"SALT" Fast-Paced Popcorn Thriller

[Carl M. Zapffe]

"SALT" (2010) ... B+ ...  Angelina Jolie brings her special talents and star power to the intense and physically demanding role of Evelyn Salt, a CIA agent who may or may not be a Russian plant and who may or may not be out to assassinate both the Russian President and then the President of the United States. If this sounds like a lot of action for one movie, it almost is, but Jolie carries it off with panache and style in a story that flies by in a role which was originally intended for Tom Cruise. 

There's hardly time to catch your breath before the next action sequence begins in a film chock full of car chases, car crashes, and awe inspiring leaps from here to there. It is almost too much with its many plot twists and turns as we are constantly challenged to guess at Salt's conflicted loyalties. Practically all of the action shots showcase Jolie's unique physicality in many scenes which stretch credulity to the breaking point. The only bruises Salt evidences are after she leaves a North Korean concentration camp at the very beginning of the film even though it has been suggested that Jolie did most of her own stunts. 

That point being made, this is a perfect summer action movie if you want to sit back and watch a stylish thriller while you munch your popcorn. It is all a lot of fun and very entertaining with strong supporting roles including that by Liev Schreiber as Salt's CIA station boss and Chiwetel Ejiofor as a suspicious Secret Service agent guarding the President. 100 minutes and rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action.

Carl M. Zapffe,

The Cat's Meow Movie Critic

http://www.catsmeowmoviecritic.com