Salt (2010)

During the cold war (but also after it ended) Russians were usually the bad guys in movies.
When the threat of Russia had disappeared Hollywood started looking for a new enemy and ended up with terrorist, who usually came out of the middle east.
Salt succeeds to bring the Russian threat back in its setup. The timing of the movie in July seemed perfect with the news of the discovery and capture of a couple of russian spies who already lived in America for several years. This is also the idea behind Salt. The execution of the idea really manages to bring back the cold war feeling that existed in the eighties.

The original name of the movie was Edwin E. Salt. It was not Angelina Jolie who would star in it as the role was meant for Tom Cruise. When he no longer was available for the part he was replaced by Jolie. This has turned out to be an excellent choice.
I must admit that I’m not a big Jolie fan (don’t think she’s that good looking and has enough screen presence), I was surprised by her performance. She supposedly did most of her own stunts and she manages to portray a very strong woman. Occasionally showing her emotion with very subtle movements, she show that things are affecting her. It impressed me.
Salt’s probably such a strong woman because the role was originally writing for a man. She’s tough, knows how to handle weapons and really can fight.

The result is an excellent action movie that despite its length of 100 minutes feels much shorter. Highly recommended if you like action movies!

Score: 8