Knight and Day – A 20th Century Fox Release
http://www.knightanddaymovie.com/
Release Date: June 23rd
Rated PG for violence
Running time: 108 minutes

James Mangold (director)

Patrick O’Neill (writer)

John Powell (music)

Tom Cruise as Roy Miller
Cameron Diaz as June Havens
Peter Sarsgaard as Fitzgerald
Jordi Mollà as Antonio
Viola Davis as Director George
Paul Dano as Simon Feck

Photo credit: Frank Masi

Roy (Tom Cruise) and June (Cameron Diaz) prepare for the ride of their lives, as they flee pursuing assassins – and bulls – through the streets of Seville, Spain, in Knight and Day.

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Knight and Day Review By John C.

★★★ (out of 4)

Romantic-action-comedies are a genre that has produced some shrill and obnoxious films that have only superficially supplied what the sub-genre suggests.  But for every The Bounty Hunter and Killers, there is a great movie like Date Night, and a good one like Knight and Day.

One week ago, Roy Miller (Tom Cruise), was one of the FBI’s best agents.  And then he had a full-blown break with reality, or did he?  He runs into June Havens (Cameron Diaz) at an airport, and what starts as a seemingly accidental encounter, leads to Roy taking out all the other passengers on the plane.  Stuck together, Roy and June end up on a globe-trotting adventure to protect Simon Fleck (hilariously played by Paul Dano), the inventor of a perpetual power source.

There is great chemistry between Cruise and Diaz.  Tom Cruise gives one of his best performances in years, playing a character that walks a fine line between charming and insane.  We never know until the end if he’s the one to be rooting for, or if he just bounced off of Oprah’s couch.  Cameron Diaz is perfectly matched as June, showing off her comedic/action chops, like in scenes where she has to run in slow-motion towards the camera with an island exploding behind her.

Filled with clever twists and turns, Knight and Day is nothing but pure fun for just under 2-hours.  The candy-coloured visuals and scenic locales pop off the screen, making for the type of movie that keeps a smile on your face throughout all the mad-cap action scenes, which serve to cause amusing bickering amongst the characters.  Funny, action-packed, and romantic, Knight and Day is an extremely entertaining Summer movie, that will easily satisfy both sexes.

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Knight and Day Review by Erin V.

★★★½ (out of 4)

There are a lot of movies that are being released recently in this sub-genre of action-romantic-comedy.  A couple of them really work – the recent Date Night is an example of one I really enjoyed – and others do not.  Killers anyone?  But I suppose, what you really are wondering about, is where does Knight and Day stand?  Thanks to the on-screen chemistry between Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz, in the ‘go see it’ pile.

In Knight and Day, Diaz plays June – a woman who going home for her sister’s wedding has a chance encounter with a man who introduces himself as Roy Miller (Cruise).  When they end up on the same flight – and he takes out everyone on the plane before landing it himself in a field – she finds herself involved with the CIA, and in the middle of a race to get a high-energy battery with enough juice to power something huge, and protect its inventor (played brilliantly by Paul Dano).  The question is, which side is Roy on?  Has he, like the CIA suggests had a break with reality and gone rogue?  The way Cruise plays it, with a slight look of lunacy in his eye, makes you unsure until the end.

With neatly staged action sequences, a matching score by John Powell, enough humour and wit, and a well plotted script with twists, this is a fun time in the theatres.  But it is thanks to the two leads + Dano, that really make this one worth seeing.  I should note that while I’m not always the biggest fan of Cruise, I found he really worked here.

Knight and Day is a likable film with likable characters.  Go see this one – you’ll have fun.

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Knight and Day Review By Nicole

★★★ (out of 4)

Knight and Day, (not to be confused with Pixar’s Day & Night), is an action-packed romantic-spy-comedy that is a lot of fun.  June (Cameron Diaz) is just an ordinary woman, who is trying to get to her sister’s wedding.  At the airport, she runs into Roy Miller (Tom Cruise), who seems like an ordinary gentlemen.  But after she gets on the plane, she realizes Miller is no average Joe.  He is a quirky secret agent who is protecting the inventor of a powerful energy source, a young genius named Simon.  June and Roy go on a crazy trip involving double agents, a motorcycle ride through a bull ring in Seville, wild car chases, and an exciting train ride through Austria.

The ending of this movie is really sweet.  Knight and Day is nothing but fun.  Tom Cruise is hilarious as the slightly mad Roy Miller, and Cameron Diaz is perfect as June.  I also really liked Paul Dano as Simon, the innocent and vulnerable nerdy inventor.

The action violence is no worse than in a comic book.  Sure things get blown up, and people get shot, but none of it is believable or graphic.  The light, comedic tone of the film seems to lessen the violence as well.  Knight and Day is a fun adventure ride that has enough of a balance between action, romance, and comedy to reach a wide audience.

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Knight and Day Review By Maureen

★★★½ (out of 4)

Knight and Day is a fast-paced secret agent action-comedy with a touch of romance.  Roy Miller (Tom Cruise) is a government secret agent who may or may not be out of touch with reality.  At the airport he meets June (Cameron Diaz), an antique car restorer who is trying to get back home in time for her sister’s wedding.  Unknowingly June ends up on the same plane as a group of secret agents who are all after agent Miller.  By the end of the trip June finds herself right in the middle of a madcap search for Miller a secret Zeffer battery, and the Zeffer’s inventor, nerdy teen Simon Fleck (Paul Dano).

This is a classic spy vs. spy story where you aren’t sure who is who or what to really believe.  The action scenes in Knight and Day are fun to watch.  There are car crashes, explosions, hand-to-hand fights, shoot-outs, train rides, even a motorcycle chase through a Spanish bull run.

Throughout the entire movie there is such a light comedic tone that it’s impossible to take the violence seriously.  The dialogue is really funny between the two leads.  However it’s Tom Cruise who owns this movie.  Cruise’s performance as the edge of madness Roy Miller is hilarious without ever going over the top.  I can’t imagine anyone else in this role other than Tom Cruise.  Cameron Diaz as June is the perfect foil for Cruise’s Roy Miller.  The chemistry between them is believable.

With a clever story, lots of exciting action, excellent comedic performances by Cruise and Diaz, and a strong supporting cast, Knight and Day is a great choice for a movie night out.

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Knight and Day Review By Tony

★★★ (out of 4)

Knight and Day is the latest film to feature an ordinary woman caught up with a spy, as good as Killers is apparently bad (since I wasn’t allowed to prescreen it, I didn’t bother to see it).  There is real chemistry between Tom Cruise, whose enigmatic humour serves him well here, and Cameron Diaz, much more charming here (except for the boots) than in the previous My Sister’s Keeper.

There is a really witty script as their relationship goes in and out of doubt, between well orchestrated if preposterous action scenes where they fight off dozens of assailants at a time. At stake are a AAA sized battery of incredible power and its eccentric inventor (brilliantly played by Paul Dano with a typically special interest in trains). Cruise’s character Miller had been assigned to guard them along with his FBI partner (Peter Sarsgaard). Suspecting a double cross, Miller has them hidden, so he is being pursued both by the FBI and the gang of a Spanish arms dealer (played by Catalan artist Jordi Mollà).

There are some nice scenes shot in the tropics (allowing for some attractive scanty cladding), Salzburg, and Seville (complete with stampeding bulls).  The musical score with its ironic accordion notes provides a fine accompaniment to the action.

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Consensus: Featuring one of Tom Cruise’s best performances in years, matched by solid chemistry with Cameron Diaz, Knight and Day is an incredibly entertaining romantic-action-comedy, that will be equally enjoyed by both sexes. ★★★1/4 (Out of 4)