I have a good friend who's been raving about how good this film is, and it took me actually this long to watch it. At its time, I suppose the plot's intriguing, with betrayals being the only constant in a complex cat and mouse game in the streets of France.
Robert De Niro plays Sam, a mercenary who joins a band of merry men of various shady background in a mission to grab a metal briefcase from a group of heavily armed men. Amongst the team are various ex-secret agency folks, like Vincent (Jean Reno), Spence (Sean Bean), Deirdre (Natascha McElhone), Gregor (Stellan Skarsgard) and Larry (Skipp Sudduth). Will too many crooks spoil the broth?
It plays out like the first Mission Impossible movie in its level of sophistication and mission preparation, although this movie has loads of gunplay, and the best part, the car chases. It's BMWs, Peugeots, Mercedez, continental cars of various makes, making slick maneuvers through narrow streets and along busy highways. Definitely top notch work, without the use of digital technology, but relying on good old stunt driving.
The plot might be confusing for some, so my advice is keep your eyes and ears really peeled to what's going on screen. Before you can say "Betrayal", it's double and sometimes triple crossings between characters aligning themselves with their various factions, and of supporting characters from CIA, KGB, IRA all working towards obtaining that steel briefcase, whose contents are never revealed.
Robert De Niro and Jean Reno pair off really well as strangers forced to work together amidst a world of lies and deceit, and bring about certain flair to their roles and camaraderie. It's an interesting film, a little dated, but exciting enough nonetheless.
Code 1 DVD contains an alternate ending.
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