Deja Vu

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by Willie Waffle

Déjà Vu

We have at least one movie worth going to see this Thanksgiving holiday, and you just knew it would be the one with Denzel Washington. Why? Because he’s the man.

Washington stars as New Orleans ATF agent Doug Carlin, who has been called in to investigate a horrible terrorist attack carried out against U.S. sailors and their families during Mardi Gras. As he follows some leads, Doug is alerted to a suspicious dead body that appears to have been related to the attack. Soon, he is finding all sorts of cryptic messages, and learns the FBI has a way to investigate the past.

Can Doug use this technology to solve the crime? Can he stop it?

Déjà Vu has a sci fi element to it that people should be prepared for before they see the film, so you don’t get all upset and feel some bait and switch has been pulled on you. However, if you stick with the movie and go along with the plot twists, you’ll find Déjà Vu to be a very good action film with one of your favorite stars leading the way.

Director Tony Scott and writers Bill Marsilii and Terry Rossio make Déjà Vu into a thrilling, mind bending mystery with action that keeps your heart pumping. Best of all, they drop all sorts of little clues into the movie, and those who pay attention get a thrill as they all become apparent and come together towards the end of the film. Furthermore, Scott has come up with some very novel chase scenes that go beyond the usual and the predictable and keep the audience involved in the movie emotionally as well as intellectually.

While there might be some technological mumbo jumbo driving the movie’s plot, Washington brings some heart, soul and intensity to Déjà Vu. He’s the most human of anyone on the screen, and gives the audience what we want. Even Marsilii and Rossio understand people’s eyes will glaze over in a haze from the combination of turkey you ate that day and science talk you have to hear in the theater that night, so they let Washington speak for us to simplify the jargon and cut through it, so we can get back to the action. Of course, he does it with a million dollar smile, some well timed funny remarks and some well placed outrage, so we in the audience cheer. Plus, he provides a little Denzel beefcake for the ladies.

While it is difficult to understand the villain’s motive, and you have to suspend disbelief a little bit to fully embrace the movie, Déjà Vu is full of tension, action, and plenty of Denzel, so how can you go wrong? And, as my pal Nell “The Movie Mom” Minow says, “don’t you have to suspend disbelief with EVERY movie in some way?" She’s right, so enjoy Déjà Vu!

3 ½ Waffles (Out Of 4)

Copyright 2006 - WaffleMovies.com

Déjà Vu is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and terror, and disturbing images.

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