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Vantage Point (2008)

thereviewers
Nov 15, 2015
2 min read

Vantage Point takes place during an historic counter-terrorism summit in Spain, during which the President of the United States is struck down by an assassin’s bullet. Eight strangers have a perfect view of the killing but what did they actually see? As the minutes leading up to the fatal shot are replayed through the eyes of each witness, the reality of the assassination takes place with a startling revelation.

Overall Review Score

8.5 out of 10

Review

As the world gathers in Salamanca Spain for the signing of an international counter terrorism treaty, history changes forever in a blink of an eye as U.S. President Henry Ashton is shot. The audience is quickly engulfed into a story, where confusion reigns supreme and nothing is quite what it seems. As the action unfolds the main cast, including: Forest Whitaker, Sigourney Weaver and Dennis Quaid, take the audience on an 86-minute thrill ride through downtown Salamanca as they try to piece together what just happened and try to figure out what is going to happen next. Away from the action crime drama plot, Vantage Point is beautifully crafted film that keeps the audience guessing to the very end, it uses the notion of déjà vu perfectly to make every retelling feel different. Similarly, its use of multiple points of view helps give the film a natural momentum that keeps the audience engaged and thinking up until the credits. Overall, Vantage Point is an unusual film that could have gone terribly wrong but somehow it manages to pull it off and is a generally good film that can be enjoyed time and time again.

Reviewer 1's score & comments:

Score: 8 out of 10

Comments:

Vantage Point is an unconventional take on the action, crime drama. While I personally enjoyed the deja vu nature of the story, as certain events are retold time and time again in different perspectives, I can imagine that this may leave some viewers wanting more. Sure the film doesn’t have that much in the way of constant fast-paced action but what it does deliver very nicely is a slow build up to a rather startling and memorable ending.

Reviewer 2's score & comments:

Score: 9 out of 10

Comments:

Most crime, action films adopt the same premise i.e. bad guy either tries to or actually commits a crime and the good guys – with the help of car chases, explosions and gun fights – stop them. However, Vantage Point is different. Building upon the notion that we are never in command of all the facts and that what we see is only a frication of what is really happening , it takes audience through different perspectives to reveal more of the overall story and before concluding with a surprising twist. The cinematography coupled with the believable acting makes this film enjoyable to watch. Overall, Vantage Point offers something new to the crime, action genre and for that reason it is worth watching.