We've always known that no two people see the same event in the exact same light. Now Hollywood has caught on. "Vantage Point" explores the same action-packed sequence from the perspective of eight different people. The result is an exciting and innovative approach to looking at how events can unfold.
Directed by Pete Travis, "Vantage Point" chronicles an assassination attempt on the president of the United States, played by William Hurt, at an anti-terrorism summit in Spain. The approximately 30-minute period unfolds before the audience with exciting action and captivating intrigue as each angle takes us back to the same event but with wholly different meaning. The steady progression of revelations that starts with baffling mystery keeps the audience guessing as the movie unfolds.
The story is told from every conceivable angle. Leading the impressive cast are Dennis Quaid as Secret Service agent Thomas Barnes, Forest Whitaker as homesick tourist Howard Lewis and Sigourney Weaver as journalist Rex Brooks. Of course, the film is not driven so much by the people in it as the perspectives they represent. Each perspective adds a new and meaningful piece to the puzzle. The civilians, the Secret Service, the partially innocent who are dragged into the mix, the press trying to tell the world what is going on and even the assassins themselves are explored. "Vantage Point" serves as a reminder that everyone is affected in fundamental, yet different ways, by events that remind us there is a world outside of our individual safety bubbles.
What's really impressive about the perspectives explored in the film is that, despite the extremely brief period of time involved and the broad variety of actors, all of them are relevant, exciting and easy to relate to. The audience genuinely feels for the characters as they are shot at, blown up and otherwise thrust without warning into a terrifying and inescapable series of events beyond their control or understanding.
Despite its impressive action sequences and fundamental drama, "Vantage Point" is far more a thriller than it is an action movie or political intrigue. The chases and shoot-outs are exciting, but they are merely products of the larger plot. The real focus of the film is the progression of realization as unveiled through an ever-widening understanding that is exceptionally well-timed.
The film can get a little repetitive for the less patient, however. While something new is revealed with each perspective, it is nevertheless the same basic repetition of events over and over. Of course, that repetition is what allows the film to build intrigue and to excite the audience, as well as to fully humanize and develop the characters despite its incredibly short time frame.
Ultimately, "Vantage Point" is an entertaining tale of the full spectrum of the human drama. The story is spun with action and intrigue that flawlessly directs the audience's learning curve. Beyond the whole exploration of perspective, however, the film has little real depth and can get incredibly repetitive. For a thrilling and wholly new way to look at the spectacular events of our time, "Vantage Point" arrives in theaters Friday, Feb. 22.
