A Perfect Getaway

A Perfect Getaway is the sort of movie you have to be in the perfect mood for to appreciate. That mood is “silly,” but for what it is, it’s quite satisfying.

I hadn’t seen any trailers or publicity for the film at all – I found it because I’m going through a big Timothy Olyphant phase right at present, and started investigating some of his filmography. Also, I’ve loved Steve Zahn ever since That Thing You Do!, so it had a bonus casting lure.

After watching the film, out of curiosity, I looked up the trailer.

And it does give you a good sense of the movie – lovely scenery, characters hiking along, and then sudden INTENSE things happen.

The script is fairly uncomplex and moves along nicely without getting to stretched out. One particular sequence toward the end felt a bit ham-handedly expository, and one particular monologue from Milla Jovovich felt a bit off, but on the whole, the screenplay was sturdy. Serviceable.

The four lead actors all do a nice job of not over-acting; a movie like this would not benefit from an Oscar-worthy performance, because it couldn’t bear the weight of it. Instead, the four of them match each other well. (Hey, congrats Kiele Sanchez, I no longer hate you for being Nikki from Lost.) Both couples have interesting chemistry, and are developed enough that you at least care on the surface what happens to them.

It is also just pretty. The cinematography is nothing special, but the locations are lush and gorgeous, and all the people are fairly easy on the eyes as well.

I suppose the bottom line is that it’s an easy movie to sit back and enjoy. It doesn’t make a ton of sense, but it makes enough that it doesn’t throw me out of itself to question things, and I care enough about the characters for the plot to create some sort of stakes.

Sometimes, you don’t need Hitchcock. (Well, I suppose you could argue that you always need Hitchcock, but that’s another discussion entirely.) Some nights, you are just in the movie to order some Chinese food, kick back on your bed, and watch a mindless summer movie. If you aren’t in the mood to be hypercritical, and you just want to turn your brain off and coast, A Perfect Getaway is a good choice. Not life-changing, but I didn’t feel cheated either.

I leave you with this short interview clip. How silly are they?

Grade: C+ Enjoyable, but in no way remarkable.