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Extras:
Deleted Scenes, "Making a Scene" featurette, Trailers, Audio Commentaries
Director:
Doug Liman
(The Bourne Identity, Getting In, Go, Mr And Mrs Smith, Swingers, TV: The O.C.)
Producers:
Lucas Foster, Akiva Goldsman, Eric McLeod, Arnon Milchan and Patrick Wachsberger
Screenplay:
Simon Kinberg
Music:
John Powell
Cast:
John Smith: Brad Pitt
Jane Smith: Angelina Jolie
Eddie: Vince Vaughn
Benjamin Danz: Adam Brody
Jasmine: Kerry Washington
Father: Keith David
Gwen: Michelle Monaghan
Mr Smith's Boss (voice): Angela Bassett
Marriage Counselor (voice): William Fichtner
Mr and Mrs Smith
begins as a film that's technically told in flashback, but this is a device that's used a couple of times
at the start and isn't referred back to until the end, inbetween which the film is allowed to tell is tale
at its own pace and very well this does it indeed.
The couple, John (Brad Pitt) and Jane (Angelina Jolie with some strange arm-popping veins - see right), meet by chance in Bogota, Colombia
at a time where it's not safe to declare that you're a tourist on your own. Fast-forward a few years to the
present and they're having marriage troubles because they no longer have sex and can't find any common
ground, spending their time talking pleasantries only. They even lie to each other about their day jobs,
but while out on their respective assignments, one day they discover that each other is actually a hired
assassin and, as luck would have it, they both have the same target, Benjamin Danz (The O.C.'s
weedy-looking Adam Brody).
Then, later, because they've failed to kill one another within 48 hours of being set such a job, when the
bad guys go against them both, the skill and direction depicted onscreen is of such a high calibre in the
fun department that such entertainment really can't be beat.
In fact, it's very much like True Lies, but like the marriage gone wrong and it has plenty of intriguing
interplay to keep you hooked. That said, clearly Fox picked up on this too as even the teaser trailer for
this movie uses that classical piece from the end of the Arnie film!
Mr & Mrs Smith has a very sharp script, great chemistry between Angelina and Brad and is
brilliantly-filmed and very engaging. It gets the balance between comedy/action (and a DTS soundtrack
to annoy the neighbours with) just about right. And it makes you laugh when they go up against each other
because there's a lot of shooting, but they keep missing each other as badly as shots fired in The A-Team.
And you know they're going to have a hot shag afterwards, despite their marriage being empty in that department
for a long time, but thankfully this 15-certificate is spared the romping shenanigans.
Of the rest of the cast, the only one who stands out is Vince Vaughn as the comic relief, Eddie, to
Brad Pitt's sharp-shooter and his character looks like it's going to go elsewhere, but sadly doesn't.
When this film came out at the cinema, I don't think any movie critics watched the film itself, they just
babbled on about the Brad/Jennifer/Angelina love-split thing so they could tie it in with their front
cover stories. Was Brad mad to cheat on Jennifer? Well, who cares - it's the film we're reviewing here
and the media ignored that, choosing to focus on their marital woes. Fact is, Jennifer Aniston is hot.
Angelina Jolie is also hot, despite being clearly quite mad over some of the things she does like when
she and her ex, Billy Bob Thornton, reportedly wore lockets each containing a drop of their own blood
together. Hmmm...
Oh, and to bring things full circle a bit, Vince Vaughn is reportedly dating La Aniston.
The film is presented in its original 2.35:1 theatrical ratio and is anamorphic. It looks colourful
and striking throughout, but there is some slight stilted jerkiness on occasion where the mastering of
the DVD seems to struggle a bit with the picture but it's not enough to cause any major worries, and if
the DVD is doing this then god knows what it would look like on the much smaller PSP screen. In fact, on that
note, I've seen this DVD listed for £12.99 on Amazon (check the link above), so why would anyone spend
almost twice that (£24.99) on the UMD?
Soundwise, we are treated to both a Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 soundtrack. I always go for the latter
and it doesn't disappoint when it kicks in for the action as the split-surround effects are very impressive.
An example is the gunshots at the start of chapter 4, at a funfair, which are very precise and clear, making
me wonder what had happened as I looked away from the screen for a moment. The sound overall only loses a
point because at other times in the soundtrack things are a bit on the lifeless side.
Extras are rather thin on the ground, however. The Making a Scene featurette (8 mins) is about a
car chase scene as the couple finally realise they're working along similar lines. Presented in a 16:9
letterbox format (with a "Fox Movie Channel" onscreen logo in the corner - FFS!), this mixes in clips
with chat from various cast andcrew members.
There are 3 Deleted Scenes, although they're rather more like extended ones. One just gives Vince
Vaughn an extra couple of minutes to mouth off. I'd include the last two back into the movie though, given
the choice as they have additional stuff that'd sit nicely in there.
On top of this, there's a Theatrical trailer and a Teaser trailer, both around two minutes
each, but the latter has Angelina using a Gatling Gun which doesn't appear in the main movie. Finally,
there are 2 Audio Commentaries, one from director Doug Liman and writer Simon Kinberg and the other
from producers Akiva Goldsman and Lucas Foster.
Basic subtitles are in English only although there are also subtitle tracks for both commentaries, there
are 28 chapters which is fine for this length of movie and the menu blends in some action clips from the
film to describe the quick change in John and Jane's relationship between peace and mayhem.
Structurally, the only downside to this disc that could've been avoided is that there are also several
bloody rental title trailers before you get to the main menu itself, which is highly annoying. At least
these are individually chaptered and can be skipped past but please, Fox, just stick them as TRAILERS in the
EXTRAS part of the menu! You really are just pissing off your customers who have paid good money for such a
DVD.
Overall, the film is great entertainment, but as a DVD there are few extras so I'd recommend a rental first
before considering a purchase.
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Privacy Overview
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.