GENOA, Italy – Is there anything better than sitting in a comfortable cinema seat with popcorn in your hands while outside it is cold and stormy?
Something better is, or what should be better, is when the stars of the movie you are going to watch are Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie.
The Tourist is Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s latest movie, mainly shot in Venice, which is another reason I trusted the actors and went to watch it without even reading the plot.
It is the story of Frank (Johnny Depp), an American man who meets a beautiful, mysterious woman called Elise (Angelina Jolie) on a train to Venice.
Frank falls in love with Elise, but he soon gets trapped in a spiral of violence and intrigue which nearly kills him.
The ingredients are those typical of the thriller-spy movie: we have the police, the beautiful woman who hides her real identity and her connections with the police and the criminals, we of course have the criminal – and the bad, fat, scary gangster who tries to kill everybody and, in the end, never succeeds.
The Tourist has nothing new or remarkable.
The ending, which is thought to be surprising, is instead boring and unlikely. The plot itself is weak.
Depp and Jolie’s performances are the only things which prevent you from yawning, even if these can’t be considered their best.
If you were expecting more from the director of The Lives of Others, you will be disappointed, but if you are planning to visit Venice, at least The Tourist won’t make you change your mind.
Eugenia Durante is a Senior Reporter for Youth Journalism International.
The plot is unpredictable. My mom can predict it precisely, but I don't believe it. In the end, it's perfectly match with my mom's deduction.