Enemy of the State (1998)

RELEASED IN 1998 and directed by Tony Scott, "Enemy of the State" is an action/crime/thriller starring Will Smith as a DC lawyer who unknowingly apprehends evidence of a serious crime involving a formidable politician (Jon Voight) and is subsequently targeted by his NSA goons (Jack Black, Seth Green, etc.) and heavies (Scott Caan, Jake Busey, etc.). He ultimately partners with an ex-NSA surveillance curmudgeon (Gene Hackman).The quick-editing is akin to other popular action flicks of the era, like "Armageddon" (1998), but it's done expertly and there are enough lulls in the relentless action and character-developing moments to prevent it from being overkill. The surveillance element and Hackman bring to mind Coppola's "The Conversation" (1974), but the story moves way faster, has more thrills and the characters are more interesting.Lisa Bonet (Jason Momoa's babe) is stunning as the protagonist's secret connection and former woman-on-the-side while Regina King is capable as the wife. There are several teases of ravishing women on the periphery.This is a gripping, action-packed thriller that has quality characters and is entertaining throughout. The creators took the time & effort to throw in inspired little gems, like "Baby" the friendly orange & white cat (I have a cat just like him). Smith and Hackman have great conflict-habituated but respectful camaraderie. THE MOVIE RUNS 2 hours, 12 minutes and was shot in Baltimore & Phoenix, Maryland; Washington DC; and Southern Cal (L.A., West Hollywood and Pasadena). WRITER: David Marconi.GRADE: A-

A nightmare-vision of "the surveillance society" provides this political thriller with its sinister backdrop. Spy satellites, hidden cameras and all sorts of high-tech paraphernalia are seen being used by the National Security Agency to routinely monitor and even destroy the lives of the individuals they're watching. Their power and efficiency are awesome but when, as in this story, the staff involved are taking their orders from a top official who's gone rogue, things soon get very threatening.A U.S. Congressman, who's opposed to a new Bill that's designed to make government snooping more extensive, is met at a lakeside location by high-ranking NSA Officer Thomas Brian Reynolds (Jon Voight). When Reynolds fails to change the Congressman's voting intentions, one of his operatives kills the politician and makes his sudden death look like an accident. Shortly after, when the authorities arrive on the scene to investigate, a nature photographer is seen removing a videotape from a nearby hide and the NSA immediately swing into action to locate the recording in case it contains any incriminating evidence. Photographer Daniel Leon Zavitz (Jason Lee) soon discovers that his tape contains a full recording of the murder and quickly makes a computer disk copy before going on the run from the NSA agents who are already pursuing him.During the high-speed chase that follows, Zavitz bumps into an old college friend who's doing some Christmas shopping and drops the disk into one of his bags before running away. Successful Washington DC lawyer, Robert Clayton Dean (Will Smith) doesn't realise that he's now carrying the disk and watches in horror as his old friend's attempt to escape his pursuers ends in his death after he's knocked down by a fire truck. The NSA rapidly realise that Dean probably has the disk and take swift action to hunt him down. In order to discredit him as forcefully as possible, they spread false information that leads to him being fired from his job and his wife being given the impression that he's still in a relationship with one of his ex-girlfriends. Suddenly unemployed and thrown out of his home by his wife, he then discovers that his credit cards have been cancelled and his bank accounts have been frozen.Dean, who doesn't know who he's being chased by or why, remains bewildered until he meets up with a former NSA agent called Edward "Brill" Lyle (Gene Hackman) who'd spent time working for the Agency in Iran during the 1979 revolution. He's an irritable and belligerent man who, having been a recluse for many years, is reluctant to get involved in Dean's problems, but is in reality, the only hope that Dean has of getting himself out of the predicament he's in. After some uncomfortable initial exchanges, Brill explains to Dean exactly what's happening to him before they team up to carry out a series of actions to enable Dean to get his life back on track."Enemy Of The State" hits the ground running and never stops for breath until it reaches its exciting climax. Predictably, for this type of thriller, it's full of well-choreographed chases, well-executed stunts and numerous explosions but also has more substance than the average action movie because of its interesting story and the cautionary nature of what's depicted on-screen. Highly effective editing techniques complement the rapid pace of the action brilliantly and there's a consistent tension that makes it a real edge-of-the-seat movie.The quality of the acting is superb throughout with even the minor roles featuring top-class actors. Will Smith does a great job as an ordinary guy who suddenly finds himself caught up in something he doesn't understand and Gene Hackman and Jon Voight are both excellent in their roles.This movie, which was a great box office success, is exhilarating to watch, visually impressive and simply great entertainment.

Just again watched some of "Enemy of the State" for the first time in many many years and again I felt it was a hard film to follow with to many plot twist and to many characters who fade in and out of the story it's a little hard to understand! Yet it has star power with Will Smith and Gene Hackman, it can be called many genres from spy, thriller, action, and mystery drama, yet the plot centers around D.C. with a video tying top National security people to political murder, and then soon the NSA and other people get involved. As the action and fast pacing of this thriller blends action and technology to a new level. The real treat for me was the Regina King scenes she was great as Will's caring and sexy loving wife! And that scene in which Regina sports that silk dark sexy black colored bra I loved that was the best part of the film it made my day!

Crime-Drama-Thrillers has always been my favorite mix of genres and I was very excited to finally get to watch Enemy of the State. Not only because it was a different role for Will Smith but because of the great all around cast. And boy does it have a great cast. It turned out to be nothing too special. I think it's a decent drama for a Saturday or Sunday morning viewing on cable, but I cant say I'm going to willingly watch it again.The cast truly is terrific though. When you have Will Smith, Gene Hackman, Jon Voight, Barry Pepper, and even Jack Black all in a movie together you expect greatness. They all give note-worthy performances, but I think the film lacked some focus in this area. At times it tried to give back stories to every one of the characters, even the ones we weren't really suppose to care about. If it were to have focused on only a select few of them, the film would have been more effective. Because of the lack of focus, you end up not really caring for any of the characters.I did really like the premise of the film. It deals with privacy and the effects and impact it has on everyone when it's abused. You begin to question to yourself just how much of our lives are watched and monitored. But I do feel like they could have gone even further with it and made it more personal. The Lives of Others is a much better film based around a similar premise. The film does feel original though. I didn't feel like they were copying any other action film even nearly 20 years after its release. You also definitely feel the 135 minute length. It could have used about a 20 minute trimming job. So with the possible pacing and focus issues the film turns out to be a solid drama, but one that also feels a bit disappointing at the same time.+Original premise +Fascinating privacy concepts +Cast -Pacing and lack of focus issues -Weak supporting characters -Feel the length 6.5/10