Bait (2000) (R) No Rating
Jamie Foxx tests new territory in an urban comic cyber thriller that would have worked much better as a straight action flick.
Story
A cold-blooded computer hacker (Doug Hutchison) breaches the government's top security system and smuggles $40 million in gold bullion out of a federal depository. His accomplice stashes the gold in a secret location and then dies, courtesy of a brutally incompetent federal agent (David Morse), but not before passing a cryptic message to his cellmate, petty crook Alvin Sanders (Foxx). This makes the unsuspecting Sanders the perfect lure for a complex sting, designed to snare both the thief and the loot. But with his bumbling brother (Mike Epps) in the picture, can the feds keep him out of trouble long enough to get their man? And will his girlfriend (Kimberly Elise) and young son get caught in the crossfire?
Acting
TV and stand-up comedian Foxx ("Any Given Sunday," "The Truth About Cats & Dogs") shows his versatility with a credible action performance; as his rumored role in the upcoming "A Star is Born" remake shows, he's in little danger of being typecast. Surprisingly, Foxx fails as a funny man, though much of the blame should go to the stale, hackneyed material he had to work with.
Direction
Director Antoine Fuqua ("The Replacement Killers") knows how to stage motorized madness on a modest budget. The absence of gratuitous gunplay (and, would you believe, only two explosions?) is equally noteworthy. But the screenplay bounces between action, drama and half-hearted comedy all too often, never building enough momentum for a proper climax. We see far too little of Hutchison, a very effective bad guy, and too much of the not-very-funny car thieves in pursuit of Foxx and Epps. Not helping matters are the urban-cyberpunkish blue and gray tones that dominate the cinematography; the color scheme soon gets visually monotonous, dragging down a plot that needs to change gears smoothly in order to get up to speed.
Bottom Line
Like a California-style pizza, "Bait" combines appealing ingredients into a dish that doesn't quite taste right.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Starring Jamie Foxx, David Morse, Doug Hutchison, Mike Epps and Kimberly Elise.
Directed by Antoine Fuqua. Produced by Sean Ryerson. Screenplay by Andrew Scheinman, Adam Scheinman and Tony Gilroy. Released by Warner Bros.
To get the full Quicklook Films experience, uncheck "Enable on this Site" from Adblock Plus
box office top 10
Ghostbusters : Frozen Empire Released: March 22, 2024 Cast: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon 45.2M
Dune: Part Two Released: March 1, 2024 Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson 17.6M
Kung Fu Panda 4 Released: March 8, 2024 Cast: Jack Black, Viola Davis 16.8M
Immaculate Released: March 22, 2024 Cast: Sydney Sweeney, Álvaro Morte 5.4M
Arthur the King Released: March 15, 2024 Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Simu Liu 4.4M
Late Night with the Devil Released: March 22, 2024 Cast: David Dastmalchian, Laura Gordon 2.8M
Imaginary Released: March 8, 2024 Cast: DeWanda Wise, Tom Payne (II) 2.8M
Love Lies Bleeding Released: March 8, 2024 Cast: Kristen Stewart, Katy O'Brian 1.6M
Cabrini Released: March 8, 2024 Cast: Cristiana Dell'Anna, John Lithgow 1.4M
Bob Marley: One Love Released: February 14, 2024 Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Lashana Lynch 1.1M