Highly Overrated But Still Good

It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

a film so unique, intoxicating and bizarre that it not only demands another viewing, but is also forgivable as a satirical comedy where the jokes eventually take the back seat.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

"Thomas Barnes" (Dennis Quaid) is a member of the Secret Service who has recently recovered from taking a bullet that was intended for the President of the United States. Although he has been ruled as physically fit for duty several fellow Secret Service agents question whether he is mentally up to the task. In any case, when a high-level conference in Spain requires "President Ashton" (William Hurt) to attend Thomas is sent as one of his bodyguards. What Thomas doesn't realize, however, is that the President's security has been compromised and several Islamic terrorists are waiting for him. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this was a somewhat entertaining film due in large part to the action scenes and the twists in the plot. One thing I didn't like, however, were the numerous flashbacks which I thought detracted from the film rather than adding anything to it. In any case, those who enjoy action movies might like this particular film and I have rated it accordingly. Slightly above average.

Vantage Point is not something you watch everyday, the plot is unusual and unoriginal, the only movie with a similar story line is "Snake Eyes" (also another great film).Vantage Point is easy to understand, it shows the views of the main characters and their perspectives of the situation, it also has a twist that you don't see coming.Vantage Point is an action thriller that delivers on both genres, the thriller aspect is trying to find out what happened and the action aspect are the high speed car chases.Great performances from Sigourney Weaver, Dennis Quaid, Forest Whitaker, Matthew Fox and the supporting cast, great directing from Pete Travis, and perfect editing from Stuart Baird, the movie is paced perfectly, there's no scenes that are unnecessary.

Great cast and an interesting premise make this worth a watch following an assassination attempt on the US president and subsequent bombing in Spain which is then backtracked and shown from 8 different points of view as we try to unlock the truth. I really liked the idea of this movie unfortunately as clever and unique as it was it suffered from undeveloped characters and the viewpoints began to feel repetitive, (which yes I know tell-the-same-story-from-multiple-views is the hook of this movie but they were often identical.) There were a couple of surprising twists along the way as each perspective is fully revealed and I enjoyed Dennis Quaid and Forest Whitaker who for the most part carry the movie. There are some good action scenes, Quaid drives the hell out of a little car in an endless chase through the streets of Spain and Whitaker does a great job despite the fact that I never fully understood the motivation for anything his character is doing or why it was so important for him to film everything going on around him.Lots of cameos from well known actors along the way with all their multiple stories converging by the end and no one finishing up as who they initially appeared to be. Things also began to feel a bit convoluted at this point and the actual ending was sudden and a bit too tidy. 5/29/16

US President Henry Ashton (William Hurt) is in Salamanca, Spain , accompanied by his security agents (Matthew Fox and Dennis Quaid as agent newly returned from previous wounds) , for a world summit where an international treaty dealing with the fight against global terrorism will be signed and which was highly promoted by the USA . Then an unknown sniper is able to shoot him and a bomb goes off in the square and it causes panic , destruction , mass confusion and hysteria . Meanwhile , TV Executive Rex Brooks (Sigourney Weaver whose role was originally written as a male but filmmaker changed it to a woman because he felt the movie lacked a strong female character) is shooting the surprising deeds . The attempted assassination of the American President is told and re-told from several different perspectives , as from a tourist (in the original screenplay, the tourist was a Russian , as when Forest Whitaker auditioned for a different role, filmmaker was so impressed that he rewrote as an American tourist) or a Spanish police (Eduardo Noriega) o terrorists (Edgar Ramirez ,Saïd Taghmaoui , Ayelet Zurer) and fourth is the president himself . At the end new vantage point is shown revealing additional details, which definitively completes the flick of what really took place during the incident and who was involved in the conspiracy.Stirring as well as exciting film packs noisy action , thrills , suspense , explosions , violence , twits and turns . Thrilling film with a peculiar edition narrated under several sight points , as various minutes are retold, emphasizing different characters' actions and gradually, we discover who's behind the script . The studio originally wanted to shoot the entire film in Salamanca, Spain, but the local government refused to close the Plaza Mayor for nearly 3 months and only the scenes filmed from the air were shot in Spain , as production was moved to Cuernavaca and Puebla, Mexico . Nevertheless , Matthew Fox, Eduardo Noriega, Forest Whitaker and director Pete Travis attended the premiere, held in Salamanca, Spain, on February 12, 2008 and City Hall declared them "Distinguished Guests". The original script set the story in Madrid, but the producers wanted a more "exotic" location. The fact is revealed in some scenes, like the secret service guy who says they can't locate a single person among "5 or 6 million" (Madrid's population; Salamanca's is much smaller), or when the cop enters a Muslim neighborhood during the foot chase , as Madrid has one, but Salamanca doesn't . Very good production design by Brigitte Boch , when shooting was moved to Mexico, the production design team built a replica of Salamanca's Plaza Mayor, which is slightly smaller than the original . There happens an impressive explosion on the Plaza , it was filmed by fifteen different cameras under direction of excellent photographer Amir Mokri who makes a colorful and evocative cinematography . Moving and adequate Original Music by Atli Örvarsson . The motion picture was compellingly directed by Pete Travis . He is a director and writer, known for Dredd (2012) , Omagh (2004) , End game (2008) , TV Henry VIII (2003) and Falcón (TV Series) 2012 , set in Sevilla , Spain . The precocious technical mastery displayed by Peter Travis in ¨Vantage Point¨ is magnificent and he delivers narrative fluidity , being helped by a splendid editor , Stuart Baird , both of whom carry out a complex story paced from multiple viewpoints . Rating : 7 . Interesting action film and it will appeal to thriller fans .