Salt is a 2010 American actionthriller film directed by Phillip Noyce, written by Kurt Wimmer, and starring Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, Daniel Olbrychski, August Diehl and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Jolie plays Evelyn Salt who is accused of being a Russiansleeper agent and goes on the run to try to clear her name.
Originally written with a male protagonist, the film had Tom Cruise initially secured for the lead, but the script was ultimately rewritten for Jolie. Filming took place on a location in Washington, D.C., the New York City area, and Albany, New York, between March and June 2009, with reshoots in January 2010. Action scenes were primarily performed with practical stunts, with computer-generated imagery being used mostly for creating digital environments.
The film had a panel at the San Diego Comic-Con on July 22 and was released in North America on July 23, 2010 and August 18, 2010, in the United Kingdom. Salt grossed $294 million at the worldwide box office, and received mixed to positive reviews, receiving praise for the action scenes and Jolie's performance and criticism that the plot was predictable and implausible. The DVD and Blu-ray was released on December 21, 2010, and featured two alternate cuts which provide different endings for the movie.
As a power-mad king razes ancient Greece in search of a legendary weapon, a heroic young villager rises up against him in a thrilling quest as timeless as it is powerful. The brutal and bloodthirsty King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke) and his murderous Heraklion army are rampaging across Greece in search of the long lost Bow of Epirus. With the invincible Bow, the king will be able to overthrow the Gods of Olympus and become the undisputed master of his world. With ruthless efficiency, Hyperion and his legions destroy everything in their wake, and it seems nothing will stop the evil king's mission. As village after village is obliterated, a stonemason named Theseus (Henry Cavill) vows to avenge the death of his mother in one of Hyperion's raids. When Theseus meets the Sybelline Oracle, Phaedra (Freida Pinto), her disturbing visions of the young man's future convince her that he is the key to stopping the destruction. With her help, Theseus assembles a small band of followers and embraces his destiny in a final desperate battle for the future of humanity.
Fast Five (alternatively known as Fast & Furious 5 or Fast & Furious 5: Rio Heist) is a 2011 action film written by Chris Morgan and directed by Justin Lin and the fifth installment in The Fast and the Furious franchise. The film stars Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Dwayne Johnson and was first released in Australia on April 20, 2011 followed by a United States release on April 29, 2011. Fast Five follows Brian O'Conner (Walker), Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and Mia Toretto (Brewster) as they plan a heist to steal $100 million from corrupt businessman Hernan Reyes (Joaquim de Almeida) while being pursued for arrest by U.S. DSS agent Luke Hobbs (Johnson).
For development of Fast Five, a conscious effort was made by Universal Studios to shift away from the street racing theme prevalent in previous films in the series. Emphasis was instead placed on transforming the franchise into a heist action series that utilized cars in an attempt to attract wider audiences that may otherwise be turned off by the series' focus on cars and car culture. Fast Five is considered the transitional film in the series, featuring only one car race with more attention given to action set-pieces such as gun fights, brawls and the heist of $100 million. The production employed a comprehensive marketing campaign, marketing the film across social media, virtual games, cinema chains, automobile manufacturers and NASCAR racing. Fast Five garnered financial success, breaking box office records for the highest grossing opening weekend in an April and the second highest opening weekend in Spring, earning $168 million. The film surpassed Fast & Furious (2009) to become the highest grossing film in the franchise and overtook Rio to become the highest grossing film of 2011, holding this title for fifteen days before being replaced by Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Fast Five has grossed over $605 million worldwide, placing it #61 on the list of highest-grossing films of all time worldwide—in unadjusted dollars.
The film received critical praise with critics praising the combination of "action sequences that toy idly with the laws of physics" and comedy; some labeling the film the "best" of the series. Johnson was singled out for his performance, with critics calling him "the best thing, by far, in Fast Five" and remarking that scenes shared by Johnson and Diesel were often the "best moments". Despite the positive response, many were critical of the films running time, considering it too long and others criticized the treatment of women, stating "[Females] cameo strikingly in buttock form. Others actually have first names" South American reviewers were critical of the film's portrayal of Rio de Janeiro as a haven for drug trafficking and corruption, labeling it a "stereotype."
The Mechanic is a 2011 American action thriller film starring Jason Statham as the title character. Directed by Simon West, it is a remake of the 1972 film of the same name, directed by Michael Winner and starring Charles Bronson and Jan-Michael Vincent. Statham stars as Arthur Bishop, a professional assassin who specializes in making his hits look like accidents, suicides or the acts of petty criminals.[2] It was released in the United States and Canada on January 28, 2011.
Drive is a 2011 American action drama film directed by Nicolas Winding Refn that is adapted from James Sallis's 2005 novel of the same name. After an unsuccessful attempt to create a film adaption made by Universal Studios, this project was greenlit in early 2010. When Ryan Gosling, who plays the unnamed principal character, signed on, he was allowed to choose the director. A fan of his work, the actor chose Refn. Before filming began towards the end of 2010, Carey Mulligan, Ron Perlman, Bryan Cranston, and Christina Hendricks joined the cast.
Like the book, the movie is about a Hollywood stunt performer (played by Gosling) who moonlights as a wheelman and discovers that a contract has been put on him after a heist gone wrong. Prior to its September 2011 release, it has been shown at a number of film festivals. At the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, Drive was lauded with praise and even received a standing ovation. Reviews from critics have been positive, with many drawing comparisons to work from previous eras. The director himself has said influences came from Bullitt (1968) and that Drive was a dedication to Alejandro Jodorowsky.
