Safe House

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Release Date: 24 February 2012

Directed by: Daniel Espinosa

Starring: Denzel Washington, Ryan Reynolds, Vera Farmiga, Brendan Gleeson, Sam Shephard, Rubén Blades, Nora Arnezeder, Robert Patrick, Sebastian Roche, Tanit Phoenix

A lean and muscular action flick, what Safe House lacks in plot complexity and originality it more than makes up for in visceral thrills. Ryan Reynolds and Denzel Washington make for a formidable on screen pairing, with the former matching the charisma of the latter at every viable turn. Tonally identical to The Bourne Series, it also happens to have some of the best action since 'Ultimatum.'
Reynolds is ambitious rookie CIA Agent, Matt Weston. Stationed at a safe house in Cape Town South Africa, he has been hoping for a more exciting reassignment - pleading with his boss (a growling Brendan Gleeson) to move him to Paris. Just as he's settling in for another night full of boredom, he receives a call to let him know that dangerous wanted traitor, Tobin Frost (Washington) is to be housed there until he can be escorted back to America. When a heavily armed team turns up and attempts to extract Frost - killing a bunch of agents in the process - Weston must get him to another safe house before they're both killed. Meanwhile political red tape is causing havoc in CIA headquarters as the rookie agent struggles to control the situation.
Washington doesn't move outside of his comfort zone much these days; generally it's a Tony Scott production, where he plays an old fashioned, noble character of some sort - then watches the film rakes in the dough. With the odd exception that has really been the latter part of his career, so it's good to see him use his considerable charisma playing a villain - all be it a multifaceted one. Reynolds was another guy looking for the right kind of role, and while he's been better in less successful films, it's great that he gets to showcase his physicality in a grittier production.
Helmer Daniel Espinosa obviously had a stylistic mandate given to him by the upper brass at Universal and they quite probably had 'MAKE IT LOOK LIKE A BOURNE MOVIE' written across the top of it. And it does move and generally feel like it's in the same universe. But Safe House is still its own beast and it's plot, while fairly simplistic, allows the action to grow organically as it builds towards a fairly blistering conclusion.
A very well made and acted popcorn movie that hits fourth gear early on and rarely slows down.

Review by Mike Sheridan