Introduction
Derailed is a film about blackmail, with many unpredictable twists and turns in the plot. It is cleverly written and, although does contain strong language and violence, features subtle dry sense of humour that adds richness to the film.
Story Plot
Derailed is a suspense thriller. It is about Charlie (Clive Owen), a married man, who has an affair with Lucinda (Jennifer Aniston). They meet on a train. They have a couple of dates and then go to a motel. In the motel room, a stranger, called LaRoche, (Vincent Cassel) storms into their room demanding money. From that point on, Charlie`s life is 'derailed', hence the film title.
Charlie has his life 'derailed' when the mugger starts blackmailing him. He starts demanding money in exchange for leaving him alone. The plot escalates, with more money being handed over, and Charlie finding himself in ever more dangerous situations. Charlie, a Commercial Executive, steals money from his employer to pay the blackmailer.
The plot twists, when Charlie begins to realise Lucinda is not all she seems. Lucinda is, in fact, in on the scam, and is also LaRoche`s girlfriend. It turns out the pair, along with a friend, make money blackmailing men who cheat on their wives with Lucinda.
Charlie follows the pair as they are about to blackmail their next victim, in exactly the same motel as before. A lot of gunfire and bloodshed ensues, and the blackmailers are finally killed. Or so it seems.
Charlie goes to prison for embezzlement, and in there meets LaRoche. The bullet did not kill him, and so Charlie kills him with a switch-blade.
The film ends with Charlie leaving prison, and returning to his family home. The detective suspects Charlie killed LaRoche, but ignores his suspicions since LaRoche killed one of his best friends.
Critique:
This is actually, by far, one of the best films I have watched. It genuinely had me on the edge of my seat. I had no idea where the film was heading, and had me guessing all the time. Intelligently written, with witty banter and humour. The plot twists were unpredictable, and I thought the story was genuinely believable.
Jennifer Aniston gave a brilliant performance, a million miles away from her character Rachael in TV show 'Friends'. Her character was intellectual, adult with a two-faced scheming side to her. A friendly understanding person on the outside, but inside very nasty, uncaring and conniving.
Clive Owen came across as a dull, monotone speaking, man, who has had personality washed out of him! His life appeared uneventful, at least in the sense of enjoyment. His character was very dumb and had many opportunities to stop the blackmailers by going to the police, although he didn't want to because he did not want his wife to find out. He kept agreeing to meet the blackmailer, putting himself in ever more dangerous situations. He disguised the blackmailers murder of his friend, making himself look suspicious to police. He was nice and friendly and chatty with the blackmailer, even when the blackmailer was beating him up! At points in the film, I ended up loosing sympathy for Charlie, and I started shouting at the screen 'Why are you protecting the blackmailer!' Nevertheless, I said to myself 'you would not know how you would react in that situation until it happened'.
In conclusion, a clever, witty, unpredictable film. A wide array of characters from differing backgrounds. I would recommend people to watch this. I've read other reviews of this film that appear to be negative, and this is mainly due to Charlie`s dumbness and naivety. But I believe this is not a flaw in the film, as I think the human response, in some situations, is to bury your head in the sand and hope things will go away.
No comments:
Post a Comment