 "Classic" | 2009-08-27 |
| - Reviewed By wrn |
Great action films are like great actors, just as bad ones are like bad actors. Great action films are not about good and bad guys, but complex charactors who both want something.
The Negotiator is perfect for both Kevin Spacey and Samual L Jackson, two of our best actors. Every great actor has to answer one question about his charactor: what do I want? Here, Jackson wants to clear his name, and Spacey wants to retrieve hostages Jackson holds. This sets the conflict in bare bones terms as only the action genre can. The actors have room to develop their charactors.
Both charactors are decent, smart men, put in unthinkable circumstances, two hostage experts matching the sharpest of minds. There is plenty of action, but most of the tension comes from the mental game Spacey and Jackson are playing. The mental game played with A LOT of guns around. It is what MIGHT go wrong that makes the film so frightening. How far will these guys go? Are they going to outsmart the other into a bloodbath?
Jackson's motives are obvious, but the movie does not explain why Spacey allies with him by films end and goes to the lengths he does.
Still, this is a great film from a genre bad actors exploit too much and great actors don't exploit enough. |
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 "A well done product" | 2009-05-16 |
| - Reviewed By tftn@earthlink.net |
A Hostage negotiator is set up by other cops.
He uses his skills and knowledge to bring out the crooks
by taking hostages and using the police system:
sort of Russian roulette with a swat team.
Not really believable in a practical sense, but
the plot makes for great drama, suspense and solves a mystery
at the same time. The acting is very good,
I liked the movie. |
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| "No let up in this action-thriller" | 2009-04-27 |
| - Reviewed By bekintex |
Ever start to watch a movie and don't get up until it's done? That's essentially what happens when you watch "The Negotiator."
You start with Lt. Danny Roman (Samuel L. Jackson) in a hostage situation. A convenience store robber's taken a young woman and he's face to face with the taker...
Next, Roman's partner tells him that he's onto a scam in the department. Some of their closest buddies are ripping off the Police Disability Fund. He'll tell him more later. When Roman meets his partner, he finds him dead.
And, of course, the police swoop in to arrest him for the murder. He escapes and takes hostages of his own because he knows he's not going to get a fair shake when his fellow cops set him up.
When it comes to negotiation, Roman insists on Lt. Chris Sabian (Kevin Spacey) from another precinct. Spacey arrives, having unsuccessfully negotiated a fight between his wife and daughter and his back is immediately against the wall. Roman's precinct commander wants to shoot and take statements later...Something's suspicious and the more he learns, the more he's siding with Roman, but can he help before the crooked cops get rid of all the evidence?
Literally had me glued to my seat throughout the whole film. Well done and one of Jackson and Spacey's best. I also enjoyed Siobhan Fallon as Maggie, one of the hostages Roman took.
Rebecca Kyle, April 2009 |
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 "Good Cast; Intense Story" | 2009-03-26 |
| - Reviewed By ccthemovieman |
The movie sports an interesting cast, actors who usually entertain, such as Kevin Spacey, Samuel L. Jackson, J.T. Walsh, David Morse and Paul Giamatti. Spacey, as "The Negotiator," has the best role.
The story is interesting and very intense in spots and keeps you involved without the need for a lot of violence. There is just the right amount in here and the film looks very good on DVD.
At 138 minutes, the film would have been better being trimmed 10-15 minutes. It could also been less profane. Over 70 f-words is too many. I get tired of seeing cops portrayed as dirty most of the time or just trigger-happy. It ain't so, at least as often as Hollywood likes to show you. Finally, the end stretches credibility just a little too much.
Overall, however, this is definitely worth seeing but with a big caution light with the language. for those wondering about family viewing. |
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| "Loved it" | 2008-12-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: A28RTTCE66EQNU |
I love the movie. The dvd was in great condition.
My favorite line... Crazy is on the bus |
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| "An Intelligent, Taut Thriller" | 2008-10-11 |
| - Reviewed By User: A26X2TG93OTXVU |
| Just when you think he's cornered, he thinks of a new strategy. Samuel L. Jackson portrays Lieutenant Danny Roman, police hostage negotiator. When he's framed for a crime he didn't commit, against his fellow police officers no less, he knows that the only way out is to bring in an equally tough negotiator, Lieutenant Chris Sabian played by Kevin Spacey, who's from another precinct and who therefore could not have been contaminated by the bad elements within his own force, which buys him the necessary time to bluff and blindside while he finds the clues he needs to prove he's innocent. Chicago is taken hostage along with the few people he retains as bargaining chips, and we are taken along for the ride. This was a masterful job of film-making from beginning to end. The characters and story were flawlessly developed. We don't precisely know who's guilty or who's innocent. Roman conducts his interrogation and trial while he negotiates with the police outside, some of whom are working overtime to eliminate Roman before he figures it all out. This all occurs right under the noses of the FBI who are in way over their heads and don't have a clue who's guilty or innocent, just like the rest of us watching. Along the way, we get to witness Roman lecture his underlings about the finer points of negotiations while he himself has just become a hostage taker. "Never say no!" he barks with effective zeal. And he tests his bewildered pupils continuously, who fail continuously. Only Sabian is smart enough to understand what's going on in Roman's mind. The strategy is shared by two men who think alike, who are under stress, and have an innate instinct for lie detection. The screenplay was terrific. The cinematography was effective. The acting of Jackson and Spacey exceptional. And the supporting cast, particularly bad-guy-turned-good-guy Paul Giamatti who provides great comic relief, was outstanding. If you're in the mood for an intelligent, taut thriller, The Negotiator delivers... 9/10. |
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