🇵🇱 Steve G 🇵🇸’s review published on Letterboxd:
I think it would be remiss of me if I didn't start this review talking about the incredible cast in Enemy Of The State.
It's one of those rare films that seeks to impress people, like me, who cannot resist a great cast by having high quality and respected character actors in little more than cameos and on several occasions not even bothering to credit them. Any film that has uncredited performances by Philip Baker Hall, Tom Sizemore and Jason Robards is one that is absolutely ridiculous in the very best ways possible.
It's also a film that doesn't even have one of its main stars, Gene Hackman, pop up until about halfway in. Robards and Gabriel Byrne are disposed of after about 5 minutes each but not to worry - here's Bulldog from Frasier just to bump things up. It even has the good grace to give some employment to the sons of two of Hollywood's craggiest actors. Basically, this is a film made for me.
Tony Scott was always keen on filling his films with endlessly impressive casts. I guess that could be the main reason why I'm one of the more positive advocates of his films around and why I would also put forward the theory that he was better than his brother. I can't resist a cast like this. But that's not the only reason why Enemy Of The State is probably Scott's best film. I haven't seen them all yet so I'm not prepared to commit to anything more solid than "probably".
It's quite difficult, I think, to create a political thriller that's also a really cracking action thriller. The two don't really go together especially naturally. You do get the occasional film that does it pretty well - another Hackman starrer No Way Out springs immediately to mind, as do a couple of the good Jack Ryan films.
Yet Enemy Of The State busies itself putting together a decent enough backing story of political intrigue and wrangling that the scintillating action scenes actually have some meaning rather than just being there. The pace of the film is relentless as well. Scott was always a master of being able to create a constant level of threat and here he doesn't let up in piling on the pressure on Will Smith as his personal and professional life is shut down around him.
A lot is made of the fact that Hackman appears to be reprising the same character he played in The Conversation but it's actually of no consequence to this film. The two are so completely different in terms of what they are that it's really of no interest except to the type of people who populate a site like Letterboxd. Of greater interest is that Scott is clearly interested in keeping the plot serious enough here that he wants it to be weighted down by a truly great actor like Hackman.
That the scenes Hackman and Smith share are so electrifying, especially at the outset of their relationship, should be of no surprise to anyone. Hackman is one of the outright greats of Hollywood cinema and Smith is a proven and outstanding leading man in films like this who is able to work wonders with just about anyone - even those considerably less talented than Hackman. Enemy Of The State is far from placing all its faith in how the two of them pair off though.
Before Hackman even shows up, there is a brilliant chase scene involving Jason Lee and Smith's life is destroyed quickly and not entirely implausibly. There's plenty going on here and with the main plot woven into a subplot involving a Sizemore (in quite possibly the sweatiest performance in film history) led Mafia gang, there's so much going on this film that it never gave me the chance to get bored and start playing pinball on my tablet.
I did threaten to be quite angry at it for only giving Robards a few minutes but with a superbly mounted opening scene that opens up to one of the most energetic and exciting action thrillers of its decade, I not only forgave Enemy Of The State very quickly, but I was left cursing myself that I didn't rewatch it many years ago.
As an end note, I know I already said this last night on Twitter and I've probably said it several times on Letterboxd as well, but I don't think it can be said enough. I really miss Tony Scott.