Cameron Diaz did some of her best acting when she was cast opposite Tom Cruise in Cameron Crowe's underrated Vanilla Sky, but the difference between that dark mindbender and this sunny concoction is as glaring as the difference between ... well, I'm not gonna say it.
The similarity between the films, though, is obvious -- namely, the fact that Cruise and Diaz again prove to be an engaging team. Upgraded from the supporting status she held in Vanilla Sky (Penelope Cruz was the lead), Diaz here plays June Havens, an innocent who gets sucked into the high-voltage world of secret agent Roy Miller (Cruise). Roy insists to June that he's an honorable FBI agent who's been set up by his colleague Fitzgerald (Peter Sarsgaard) as a way to cover up his own nefarious actions; of course, Fitzgerald later informs the confused gal that he's the honest one and that Roy is a former agent turned rogue. June doesn't know who to believe, although she does know that Roy is remarkably adept at keeping her alive whenever bullets whiz by and explosions are set off in the vicinity.
Director James Mangold and writer Patrick O'Neill mean for none of this to be taken seriously, but even escapist popcorn fare should have some semblance of intelligence. Instead, Knight and Day is often so preposterous (especially during the CGI-heavy action scenes) that it makes The A-Team look as complex as L.A. Confidential by comparison. Luckily, Cruise and Diaz both have their movie-star wattage burning bright, and their easy-going rapport makes the whole confection go down easily.
KNIGHT AND DAY
**1/2
DIRECTED BY James Mangold
STARS Tom Cruise, Cameron Diaz
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