By Linda Winsh-Bolard
Top summit is taking place in Spanish Salamanca dealing with the war on terrorism. Among the attendees is also the president of the United States, Ashton (William Hurt), and therefore every second before and during the opening ceremony is dully taped by multiple cameras.
Which is the first point of view seen, a television crew led by Rex (Sigourney Weaver) broadcasts a live report from the plaza. And live they see, and feed into the satellite, the shots that kill the President of the United States, and the following explosions that destroy most of the plaza.
Rewind to starting point as seen by Secret Service Agent Thomas Barnes. His point of view is supplemented by an accidental cameraman, an American tourist {Forrest Whittaker} who, with his hand held camera and inquisitive mind, captures more that he wanted to. Rewind, several times.
Thomas Barnes is the Secret Service Agent who will first see this footage, and the first one beginning to understand what is really going on. Of course, he is truly dedicated, six months ago he was shot protecting the President. Dennis Quaid does a lot of running and jumping in this role, which otherwise, after the opening scenes where he has some space to portrait nervous, strain man, does not require a lot of acting. Ken Taylor (Matthew Fox) is the other Secret Service Agent, the one with the secret. William Hurt is rather nicely insincere president. Sigourney Weaver is wasted on her small bit as the news producer.
We have seen the repetition technique used rather often, particularly lately, but in Vantage Point it actually serves its point, and because the film is fast and the various points of view do add additional information, it does not become too boring or too obnoxious.
There are no dialog explanations, viewers are left to make your own conclusions. That’s not bad.
Not much is forced in this film, but when it is, it’s forced truly obviously: one of the assassins is taking part in the mayhem because his little brother was kidnapped and he expects him to be safely delivered back in return for his help with the bombing and killing. As he is a trained security service member, one wonders what has happened to him that he lost all connections to reality. We have all figured out immediately what has happened to his little brother.
Then there is the character of little girl Anna, shortly befriended by the American tourist, lost in the aftermath of the bombing and finally causing the crash that ends the film. Anna is at least 7-8 years old, yet she seems to wander pointlessly onto a busy highway and stands there screaming for her, unseen, mama. There must have been better way to bring on the ending.
Shot in Mexico, the Salamanca Plaza is an impressive constructed replica by set designer Brigitte Broch. The camera work and editing are fast, the film is noisy with car chases, shooting, screaming, brakes, people and engines.
It did not bother me that terrorism was portrayed using ordinary methods, such as sex, and fear, to make its point, understandable only to the terrorists, while killing indiscriminately number of innocent people who just happen to be somewhere. Glorifying terrorism is certainly absurd and dangerous. The film presents terrorists as ordinary killers. It seems right to me. If there are any questions, then the filmmakers did not explore them. I thought of all the effort, pain and forgotten deaths to save one man, and thought that all men being equal, this does not seem right. Death is equally final and horrible for all, and none should be victimized. I started to wonder if it is true that Britain and Israel have policy of no negotiating should such a thing happened to their people. And how many would be saved should the media chose not to put the terrorist on front page.
This is classical thriller in the sense that all there is, is seen, even if by various cameras. It provides no additional commentary, opinion, in depth-or in neither shallow- analysis nor many human moments. It’s all about action wrapped in thin story. As that it does its job, if you expect more, you’d be disappointed.
Directed by Pete Travis, Script: Barry Levy, Camera: Amir Mokri' Cast: With Dennis Quaid, Matthew Fox, Forest Whitaker.