Derailed

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Derailed
More proof that life is easier when you're faithful
2005-11-16
Article Written by: Sami Jo

In his first English film, Swedish director Mikael Hafstrom along with Australian screenwriter Stuart Beattie ( Collateral ) effectively turned James Siegel's novel of the same title into a dramatic thriller. Set in Chicago , Derailed tells the story of a chance meeting between darkly handsome man (Clive Owen) and an extremely attractive woman (Jennifer Aniston) on their morning commute. As one thing turns into another, the couple ends up in a hotel room about to commit adultery when a gun-toting bad boy (Vincent Cassel) busts into the room. Laroche ( Cassel ) beats Charles (Owen) to the point that he can't move, and then he brutally rapes Lucinda (Aniston). Just when the couple thinks their horrific day is over, Laroche begins to blackmail and torture them both. Charles ends up on a mission to end the blackmailing without his family ever finding out about his dirty deeds. The combination of the visionary director, the enthralling story and the impeccable cast make this film work.

Hafstrom keeps his audience attentive as the plot twists and turns throughout the movie. Despite the fact that this film takes place in Shy Town , the location didn't deter the story. In fact, because very few locations were used, the fast-paced story was actually easier to follow. While the previews did give away some of the story, there were plenty of other, less-expected twists that combined to provide an entertaining final product.

Despite what other critics have said, I found the storyline in Derailed to be somewhat believable. The average man would probably do anything to protect his marriage and family, so I don't find it surprising at all that Charles turns to Winston (rapper RZA) for help after his trusted lawyer friends tells him he's SOL. Why wouldn't a guy turn to a coworker who just so happened to have once been in a similar situation in which he had to kill another to stay alive? We spend so much time each week with our coworkers that it doesn't seem questionable at all that we would turn to them in times of crisis. The part of the storyline I did find questionable is Charles' character. I'm not sure how many men would actually risk their daughter's life to keep their wife from finding out he was almost unfaithful, but once you accept that part of the story, the film becomes much easier to enjoy. I just felt there were many places throughout the film where he needed (either in the story or by Owen) more emotion

Casting Director Avy Kaufman ( Save the Last Dance, The Sixth Sense, Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events ) once again does an amazing job of putting together an ensemble cast. The actors' ability to work off each other added to the film's overall believability. While Owen's character wasn't as enjoyable as the one he played in Closer , he still has an immense on-screen presence that drowns out any background images that might be there. Possibly the best performance in the film was given by Vincent Cassel ( Ocean's Twelve ). He played both sides of his character, the blackmailing killer and the congenial business partner with evident ease and poise. The only flaw in his performance was his accent, which kept changing throughout the film. His character has a French name, and while the script may have called for him to turn his French accent on and off, he didn't do it as his character changed. It was more sporadic and just didn't work. However, for a born Frenchman, Cassel does an American accent quite well. As for Jennifer Aniston's performance, I am going to once again disagree with other critics. If you want to see Rachel Green, stay home and watch “Friends” in syndication. Aniston proved her ability to play a dramatic actress in The Good Girl . Though her role in Derailed is significantly different that what we have become accustomed to seeing her in, she does a good job and it would be nice to see her in similar, meatier roles in the future.

Final Thought: Ladies, the affair started as the result of a wife taking all of the money out of her husband's wallet. Let this be a lesson to you.

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Derailed