On E List of Movie Reviews

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Enemy of the State (1998)

Rate: 6
Viewed: 8/23

8/23: Enemy of the State is a good example of a Tony Scott picture: big-name stars, rapid editing, dark undertones, plenty of action, and blockbuster style.

I hate to say this, but Will Smith, in a role which was meant for Tom Cruise, looks completely out of place. What's interesting is how well the cast of strong performers like Jon Voight, Gene Hackman, and Tom Sizemore got into the act, reducing his impact. Therefore, the movie becomes easy to get through although the filmmakers did lose control of it at times. By the way, what the heck happened to Gabriel Byrne? He showed up for a scene or two and then disappeared for good.

Of course, the story, which is The Conversation meets The Firm, is prescient. In 1998, it may have sounded ludicrous, but Edward Snowden proved everything to be accurate as far as online companies working with the government, most notably the NSA, go in terms of personal data storage. That's why he defected to Russia afterwards.

On the other hand, the technology as shown is bullshit. In 1998, it wasn't that advanced, and some of the images, especially the shopping bag rotation, still can't be done. Perhaps one day it'll be reality which may not be outlandish considering how much the government has abused its rights to invade people's privacy. By the way, when somebody asked why they couldn't see Gene Hackman's face before being called an idiot, well...Jack Black's character is the idiot for not realizing there are video cameras in the hotel.

All in all, Enemy of the State is not so much of a Will Smith movie but Tony Scott's.

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