Swordfish (2001)

Swordfish is an action crime thriller that sees Stanley Jobson (Hugh Jackman), a computer hacker, visited by a mysterious woman called Ginger (Halle Berry), who asks him to participate in the electronic theft of a Government slush fund codenamed ‘swordfish’ in return for $10 million. However, when Ginger reveals she is an undercover DEA Agent and Gabriel (John Travolta), the mastermind behind the theft, kidnaps Stanley’s daughter, he does not know what to do or who to trust.

Overall Review Score

8.5 out of 10

Review

Swordfish is a 2001 action crime thriller that modifies the classic good guy / bad guy crime story by including a cyber twist to the plot. The film relies heavily on the audience hearing and seeing one thing while the characters clandestinely do another, although it is not just on screen where this script plays this mind game. For example, two of the films characters, Hacker Axl Torvalds and FBI Assistant FBI Director Bill Joy, are not as they first appear, as Axl Torvalds is a reference to Linus Torvalds, the author of Linux, while the Assistant FBI Director Bill Joy is a reference to Bill Joy, the co-founder of Sun Microsystems. Away from these rather amusing and rather whimsical anecdotes, Swordfish is a fast paced, explosive action film that starts with a big action set piece and finishes with equal gusto. Throughout the 96-minute script the audience are treated to great acting courteously of John Travolta, Hugh Jackman and Halle Berry, while Christopher Young and Paul Oakenfold’s musical score supports the on-screen action perfectly by building momentum and tension at the right moments. However, Swordfish does suffer from a few issues that let the film down, namely the computer coding scenes seem rather clumsily filmed and overtly distract from the story. Additionally, it suffers from some easily avoidable goofs, such as, its claim that the DEA’s $400 million is now worth $9.5 billion, as this would mean for the entire 15-year period the money accrued 21% interest each year – which is highly dubious. Although, most audiences will not notice these as their eyes will be transfixed on the action, as they try to guess who is telling the truth and what is going to happen next. Overall Swordfish is a thrilling piece of cinematography, its 96-minute run time will pass by in a flash and leave audiences walking away feeling elated by the films ability to combine big action set pieces with a clever thriller sub-plot.

Reviewer 1's score & comments:

Score: 9 out of 10

Comments:

Swordfish is the type of action, crime thriller for which to terms ‘high octane’, 'immensely gripping’ and ‘thoroughly enjoyable’ are used but do not fully encompass the film's brilliance. Especially poignant is Swordfish’s use of the slow motion effect after an explosion, during the first ten minutes of the film that complete capture the high level of cinematography prowess that will be displayed time and time again throughout the 96 minute run time. Swordfish is a blockbuster that utilises more misdirection than Harry Houdini, which in turn places the audience at the heart of a pulse-pounding thriller in where nothing is as it first seems.

Reviewer 2's score & comments:

Score: 8 out of 10

Comments:

Swordfish contains everything you expect from an action movie directed by Dominic Sena and starring John Travolta and Hugh Jackman. The characters feel fresh and have real depth. For example, John Travlota’s character looks and sounds like a megalomaniac whereas Hugh Jackman’s character comes across as a down and out, emotional father who has been slighted by his ex-wife one too many times. While the script contains a plethora of high-octane firefights, fast paced car chases, foot pursuits and pent up sexual tension. Overall, Swordfish, despite some far-fetched computer hacking scenes and questionable plot twists, is a clever action thriller that contains enough twists and turns to keep the audience thoroughly entertained for 96-minutes.

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