Collateral

For all the preaching I do about structure and establishment/payoff in my storytelling classes, and for all the writing I (try to) do, one would think I'd see the twist of Collateral coming a thousand miles away. Nope.

Not even an inkling when I saw Tom Cruise's character, Vincent, pass Jada Pinkett-Smith's on the escalator at the beginning? Nope.

I blame Jason Statham. What? Yes, Jason Statham is in this film for less than a minute, right at the beginning. He plays an unnamed bag handler who literally runs into Vincent at the airport and surreptitiously exchanges bags with him. Statham's character is never seen again.

If Michael Mann will use an action star like Statham for a blip of a part, never to return, who's to say he can't use Jada Pinkett-Smith for the same purpose? Who else makes weird cameos in this film or plays supporting roles? I was looking for other people. Mann must've been using a big name as some sort of red herring. Get people thinking that Statham might show up again, or give people the impression that there's an even bigger fish waiting to be revealed.

If that's what Mann was doing, then he got me.

Let's talk plot holes. When Max calls for help, four guys see him and approach. One of them sticks a gun in Max's face and robs him while one of the others stands and watches. Vincent returns and caps two of the robbers for trying to take his briefcase. Where'd the other two guys go?

After Max destroys Vincent's research, Vincent forces Max to pose as the hitman and go visit his client. What are the odds that Max can actually act like a hitman? Hard to buy this. I bought anyway.

This movie wrapped me up in the tension between Vincent and Max, and I stopped paying attention to much else. I turned off my inner critic. I'm such a sucker.

This film has lost something since my first viewing. I'm much more critical now. I'm still not ready to write this one off, because I'm trying to figure out how this film tricked me. This isn't a great film. This isn't even Michael Mann's best film (Heat, followed by The Insider). This is pure formula, but they got me. And worse, I can't figure out how.

What's he doing with the coyotes? I'm still trying to figure that one out.

Mann explores some great themes here. Max is stuck as a cab driver, paralyzed, unable to move forward with his dreams. Vincent is the kick in the ass he needs — someone to show him the fragility and impermanence of time so Max can move forward with his dream. Max starts adapting Vincent's lines and demeanor. Slowly, Max and Vincent become more like each other and less like they were before they met. The old two-sides-of-the-same-coin gambit. I know this one. You can get a lot of mileage out of a middling plot if you have great characters.

I don't pick up a lot of soundtracks anymore, but I got this one. Groove Armada & Richie Haven's "Hands of Time" ended up on the first mix I ever made for my wife, back when we started dating. So what if Max erroneously refers to Groove Armada as "classic"? For my wife and I, this song might as well be. There's that theme of time again.

The rest of the soundtrack is all over the place. Techno, hard rock, Latin music... and Tom Rothrock's instrumental work make for a great little collection, sort of like listening to the soundtrack of one night in Los Angeles. I wonder if Michael Mann intended as much.

I don't know what Michael Mann intended. But I'd love to know. Not knowing is what makes me want to re-watch this film. Even if I see the ending coming now.