Out of Time Review
by Homer Yen (homer_yen AT yahoo DOT com)October 9th, 2003
"Out of Time" - Suspenseful But Logic Out of Synch
There are some films that have the resonance to linger in your mind even days after you've seen it. Sometimes, you develop an added measure of appreciation for what you've witnessed. Sometimes, however, the more you think about it the more you become confused. "Out of Time" (specifically the ending) simply baffled me.
Without spoiling the ending of the film, I can only say and guarantee that it seems impossible to truly see how the elaborate conclusion unfolds. There are revelations, there is a test of faith, and there are certain liberties the characters take that you can forgive. But, I think that you would need a flowchart to understand how the climactic confrontation was formulated.
Meanwhile, the studio's marketing department has made a terrible miscalculation. Have you seen the film's trailers? There is a twist that happens about one-third of the way into the film that puts our hero, Police Chief Whitlock (Denzel Washington) in jeopardy. However, since we already know what's coming, we watch with a certain amount of incredulity because we know things long before our good-hearted police chief will.
It's too bad that we couldn't somehow peel away the beginning and the ending. The meat of the film is a tasty piece of suspense. It involves illicit affairs, drug money, and a series of bad decisions that turn a good guy into the target of a manhunt. That good guy is, of course, Whitlock, a very engaging personality with a warm heart. We can easily sympathize with him, even when he unethically appropriates recovered drug money for his personal use. However, an unexpected problem occurs which causes an investigative net to be cast. He works frantically to control the damage. Unfortunately, the FBI soon gets involved. And interestingly, it is Whitlock's ex-wife, Alex (Eva Mendes), who spearheads the effort.
Once this section starts, the film nicely settles down and feels like a sports car tackling dangerous curves on a mountainside road. The suspense factor steadily notches upwards as Whitlock uses his small-town smarts to try to stay ahead of the FBI from discovering the truth. But as the town is small, as everyone seems to know one another, and as the investigative net closes in around him, he realizes that he has nowhere to hide and is quickly running out of time.
The narrow escapes provide most of the fun. But, the supporting cast is well-developed, and it helps to give this film some needed dimension to overcome its slow start. Ann (Sanaa Lathan) is Whitlock's love interest, and does her weepy best to make him feel special. Chris (Dean Cain) is convincing as the vile citizen who has never really liked Whitlock. And, everybody needs a friend like Chae (John Billingsley), who is Whitlock's sidekick. He approaches life with a goofy gaiety, but is sharp enough and unassuming enough to be of tremendous help when called upon. Other nice elements are the film's setting and atmosphere. It takes place in a sleepy enclave of the Florida Keys where romances, hatred, and schemes seem to perpetually smolder. All of this helped to give this film to overcome its shortfalls. But, to really enjoy this, come a little late and leave a little bit early. Certainly, you have time for that.
Grade: B-
S: 1 out of 3
L: 1 out of 3
V: 2 out of 3
Originally posted in the rec.arts.movies.reviews newsgroup. Copyright belongs to original author unless otherwise stated. We take no responsibilities nor do we endorse the contents of this review.
