Rating of
3/4
Enemy of the State review
Daniel Corleone - wrote on 07/19/11
This fast paced thriller consists of heavy weight artists such as Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight, Lisa Bonet , Regina King, and Jack Black. It starts out with a Lawyer trying to search for a gift for his wife. His batch mate from college grabs hold of important information needed by the NSA (National Security Agency). NSA feds track down the vital data which was placed inside the gifts of Atty. Robert Clayton Dean (Will Smith). The original person who had the video was accidentally killed and the pursuit is on. Numerous “bugs” were planted on the protagonists’ clothes and home. An ex was killed by the NSA to frame “Bobby” so anything he explains in the media will be falsified. The NSA does their best to lose his credibility, family, and himself. He then bumps into Brill, a former employee of the NSA. The cat and mouse chase has doubled since the NSA knows that the lead character is being chased. In the end, the original copy became defective, the NSA’s abuse of technology was caught, and even a political figure was involved. The tag team of Brill and Bobby was a success, humiliating the NSA with a taste of their own medicine. It is one of the clever endings made on screen.
The film reminded me of a better version of Eagle Eye, Body of Lies and a bit of the Bourne films with all the tireless chase scenes. You can empathize with the Will Smith’s character since almost looses everything, his job, integrity, home and trust of his family. The ironic thing they created (NSA) is that they really didn’t make you feel secure. In the world of Facebook and Twitter, one can easily hunt you down. During the movie, it showed how the Government can easily manipulate a single phone call from a phone booth, to finding out your location and even the plate number of your car. Privacy is the real concern of the film, those monitoring the equipment that monitors its people to become safe. From beginning to end, the film was enthralling and sensitive at the same time with regards to relationships and family. As Bobby mentioned a brutal truth, every marriage will always have fights. Nothing is perfect, even the methods of some high tech agencies or corporations. It shows the real significance of “mind of your business” or privacy. Not only will you enjoy this film because of the action sequences, terrific acting, gadgets utilized, but you can also pick up something useful from certain scenes about life and marriage.
