Intro

I like a DVD on a Saturday along with a few snacks, so this weeks we chose Vantage point from the huge database of DVD's my son has compiled from his quite extensive collection. Thee were a few on his list we had been meaning to watch for a while, but this was the one that got the most votes a few Saturdays ago.

Vantage Point

Director Pete Travis

Cast

Dennis Quaid.............Thomas Barnes
Matthew Fox................Kent Taylor
Bruce McGill................Phil McCullough
Said Taghmaouii........Suarez
Forrest Whitaker.........Howard Lewis
Signourny Weaver......Rex Brooks
William Hurt.................President Ashton


Performances

Overall each contributed successfully to a pretty good film, initially I was confused then it all started to fit together and the performances of each in turn gave me time to access and deliberate on their performances. I had to single out Dennis Quaid, who before this movie was not an actor I had on the top of my list. This film however has endeared him to me somewhat.


Plot

Thomas Barnes had already taken a bullet for the president some years ago; he had also undergone all the usual processes for return to work. He was jittery, not quite sure of himself, but they had faith or so he thought. The President had to give a big speech on how the world could win the war on terrorism; unfortunately just before his address he was shot.

The plot from here drifts and winds as you are taken on the same journey from different viewpoints. It all seemed jumbled when the bomb went off, but as you see the same scenes from different perspectives the story starts to slowly come together and you start to evolve your theory of what actual happened. As each new members story is told you are forced to re-evaluate your point of view, and this novel and quirky way of telling the story worked really well. At first you are confused and then it all slowly starts to unfold.
Being that you are seeing the same thing over and over from different angles and positions, the scenery becomes a bit repetitive, but you get drawn in and you start to wonder. After each story you are left with more questions although you may also have found some new answers. I found this a most enjoyable experience as my wife and I deliberated on what was actually happening.

Some strong performances, carried a pretty boring scenario, and the retelling certainly took your mind of the fact that is wasn't much of a plot. This said it was all done very well and you were always feeling part of the soluton.


Summary

I really enjoyed this and was impressed by the way the whole thing was done. Each actor/actress performed their roles more than adequately, and the retelling saw you involved in the interactions between all of the cast. Quirky and pretty good would be my verdict. I liked it. You can purchase this for around £6 on Ebay and there are a lot far worse films to find in that jumble of garbage.