Mr. & Mrs. Smith

Last night, as most married couples do, the wife and I decided to hit up the movie theater for two hours worth of filmed escapism. What we decided to watch . . . The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants of course. Wait, no, my bad, that's the movie I currently would rather lose my penis to in a wild baboon attack rather than watch. What we plunked down our 20 bucks to watch was the new Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie flick, and if you're scratching your head trying to figure out just which one that is . . . then you need to pay a little more attention.

Ok, moving along. Don't worry, that one guy will figure it out and join us at the end of the post eventually. So, what is this movie about you say? Is it about a team of highly experienced motel guests and their adventures on the road forging names in motel ledgers? Not quite. What the titular characters deal with is each other's secret life, the eventual revelation and how it leads to a stronger relationship and overall marital happiness. It just so happens, that their secret lives involve killing people for vast sums of money. They are undercover assasins that have no idea that they married one of their own.

The film opens during a therapy session. It's been five or six years since John and Jane met each other and tied the knot. Their marriage has hitten a rather rough patch. The honeymoon is clearly over, as the highpoint of their current relationship is Jane adding peas to their nightly dinner recipe. We slowly start to learn about their chosen professions shortly thereafter, as Jane takes a job that requires her to slip into some dominatrix gear (thank you wardrobe guy/gal) and John going out to take out some Irish ruffians. They do this at the same time, and it is clearly apparent that these killers know how to get things done.

It is during a job that the pair of killers run into each other, while trying to take down the same mark (the geek from the OC). They spot each other, and then proceed to slowly realize what has been living right under their noses. This leads to one of the most inventive forms of marriage counseling, as they both proceed to shoot at and kick the living crap out of each other. But, when it comes down to finishing the job . . . they both can't finish the other off. You see, somewhere down the line, they fell in love with each other but were trying to play it off as the marriage being a cover of sorts. So, they decide to do what every other assassin couple does. They stand up to their own agencies (unclear as to who is paying them . . but Jane's oufit is staffed by all female hotties, nice touch), and end up kicking extreme amounts of ass.

Their marriags is thusly saved, and everyone (except the people they killed) is happy at the end. Brad and Angelina are really good in this. They exhibit a general sense of chemistry that some would kill to have in their own relationship. No wonder these two decided to become a couple (need a tissue Aniston?) during the shooting of this movie. Also great is Vince Vaughn, playing the best friend to John role. He gets a ton of funny one-liners as an assassin that still lives with this mother because she is the "only woman [he's] ever trusted". Remarkable directing by Doug Lyman. This guy has come a long way since Swingers. The Bourne Identity may have had some issues with following the action (still a great movie, despite the Damon Factor), but this effort of his shows that he is progressing as a director, and this is good news. I look forward to catching more Lyman movies down the line.

My suggestion. Don't wait for the DVD. Go watch this now. At the very least you can drool over Brad/Angelina (whatever floats your theoretical boat). You will be entertained.

*Music I listened to while coming up with this entry:
Satan Gave Me a Taco - Beck
These Days - Nico
Sister Surround - Soundtrack of Our Lives
New Slang - The Shins
The Dumbing Down of Love - Frou Frou
A Wolf At The Door - Radiohead