RUTHERFORD ON FILM: 'Knight and Day'
Screwball Spy Romp Have Cruise, Diaz Trading Barbs, Bulls-eyes
By Tony Rutherford
Huntingtonnews.net Entertainment Editor
Huntington, WV (HNN) - What do Wichita, Austria, Boston and Spain have in common? About as much as Roy and June.
Bumping into boot and mechanically-minded woman June (Cameron Diaz) and her carryon of carbonators, exhaust and collectible auto parts, suave smooth-taking Roy (Tom Cruise in dark “Risky Business” shades) appears as one those only at the movies introductions.
Grinding airliner, primp and polish restroom doll up, then a lead and bash interlude exudes the quickening barrage of a cinematic rarity --- one that bridges episodic brilliance, an anthem of spitfire dialogue exchanges, and two actors that spin opposite yet interlocking personas. Cruise & Diaz combine for an action screwy romantic comedy tour de force that sucks viewers in a vortex of sister’s wedding colliding with assassins, spies, and eccentric teen inventors.
What has visions of a Hitchcock “Strangers on a Train” sautés into a light hearted “Mission: Impossible” saga dumbed downward by a series of never ending mystery, comedic, and flirtatious shifts as “Foul Play” (Goldie Hawn/Chevy Chase) which hilariously mixed straight detective, brainy stereotyped blonde librarian, a papal assassination plot and a woefully abused little person.
Diaz early in the film casually asks , why does everyone want this Burger King toy. Obviously, the miniature knight has hidden contents, just as “Knight and Day” gracefully enwrapping sanguine ‘how are you,’ ‘cool,’ ‘this is Roy’ bland statements followed by nonchalant duck and shoot automatic weapons fire.
Crammed with Diaz’s espionage faux pas ( trace cell phone; blown trigger cues) , Cruise elicits exaggerated traits and ploys of a charm ensnared gender reversed femme fatale (would that be a noirish ‘him fatale?’). Sweeping her off her feet and into another round of danger, Cruise has a wily shrewd blend of cocky, cool craziness fortified by Diaz’s jaded adaptability for the sake of a relationship.
Romance is in the air and kissing between bullets captures spontaneous testosterone flowing with gushes of ‘unavailable I can’t have him’ love, which inescapably always enraptures the feminine mystique.. What once was a white house and picket fence becomes a condo with a dog.
Avoiding a complicated “Mission Impossible” or “Bourne Identity” subtle caper, “Knight & Day” easily dances on a thin line in the sand juggling mindless ammunition blasts and a “I’m here for you” care taking respect for ordinary life moments. Enabling surprises from beneath magician’s cape, the ‘you drugged me’ coping mechanisms inventively allow additional disconnected puzzles to seemingly nicely fit into escapes by fade out for the spy and his gal pal.
The repeated use of the ‘device’ spurs a trifle amount of viewer frustration, but if you accept the premise of how this tangled couple fell together, you’ll likely greet it as a delightful dispensation.
What has immeasurable sputters is Tom himself. Forget the Brad Pitt role of “Mr. and Mrs. Smith,” Cruise wins the one-liner “sorry for the rough ride” derby, yet overact to the point of pompousness the ease of straddling rouge and disinformation protocols.
Diaz wins the acting derby, not simply for matching fast talking Cruise phrase for phrase, but inserting a practical woman’s equality agenda (or should we call her simply a “Tom-girl”?) from the defense of her boots, pleasure at a family beach BBQ, and, turning nonviolent maneuvers on the super spy.