This movie has one real purpose - make you paranoid - and it succeeds. It's also more topical now that when it was released. Will Smith plays Robert Clayton Dean. An intelligent, successful lawyer who comes into possession of some very sensitive material. The kind that gets you killed. Naturally all sorts of fun follows from there as you could probably have guessed. Wiretaps, bugs, tons of chase scenes, murder, lies, cover-up, Black Ops, etc.
Without launching into specifics it goes without saying the story has faults. Is this plausible and such, but it moves at such a clip that there's little time to debate. The cast more than adequately carry it through. Will gives his usual cool controlled performance. Gene Hackman is his good self and Jon Voight turns in a subdued performance that benefits the material. There is also a substantial supporting cast of recognizable faces. Jack Black, Seth Green, Barry Pepper, James Le Gros, Jake Busey, Loren Dean, Scott Caan, Jason Lee, an unbilled Tom Sizemore and the always serious faced Gabriel Byrne. If you are an avid movie-goer, these faces go a long way in sustaining interest.
Lastly for a production from half of the Michael Bay / Jerry Bruckheimer alliance, this is relatively relaxed (for lack of a better word). 'Enemy Of The State' is still a high budget highly stylized product, but it feels nowhere near a music video as some felt their other projects have been. The story isn't the tightest. Characters are written knee deep and the ending is a little too neat, but it's another notch in Will Smith's career and a half decent watch in it's own right. Recommended.
Without launching into specifics it goes without saying the story has faults. Is this plausible and such, but it moves at such a clip that there's little time to debate. The cast more than adequately carry it through. Will gives his usual cool controlled performance. Gene Hackman is his good self and Jon Voight turns in a subdued performance that benefits the material. There is also a substantial supporting cast of recognizable faces. Jack Black, Seth Green, Barry Pepper, James Le Gros, Jake Busey, Loren Dean, Scott Caan, Jason Lee, an unbilled Tom Sizemore and the always serious faced Gabriel Byrne. If you are an avid movie-goer, these faces go a long way in sustaining interest.
Lastly for a production from half of the Michael Bay / Jerry Bruckheimer alliance, this is relatively relaxed (for lack of a better word). 'Enemy Of The State' is still a high budget highly stylized product, but it feels nowhere near a music video as some felt their other projects have been. The story isn't the tightest. Characters are written knee deep and the ending is a little too neat, but it's another notch in Will Smith's career and a half decent watch in it's own right. Recommended.