Mr. and Mrs. Smith (June 7/05)

Mr. and Mrs. Smith marks Doug Liman's first movie since The Bourne Identity, and it seems clear that the filmmaker is attempting to reinvent himself as an action director. Though his sense of style isn't quite as slick as some of his contemporaries (ie Lee Tamahori, Michael Bay, etc), there's no denying that Liman is just as guilty of eschewing character development and plot in favor of larger-than-life action sequences.

The film stars Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie as John and Jane Smith, a seemingly normal married couple whose relationship is suffering from a distinct lack of communication. As it turns out, both John and Jane are assassins (for different companies, of course), though neither is aware of the other's true identity. But when the two are sent on the same mission, a brutal confrontation between the couple becomes inevitable.

The realization that Mr. and Mrs. Smith has been written by the same man responsible for the recent XXX follow-up (Simon Kinberg) doesn't come as much of a surprise, given that both films feature an emphasis on spectacle above everything else - something that's particularly noticeable in the movie's second half. This is despite an opening hour that's actually quite tolerable, as we tag along on John and Jane's respective missions; it's all very superficial and fluffy, but engaging enough thanks to a pair of dynamic lead performances (Pitt is especially good in one of the most mainstream roles of his career).

Eventually, though, the whole thing just becomes too trivial; because John and Jane are never developed beyond the most outward and basic aspects, it's virtually impossible for the viewer to develop any kind of a rooting investment in their respective fates. By the time we get to the prolonged shoot-out inside a department store, there's no shaking the feeling that we're watching action for action's sake. And at a running time of around two hours, the film is at least 30 minutes longer than it needs to be - a problem that's hopelessly exacerbated by the incredibly thin storyline.

Mr. and Mrs. Smith will undoubtedly please audiences that are hungry for a big, dumb action movie, but for those of us expecting something a little more complex from a director like Doug Liman and an actor like Brad Pitt, the film comes off as nothing less than a huge disappointment.