I guess this is what people mean when they say "so bad, it's good". In reality, the phrase simply means "dumb but fun" because if the film is good, then it, inherently, can't be bad. I suppose the phrase could also refer to a bad film that one enjoys regardless of its sub-par nature, but even this is slightly flawed logic: art is subjective and if you think a film is good, then it is good (there are no 'guilty pleasures'). In any case, John Woo's 'Face/Off (1997)' is an expertly-made piece of 'B-movie' entertainment, one with a well-written script that may be silly but is only smartly so. It's as 'schlocky' as it is precise. That is to say that it's as dumb as they come but it's twice as fun. Every moment feels hand-crafted to be just as over-the-top as it needs to, sublimely toeing the line between self-serious and almost satirical, and the overall result is undeniably a blast. From the extended, smoky set-pieces to the balls-to-the-wall but emotive performances to Woo's ostentatious auteur signatures, the picture just flies by and keeps you smiling, essentially, every step of the way. Travolta as Cage and Cage as Travolta is as iconic and complex a cinematic pairing as there has ever been and it is pulled off impeccably. I'd even go so far as to say this is Cage's best performance, as he excels in both of his roles. Travolta is fine, but he stands out far more when he's in his villainous position. Still, the characters, quite remarkably, always come before the actors (the protagonist always seems like the protagonist, no matter who is playing him and vice versa). Indeed, there are actually some pretty intelligent ideas at play here and the way in which the narrative undercuts itself at certain points really is inspired. At the same time, though, the plot itself doesn't necessarily hold up to all that much scrutiny outside of its basic beats and requires a considerable amount of suspension of disbelief even within its own world. At the end of the day, I wouldn't have it any other way. This is a surprisingly good feature that takes the best elements of its disparate aspects and mashes them together rather successfully. It's entertaining. 7/10
Review of Face/Off
