Spartan Details

Writer/director David Mamet's sharp political thriller is a typically intelligent, yet often irritatingly self-conscious movie. The set-up is intriguingly simple: the daughter of a high-ranking US official (Kristen Bell) goes missing and the Secret Service puts relentless hard-man Val Kilmer on the case. Because this is a Mamet film, however, you know it won't be long before things get very complicated indeed, revealing a larger conspiracy. Though less stylised than usual, the rhythms and cadences in Mamet's dialogue always take some getting used to, along with the customary repetition of key phrases (“Where's the girl?”). Occasionally, these devices come across as po-faced, even silly, and consequently the film's hard-won tension can be deflated — but the verbal flourishes also give the story a pleasing hypnotic quality. Visually this is Mamet's best feature, with a clean, economical style that fits perfectly with Kilmer's man-on-a-mission intensity.

Compelling...superb dialogue and twists...his [Kilmer's] is a powerful performance