filmland / By Charlie Myers

Très Jolie

SALT. Scarlett Johansson had her shot in Iron Man 2, and now Angelina Jolie gets her turn in Salt. As it turns out, it’s no contest. I am ready not only to nominate Jolie for Best Action Kick-Ass performance in 2010, but also to declare her the instant winner.

This much-hyped film actually lives up to its press, if what you are looking for is non-stop action entertainment. As in the most successful action films, director Phillip Noyce (The Quiet American) doesn’t let the viewer have time to think about the improbabilities of the narrative. Perhaps when you’re reflecting on the film later you might start realizing you’ve been duped into accepting any number of gross improbabilities, but none of those matter while experiencing it.

Besides the well-paced sequences, there are enough plot twists to distract the viewer from reality. Then, too, there is Jolie, who is backed by a fine cast that includes Liev Schreiber and Chiwetel Ejiofor. The film also benefits by a timely release, harkening back as it does to the Cold War days, which gives it a nice parallel to the recent arrest and deportation of Russian moles who had been living here for some 10 years.

The story clearly pays homage to The Manchurian Candidate, involving a group of moles trained when children in Russia and sent to the US to bring the country down on “Day X.” After a brief pre-credits back-story where we see CIA agent Evelyn Salt (Jolie) being tortured by North Koreans, the main narrative begins two years later. Salt is now married to German arachnologist Mike Krause (August Diehl) and working a desk job at CIA headquarters with colleague Ted Winter (Schreiber).

A “walk-in” claiming to be a Russian defector (Daniel Olbrychski) says he knows about a mole in the CIA who will initiate the Day X operation. Salt is asked to interrogate him. Orlov then reveals the mole’s name as Evelyn Salt, the lie detector says he is being truthful and the troubles begin.

Agent Peabody (Ejiofor) tries to arrest Salt, but she turns out to be more resourceful than James Bond at his best. There follows a series of chase scenes involving Salt leaping onto moving trucks, rappelling down elevator shafts and performing other feats of derring-do, all the while claiming she’s being framed.

Sure, this is all standard spy thriller stuff, but Jolie, who did her own stunts — take that, Scarlett — totally commits herself to the action. I may not remember the film much a few months from now, and I have no desire to see it again, but it sure was fun watching. If I have to have my butt kicked, I hope Jolie is available for the job. Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action. 100m. At the Broadway, Mill Creek, Minor and the Fortuna.

INCEPTION (REVISITED). In my review last week I mentioned that I might revisit Inception. So I dutifully went to see it again and, indeed, some elements became clearer. I’m not sure this is a good thing, since the film deliberately seeks to withhold information so that the viewer cannot easily connect the dots until the end, if then.

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