Ricochet

This movie rocks! The double cat-and-mouse game played by Washington and Lithgow works. If you are looking for an action movie that provides plenty of thrills, conflicts, drama, chases, and breathtaking suspenses and actually has a PLOT, then this film is for you.

Washington and Lithgow are both first rate, as always, and this movie does not disappoint. Watch it!

*** out of ****

Denzel Washington, a policeman in law-school is playing basketball with the neighborhood toughs.

He achieves fame by bringing down a drug dealing character, played extremely well by John Lithgow, who by his acting of a psychopath, put a new dimension into his acting abilities.

Washington has it made as the years pass. Lithgow plots revenge while incarcerated and breaks out violently at his parole hearing.

He turns the tables on Washington in several ways including the killing of his friend and fellow officer, nice played by Kevin Pollak. Washington is blamed for the killing. He kidnaps Denzel and shoots drugs into his system and provides him with a prostitute.

The two eventually tangle on top of a high area before the obvious ending occurs.

A good story allowed to go awry by crazy staged events.

"Ricochet" is a movie worth seeing (renting) for its two lead actors; both of whom approach this movie with gusto, not to mention serious talent: Denzel as the righteous crusader attorney, and Lithgow as the bat-guano crazy killer. Lithgow plays the hell out of the psycho here, not the scenery-chewing bad guy you picture from "Cliffhanger", but the unhinged and unpredictable kind. The mindscrew he puts Denzel through in this movie is something else, man. Way out there.

Sleazy and over-the-top are both very good descriptors for "Ricochet", which isn't at all what I'd expected. It does have that early '90s violence (you know it when you see it), but a lot of it's shot like a music video; it's kinda surreal. Ice Ti's character/subplot is awkwardly shoved in there, but on the other hand, Kevin Pollack's a reliable presence. I do love that Mary Ellen Trainor's playing the same character she did in "Die Hard") it's so random). This holds your attention, but it's also fairly forgettable.

6/10

Over-the-top vehicle for Denzel Washington, here playing policeman-turned-District Attorney who puts slimy killer John Lithgow away, but quickly becomes the psycho's main target after Lithgow escapes from prison (in what must be the most nondescript prison-breakout in movie history!). Ridiculous, sometimes enjoyable non-think entertainment doesn't take itself too seriously, and Washington is solid throughout. Lithgow appropriately hams it up, but Lindsay Wagner is wasted as a fellow D.A. Film tails off near the finish line for a formulaic climax, but otherwise isn't too bad. ** from ****

Early in the movie there was a discourse between Nick Styles (Denzel Washington) and Odessa (Ice-T) that was a prelude to Denzel Washington in his Oscar role in Training Day. Seeing that was very exciting. Now, unfortunately, the rest of the movie wouldn't be on the level of Training Day but it was still good.

Earl Talbot Blake (John Lithgow) was put behind bars in 1984 by Officer Nick Styles. From that day until Blake was able to secure his release in 1991 he'd been planning his revenge. The revenge was well coordinated and pretty much flawless. A little too flawless.

I appreciated Blake's commitment, preparation, and execution. It was a creative plan he authored to not simply kill Styles, but to destroy his life. But the plan was so grandiose and so elaborate that it defied all reason and feasibility. As I've mentioned in other reviews: elaborate plans that rely on so many moving parts and rely upon predicting the precise actions of another human being are just too far-fetched and unrealistic for me to swallow.

Still, even with that aspect and flaw I thought the movie was good. It offered action, a decent plot, and of course good acting from Washington and Lithgow. Washington was the suave, upwardly mobile cop turned DA while Lithgow was the seething psychopathic megalomaniac with a burning desire to destroy his enemy. They were an excellent mesh.