Loosely based on real life events and featuring two of my personal favorite actors working in the cinema today, "The Negotiator" is a compelling and often thrilling "whodunit" that unfortunately runs out of gas and momentum before the end credits roll. With great performances and an intriguing premise and initial setup, however, the film manages to end up as an above par entry in this genre.
As directed by F. Gary Gray, who honed his skills directing music videos before hitting the big screen with "Friday" and "Set It Off," this film has the requisite action sequences, suspenseful moments, and enough cat and mouse elements to be a big crowd pleaser this summer, and our sneak preview audience seemed to enjoy it immensely.
For much of the film -- and in particular its beginning -- everything works like clockwork. Relative novice screenwriters James DeMonaco ("Jack") and Kevin Fox start off the movie with a thrilling introductory sequence, and do a decent job setting up the characters and the parameters of the story. They've injected plenty of tension-breaking humor -- mostly in the form of a weasel-like hostage (played by Paul Giamatti) -- and have established a credible and highly anticipated cat and mouse game between two highly trained professionals.
That works for a while and we revel in the tactics deployed by the two negotiators as each feels out the other for strengths and weaknesses. Then, however, and rather inexplicably, things start to get questionable and far-fetched. The characters who had so carefully "played by the books" suddenly do things only amateurs would accidentally do, such as when Danny forever stands with his back to a newly blown open window, knowing full well that snipers are poised everywhere to take him out.
Perhaps he's banking on the loyalty factor where he believes his own team couldn't shoot him, but that never seems to be a conscious tactic and his sudden sloppiness detracts not only from our "admiration" of him, but also of the film's overall suspense. While I understand that much of what occurs is done to heighten the suspense -- the audience fears that he'll be shot in that sequence -- it and several other later moments (that I won't give away) unfortunately dumb down what had been a nicely constructed intellectual exercise for this sort of genre.
The fact that we know Danny is the good guy who didn't commit the crimes also inevitably hurts the film's buildup of tension and suspense. While we completely understand what he's doing and root for his success, it's highly unlikely that many moviegoers will think that he'll be killed, or more importantly, that he'll kill or even harm his hostages. Logic dictates that if he does so, he'll ruin his chances of freedom even if he clears his name of the other crimes.
What would have worked much better would have been if we arrived at the scene of his partner's murder just as the cops did, and thus wouldn't know whether he really was the perpetrator or not. That would have added not only an additional layer of suspense to the film, but it would also have kept the audience on its toes throughout, never sure of his guilt or innocense. Such "gray" characters are always much more fun to watch, and while many of the supporting characters are portrayed that way, the film would have benefitted had our protagonist been give the same opportunity.
I understand the cinematic device employed by the filmmakers where Danny is instantly a sympathetic character because we know he's innocent and has been framed. Such a ploy also worked a few years back with Harrison Ford in "The Fugitive." The difference, however, is that Dr. Kimble didn't take hostages and act like he was going to kill them -- we never would have bought into that notion and -- as set up -- we don't here either.
Another factor that made "The Fugitive" so good was that Kimble was on the run in Chicago, whereas for the most part Danny is holed up on one floor a building in the windy city. While that does generate some suspense, it's so enclosed that it nearly eventually suffocates the built up tension and gives the filmmakers no way out but to deliver some questionable and unbelievable plot developments to keep the story moving forward.
All of this isn't to say that the film is without suspense. To the contrary, there's plenty of potentially suspenseful scenarios present to make the film fun and thrilling to watch. It's just that if the filmmakers had done a little more careful planning, the film could have been so much better. As it stands, it's enjoyable enough, but the fact that they back the plot into a corner with nowhere to go but into "GiveMeABreakVille," ruins the fun they had previously built up.
Fortunately, the performances make up for nearly all of those second half problems. I've always thoroughly enjoyed Samuel L. Jackson's performances ("Pulp Fiction," "Die Hard With A Vengeance") and while this isn't his best to date, it's still quite good simply because of the actor behind it. Jackson always manages to easily portray bottled intensity that's ready to pop -- that look he can get in his eyes is a killer -- and such a characteristic perfectly fits this character.
After a nicely executed family scene where Sabian has problems negotiating with his own wife and daughter, Kevin Spacey ("The Usual Suspects," "L.A. Confidential") easily slips into his character and -- until the suspension of disbelief is stretched toward the end -- is completely believable in his role. Audiences always love characters who are completely in control, and Spacey makes the audience believe he's the only man for the job.
Supporting performances are good across the board. David Morse ("The Rock") is good as Danny's constant thorn in the side, while the late J.T. Walsh ("Breakdown") is very good as the possibly corrupt investigator that you can't help but detest.
The scene stealer award, however, goes to Paul Giamatti ("The Truman Show") as one of the hostages. Present mainly for comic relief, he's been given some of the best (and certainly the funniest) lines in the film and reminds one of Joe Pesci's "Lethal Weapon" Leo Getz character without being as irritating or quite as hyper.
My only other complaint with the movie is that it would have been nice had the filmmakers allowed Jackson and Spacey's characters more time and space to spar within their intellectual and psychological battlefield. They get some early moments to do so, but the necessity to move the plot along and inject some audience pleasing action into the mix pretty much wipes out the possibilities for more cerebral trickery and maneuvering. It's not a horrible loss, but it -- like the other previously mentioned omissions -- would have made this a classic suspense thriller.
As it stands, it's still quite good and anything but boring, and any film featuring the likes of Jackson and Spacey already gets a nod of appreciative approval from this critic. With compelling performances, a mostly decent script and superb suspense inducing direction by Gray, this film should be a big, late summer audience pleaser. We give "The Negotiator" a 7.5 out of 10.
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