With all of the attention paid to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in the last few months, their film together started to reek of a Jennifer Lopez-Ben Affleck disaster. But Pitt and Jolie share something the aforementioned former couple do not - mainly, talent and chemistry.
And their talent pretty much saves the film: "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" might have fallen in on its own action/adventure/romantic/comedy weight if it wasn't for the performances of its two stars.
The film walks a fine line between absurd and ridiculous, but Pitt and Jolie - along with director Doug Liman - are able to sell the outlandish concepts and still convince the audience that their characters belong together in a non-Julia Roberts-Hugh Grant sort of way. The movie isn't bad by any standards, but there are scenes that linger too long and action sequences that might be more effective if cut by a few minutes.
The plot is easily summed up in the film's trailer: John Smith (Pitt) and Jane Smith (Jolie) are assassins who have a lonely marriage and secret identities. Eventually, both find out the other's actual career and each go home with the intention of killing the other. Predictably, that doesn't happen, but it does lead into one of the funniest scenes in "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," a gun fight between the two of them that eventually leads to a fist fight and then, well, duh.
Some of the funniest moments between the actors, albeit very dark and a bit bloody, occur as they beat the crap out of each other and bring down pretty much their whole house.
The next action sequence is a drawn-out chase with several black cars chasing Mr. and Mrs. Smith, as they race down the expressway in a minivan they've stolen from their neighbors.
Like most of the action in this film, it's hilarious, especially watching Mrs. Smith blast away at the cars chasing them while simultaneously arguing with Mr. Smith about his driving.
There are a few more plot twists, one involving that geeky kid from "The O.C." (Adam Brody), but eventually it all leads up to a shoot-'em-up ending at a housewares store, where Mr. and Mrs. Smith battle it out (alone) with what looks like an army of black-clad assassins. Guess who wins?
The comedy in the film is at times very dry and dark - some of the funniest moments are the most violent. The couple's cavalier attitude toward killing people is frighteningly funny, reminiscent of the attitudes displayed by almost all the characters in "Pulp Fiction."
Both lead actors pull off their parts easily. Sometimes actors can become too famous, and it's hard to watch their movies because they've become too big for the characters they play - like any character Lopez has played post-Affleck. Luckily, Pitt and Jolie are so convincing, it only takes a few moments of the film for the viewer to forget they're now being called "Brangelina."
Special attention should be given to Vince Vaughn's amusing performance as Mr. Smith's friend and fellow assassin Eddie.
As usual, director Liman of "The Bourne Identity" and "Swingers," created a beautiful movie with vibrant colors and quick-cutting camera angles. His style flatters both leads, but his real talent is the action sequences, in which he's able to capture the fast-paced and jarring gun battles and the rapid interplay between Pitt and Jolie's characters.
Overall, the film is the perfect summer movie - not to be taken too seriously and worth the ticket price if only for the flattering close-ups of Pitt and Jolie. While "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" has a few flaws, all can be forgiven for the two-hour action/adventure/romantic/comedy ride it takes its audience on.
