Stealth (2005) Columbia Pictures. 1 hour 30 minutes. Starring: Josh Lucas,
Jessica Biel, Jamie Foxx, Sam Shepard, Joe Morton. Directed by: Rob Cohen.
However, this pseudo-stylish yet laughable flyboy fable runs out of some serious
fuel in the storytelling department. As a movie maker, Cohen is no stranger
to frenzied formulaic films that never seem to mind flexing their tediously
outrageous muscles. In frivolous fare such as The Fast and the Furious and XxX,
Cohen presented escapist popcorn flicks that boldly flashed a shameless sense
of empty-headed bravado. While mainstream movie audiences previously flocked
to Cohen’s brand of frenetic free-wheeling entertainment, it will be interesting
to see if Stealth manages to continue the traditional tripe of inexplicably
popular manufactured movies that promote mayhem despite its lack of depth and
dimension.
Curiously, recent Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx follows up his critically
acclaimed performance in Ray with that as one in a trio of hot shot pilots looking
to complete an important mission with America’s vulnerable neck on the line.
Surprisingly, Foxx doesn’t bring his charismatic A-game to the perfunctory proceedings
as his transparent role merely comes off as a smack-talking generic GI Joe in
the making. Co-stars Josh Lucas (Sweet Home Alabama) and Jessica Biel (Blade:
Trinity) are also left dangling at the hands of a feeble script. Although seemingly
inspired based on its embracing of the pulsating theatrics it gleefully showcases,
Stealth is glaringly unimaginative as a thumping techno-thriller beyond the
clouds.
As convoluted as the plot sounds, here’s the dilemma: the United States naval
services concocted a self-operative aircraft guided by artificial intelligence.
Basically, this specialized craft has a computerized mind of its own. Of course
this supposedly self-sufficient jet is the perfect model for human pilots to
study and emulate its tactical capabilities. However, a dire miscalculation
arises and as a result the U.S. Navy is stuck with a renegade vessel that’s
completely out of control.
So the question remains: will our heralded fighter pilots (Lucas, Biel and Foxx)
be able to prevent this dangerously errant aircraft from causing inevitable
destruction to the innocently exposed masses? Will the gung ho pilots daring
maneuvers and intense training save the periled borders from an emerging war?
Better yet, how many times can we hope that the curvaceous Biel seizes the opportunity
to strut around in a revealing swimsuit as an added incentive to consider this
nonsensical and numbing actioner?
There’s not much going on in the wayward radar screen of Stealth’s unfocused
intentions. For starters, the film has the audacity to awkwardly lift bits and
pieces from other classic action-oriented sci-fi/military films. Clearly, the
special effects and usage of sophisticated computer-induced planes are convenient
throwback references to yesteryear gems such as 2001: A Space Odyssey and Dr.
Strangelove. Cohen struggles to instill the effortless intrigue and wit in his
hollow narrative that defined the treasured movies he’s trying to indirectly
covet.
Also, we never get the cohesive feeling that the performers are all on the same
page. The main characters act like showy yahoos without conveying any inkling
of suspenseful purpose. Foxx is uncharacteristically restrained by the uneventful
material and Lucas comes off as a swaggering bore. Biel does her limited job
as the resident tough-as-nails feminine eye candy in an otherwise tepid testosterone-driven
tale of flight and fury. And the included subplots that involve scheming terrorists
and a scenic stopover in Rangoon smells of desperation in an attempt to pad
a storyline that’s sketchy at best.
All in all, Stealth can be perceived as some overactive and gimmicky video game
that runs ad nauseam until someone sensibly decides to kick the plug out of
its socket. Convincingly derivative and all over the map, this tiring military
mishap fires haphazardly on all its anemic cylinders.
Frank Ochieng
(c) Frank Ochieng 2005 |
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