Review: A Perfect Getaway
Filed under: Thrillers, Mystery & Suspense, Theatrical Reviews, Summer Movies
Agatha Christie had it figured out. Ten victims, one killer. Set it up, knock 'em down.
And while there's something to be said for simplicity -- writer-director David Twohy opts for three couples with two killers among them -- A Perfect Getaway can hardly sustain itself until the suspense can kick in. Unable to cut to the chase, Twohy takes his time and decides to get coy, and as it turns out, the only thing deadlier than a killer in a thriller is a screenwriter.
If only because he acts as an enabler, Cliff (Steve Zahn) is a problem, for he is said screenwriter on a Hawaiian honeymoon with Cydney (Milla Jovovich), and that's enough to pique the interests of loquacious war vet Nick (Timothy Olyphant), who proceeds to blather on to Mr. Screenplay Writer about second-act twists and red snappers, while Cliff assures him that he actually means Screenwriter and red herrings. Get it? Because for all we know, Nick and his own significant other (Kiele Sanchez) could be the culprits behind a newlywed slaying over in Honolulu, tagging along on the trail until things get really remote. Or was it that young couple (Chris Hemsworth and Marley Shelton) that Cliff and Cydney refused to give a lift on the way who have managed to catch up and rarely crack a smile?
All this chit-chat stands in for tension, as we wait for the red herrings to be fished out of the plot, and we wait for the inevitable Big Reveal, and we go from expecting anything to anticipating everything. So when Twohy does tip his hand in a clumsy, at times risible flashback sequence, it's a surprise -- but not that much of a surprise -- and it's more importantly a starting pistol for the running to finally begin.
While the character groundwork laid out prior does in fact pay off -- one character's endearing machismo turns into a rooting interest; another character's overly perky personality can be excused as a sloppy invention of identity -- the narrative itself is likewise begging for scrutiny, and while Twohy never out-and-out cheats, he does ask us to buy that some allegedly smart people make at least one very dumb move and that some scenes that wouldn't really need to take place did just for the sake of throwing us off the trail.
Because there's only so much there in terms who's doing what and why, I fear going into great detail about the performances. I will just say that the perfectly modest casting work manages to both play into what we expect of certain familiar actors and actresses and against it for others, and that I would like to see Ms. Sanchez get a bit more work judging from what she brings to the table here.
I wish I could say more, but I can't. A Perfect Getaway is a slight film, slight in its surprises and in its suspense, and yet not totally devoid of either. Twohy displays the same sort of directorial confidence that he brought to the more straightforward genre likes of Pitch Black and Below, that much is true.
But then again, the characters of neither Pitch Black nor Below happened to have a screenwriter in their midst.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-07-2009 @ 8:52PM
C.A. said...
First off, I haven't seen this movie. I bet I can guess it though.
~Psychic Spoilers Ahead~
My guess would be that Cliff and Cydney are the killers whether that makes sense or not. It seems like that would have the biggest twist factor to it and it also seems like that wouldn't make too much sense. So that's my bet.
If not, oh well. I just love the way the movie is marketed. At first I thought this was going to be a rom-com and then BLAM!, flying knives and hachets!
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8-08-2009 @ 2:14AM
Shae said...
I'm feeling quite disgruntled with the movie, it would otherwise have been made pretty well, had a good story, decent actors . . . but they blew it in the first 10-15 minutes with blatant, obvious, thickly laid hints as to the so-called "stunning twist". It's as if they were trying to pull the whole, "wow look at that, look who the killer was, re-trace your steps and it was there along" only, you DO notice all the "sublties" the first time arond. Like why a certain someone is practicing saying their name and think they will "screw up". Or why certain pictures don't show the faces. Or why someone takes their glasses off to see something. Or why they seem to be trying too hard to act. Or why they same shaky and off. Or why Thye have to keep checking their story. Or why they felt the need to sneak stuff into another hiker's pack. Could have been so good . . . next time don't assume your audience won't notice the things you "slip" in oh-so-ingeniously.
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8-10-2009 @ 10:17PM
Marianne said...
I hated this movie (but I think your review was very fair)
I went in there expecting to like it (because I loved Pitch Black. And I also liked Milla Jovovich and Steve Zahn)
Hated the flashback sequence. It was clumsy. EVERYTHING about this movie turned out to be a red herring. Hello!
In retrospect, the two best characters in the whole movie (and the best acting) belonged to Marley Shelton and Chris Hemsworth (hippie hitch-hikers)
I never felt so manipulated. Not even by "Terminator: Salvation."
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8-13-2009 @ 12:42PM
Steven said...
I think you are all wrong. It was a great movie for its genre. It was a prefect summer slasher movie that did have great foreshadowing and thoughtful details. It isn't an academy award winner, but we knew going in the story wasn't going to be that great. The film was visually stunning and had some really great gory moments. The wry humour of the goat hunting/killing, the fact the guy was an emt, Timmothy pasting his hair back on his head -- all of this was wonderful if you allowed yourself to enjoy it. I did, my friends did, and I think the box office will prove your review to be incorrect.
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9-13-2009 @ 12:04AM
Julezzz said...
Ok, I saw this movie last night and I was very disapoited with the story and the ending of the movie. The only thing I like was the guys who's like RAMBO.The other one was very bad.The storyline was very basic. The photography too. But if you want to see a movie with great background go chek this one. But, if you want to see a movie with action or horror, please stay home and watchsomething else like I don't know ....The simpson special HALLOWEEN lol :P.In the end,this movie for me, was bad.
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