A sprinkling of 'Salt' makes tasty popcorn fare

by Jase Howell

It’s been two years, and whole lot of tabloid fodder, since Angelina Jolie graced the screen in her last film, the 2008 hit “Wanted.”

The globe-trotting, adopt-athon performer has returned to the silver screen and the action/ adventure genre with her latest, “Salt.”

If the attempt with the “Lara Croft: Tom Raider” series was to create a female version of Indiana Jones, “Salt” has the objective of selling her as a “Bourne”-like femme fatale.

“Salt” opens with CIA operative Evelyn Salt (Jolie) being interrogated by the North Korean government, which believes she is a spy. She is eventually released in a bargain agreement with the United States, with the two people working hardest to make this happen being fellow operative and trusted friend Ted Winter (Liev Schreiber) and Salt’s future husband Mike Krause (August Diehl). It doesn’t take long for the film makers to send our heroine and the audience into a web of global intrigue.

A cancer ridden, defecting Russian agent named Orlov (Daniel Olbrychski) has decided to visit a secret CIA outpost to divulge secrets of moles within their own organization. Salt is the interrogator here, but is also accused by Orlov of being a Russian spy and part of a network just now blossoming from the Cold War.

With everyone including counterintelligence agent Peabody (Chiwetel Ejiofor “2012”) agreeing Orlov is telling the truth, Salt’s only concern is to flee and protect her spider-loving husband from the situation. Describing her escape would make MacGyver envious, and the chase scenes involving a game of leap frog among semi-trucks would leave James Bond impressed. This rapid chain of sequences sets off a furious hunt for Salt, including scenes involving a vice presidential burial and a White House break-in that while incredibly unrealistic, are pretty impressive, and perfect fits for a film of this nature.

Director Philip Noyce and screenwriter Kurt Wimmer want audience guessing who to root for in this one. Is Salt being set up; or is she a Russian plant? The film does a fairly good job in this respect, but if you’re paying close enough attention you’ll see most of it coming. This is the kind of preposterous, yet energetic and just smart enough stuff that spawns sequels; in fact, the end sequences all but promise one.

This is by far the most adventurous film from Noyce, whose past credits include “The Quiet American,” “The Saint” and “Clear and Present Danger,” and he seems to have taken just fine to the more bombastic thriller style. Wimmer (“Law Abiding Citizen” and “Street Kings”), meanwhile, is apt enough to carve up future tales from this bemusing starting point.

It’s the performances, however, that manage to keep this film looking legit. Jolie, who supposedly did most of her own stunts, is perfect for this part. After her past adventure escapades she is obviously comfortable working with Noyce (she worked with him on 1999’s “The Bone Collector”). Schreiber and Ejiofor manage to sell their performances, despite the script and some rather absurd moments they find themselves in. I would like to see a little more depth to Ejiofor’s character in the likely sequel.

This is part of the July 29, 2010 online edition of The Reporter.

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