a punchline to follow that one up so here's what you get...
The acting is outstanding. Jamie Foxx is fantastic in one of his first serious and dramatic roles. In the past, Foxx had proven to be charming, but his actual acting ability had come into question until 2004 where he tackled two Oscar nominated turns in one year: Ray Charles in Ray and cab driver Max in this film. His character is handled very well and made even more complex and compelling than he needed to, thanks to Foxx's…
-
From its far fetched premise to its predictable resolution, this film does nothing for me. It is never tense, suffers from Mann's penchant for dragging everything out too long and settles for the beaten path a bit too easily to my liking.
Its slightly redeeming factors lie in the performances which are OK. For the rest it was a rather drab affair.
-
At first I was really gripped by it all; Tom Cruise giving it his all as smart hitman, taxidriver trying to stay cool even though he doesn't know what the fuck's going on. But I have to say I started to get a little bit tired of it all during the second half, and was thinking it would be an average 3 star rating from me. But then BAM! 25 minuttes left , and all of a sudden I couldn't get my eyes away from the screen - fantastic.
-
Tom was such a bad ass in this film it almost made me forget about the Scientology...
-
I watched this on the recommendation of fellow letterboxd user ⊕ TOM ✴ who had literally watched this for the third time as he recommended it to me.
It stars Tom Cruise as Vincent (A surprising role as the antagonist, he plays a hitman) and Jamie Foxx as Max, the taxi driver who becomes Vincent's hostage. Tom Cruise as Vincent is ice cold and at times quite damn scary whereas Jamie Foxx as Max is complex without getting over complicated - both performances are good and there are even decent supporting cameos from Mark Ruffalo and Javier Bardem as well as an extended role for Jada Pinkett Smith as Max's love interest but also a target for hitman, Vincent.
The…
Recent reviews
More-
Cruise's best acting.
"Guy gets on the subway and dies. Think anybody'll notice?" - Vincent
-
A dark, stylish thriller from director Michael Mann in which hitman Tom Cruise has 5 targets to eliminate during one night, and everyday cab driver Jamie Foxx is unlucky enough to offer a ride and is sucked into being his getaway for the night, or suffer the consequences.
An excellent story on morality and decision making, where every choice has an after effect and you can feel the tension mounting as do the body counts when not everything goes as smoothly as it should. Will more people be hurt than required? That depends if Foxx plays ball, and Cruise can be get on a leash.
Great performances from both actors, with a visually hypnotic looking city taking place during one night where lines between good and evil are often blurred.
-
I watched this on the recommendation of fellow letterboxd user ⊕ TOM ✴ who had literally watched this for the third time as he recommended it to me.
It stars Tom Cruise as Vincent (A surprising role as the antagonist, he plays a hitman) and Jamie Foxx as Max, the taxi driver who becomes Vincent's hostage. Tom Cruise as Vincent is ice cold and at times quite damn scary whereas Jamie Foxx as Max is complex without getting over complicated - both performances are good and there are even decent supporting cameos from Mark Ruffalo and Javier Bardem as well as an extended role for Jada Pinkett Smith as Max's love interest but also a target for hitman, Vincent.
The…
-
This was my third watch of Michael Mann's Collateral, and after not caring much for it the first two times, I've finally been able to fully appreciate it.
It is a stylish, riveting and intense neo-noir. Mann paints a slick and glossy portrait of night-time L.A while conveying a sense of interior vs. exterior. The use of stuffy close-ups making you feel trapped inside the cab with Max and Vincent, against the provoking top shots of L.A, tracking the highway down below. This is a visually intelligent film, and Mann is meticulous with the elements he incorporates.
Collateral is as good with it's visuals as it is with the more broader elements, however. The narrative is very fast-paced, it's almost…
-
A highly entertaining and beautifully shot thriller.
-
I have quite vague recollections of seeing this around the time it was released, but I could remember very little about the film itself. Last year I picked it up as an impulse buy and it's sat in the 'To Watch' pile ever since. Some days I can spend ridiculous amounts of time contemplating what I'm going to be watching, and other days I just close my eyes and point - today was one of those days. Collateral is notable for featuring Tom Cruise in the villainous role of Vincent, a contract killer, and as a fan of Cruise I'm not surprised he was quite good. Meanwhile Jamie Foxx is good guy Max, a cab driver who is in the…
-
My favorite Tom Cruise role, he needs to play a bad guy more often, like in Tropic Thunder.
-
Pretty enjoyable. One of Cruise's better movies.
-
After Heat, Collateral is Michael Mann's best film to date. It also has Tom Cruise delivering one of his finest performances to date. Collateral has always been in my top 10 of favourite films and it will always remain there. And Michael Mann has always been 1 of my favourite film makers. I've been a fan of him since Miami Vice (the series) and like all of his films. What's not to like in this film, Tom Cruise playing an assassin with a bit of a conscience, Jamie Foxx doing an outstanding job as the unfortunate cabbie, the gorgeous cinematography especially the night-time scenery, the intensity of the story and some wonderful dialogue. Michael kudos to you and keep up the fantastic work.