Collateral

I think I wrote off this movie the way I tend to write off every Michael Mann film, which is totally unfair considering how much I like Heat and how much I usually respect Michael Mann. So when I finally sat down and watched it, lo and behold: it's a pretty great crime film. It's mostly just two characters with two philosophies clashing -- and take it as you will, but Tom Cruise is pitch-perfect casting as a sociopath, even if he has fascinatingly but distractingly stolen Richard Gere's scalp and put it on as a hat.

I will say the third act isn't quite as stellar as the end of Heat. In fact it's a pretty generic final confrontation/climax for such an otherwise clever film. But getting there was gripping fun.