Running time: 118 minutes
Starring: George Clooney, Jennifer Lopez, Ving Rhames, Don Cheadle
Rating 9 out of 10
Having stumbled on a jailbreak at Florida's Glades Correctional Institute, Federal Marshal Karen Sisco (Jennifer Lopez) finds herself bundled into the boot of her car with bank robber Jack Foley (George Clooney) by Foley's friend and accomplice Buddy Bragg (Ving Rhames). She subsequently escapes, but can't get her mind off this roguish but charming criminal, while his concentration on "a retirement job" - swiping a 5 million dollar stash in uncut diamonds from former fellow felon Richard Ripley (Albert Brooks) - wavers at the thought of the feisty, sexy and undaunted Marshal. Sharing Get Shorty traits of sharp dialogue, comic undertone and off-beat characters, this Elmore Leonard adaptation is by far the best yet, and director Steven Soderbergh's primary success is in managing a slickness to the laid-back development, where Tarantino's Jackie Brown appeared to drag its heels.
And then there's George and Jennifer. Packing the sort of on-screen chemistry long missed in Hollywood thrillers (or anywhere, for that matter), this pair thrust themselves into A-list contention and leave the screen fair smouldering with barely restrained desire. A consistent, simmering treat - don't miss one of the top ten movies of last year.
