A Perfect Getaway (2009)

In thinking about this movie it's worth remembering two great thrillers from the past. One is Alfred Hitchcock's "Vertigo". In that film the first two scenes in the movie, following the rooftop chase, are major scenes that arm you with everything you need to figure out what's REALLY going on later in the story. They're loaded with information. Trouble is, those scenes are likely to glide right by the viewer, as they did with me, because much of what happens seems inconsequential. It's not. The clues are all there. In Francis Ford Coppola's "The Conversation" the peeping tom-for-hire (Gene Hackman), spying on a couple, is certain he's figured out what's going on, but he's undone by not realizing that something said can have different meanings depending on HOW it's said.

"A Perfect Getaway" merrily leads you down the garden path, so to speak, by fulfilling all your expectations, then turning the table on them. You're practically tripping over the clues, but because you're looking at the wrong things or looking at things the wrong way you might miss them. This movie is so smart, so well-made and such a tease that it's absolutely exhilarating. No, I didn't see what was coming, but I was having fun and I felt safe in writer/director David Twohy's hands - I sensed that he wouldn't let me down. (I'm a big fan of Twohy's delightful 1996 science-fiction thriller "The Arrival"). This movie is as much a psychological thriller as the two movies I mentioned off the top and is as seemingly slow-moving and deliberately-paced, but it requires the audience's full attention. The climax is a wild ride, with inspired editing and camera-work, and the flashback sequence is a remarkable piece of exposition. The movie, thankfully, is NOT a slasher flick. The story is mostly character-driven. It's about a murderous couple on the loose in Hawaii slicing up innocent honeymooners, but what really drives the story is the competition between the leading males, two bulls locking horns - Steve Zahn's pitifully inadequate doofus versus Timothy Olyphant's macho and endowed "American jedi", whose insouciant swagger and flip insults ("Here, kitty, kitty, kitty.") are a constant thorn in Zahn's side. The women's parts are just as well written as the men's, and each woman has her own reason for latching onto her man. "I love the idea of loving you," is Zahn's pathetic reply to his partner's (Milla Jovovich) request for an expression of affection. Their relationship is a lot more dysfunctional than we, at first, realize. I really enjoyed watching Olyphant and Kiele Sanchez together, there is such openness in their faces and chemistry between them. The screenplay is loaded with wit, and I suspect that all the references to screen writing are a jab at what usually passes for scripts in Hollywood in general and this type of movie in particular. It has genuine suspense, great performances and breath-taking cinematography. A welcome breath of fresh air.

I watched this movie a second time to see how the details of the "whodunnit" aspect of the story were managed and I ended up enjoying the movie and admiring the screenplay and the direction even more. The script is very imaginative and economical in the way it handles small details and uses them to enrich the story. Small things such as the bug in the bottle, the rings, and the operation of the camera ("Just point and sho

Fmovies: PROS: The acting was ridiculously good in this film. At some moments in the movie I wasn't sure if these people were or were not actually couples in real life. That's how powerful they were in the film. That for me was the building block for what made the film intense. Those bonds that the actors created gave more tension because you could feel the love they had for each other being threatened, which added a higher stake to fight for. The movie really grabs you and sucks you in to this world that is so screwed up and full of deceit that the fear you feel is just unparalleled to anything that you could've expected when picking a action movie to watch. The final thing that I really enjoyed was the story. The story of the movie is half of what makes a good film a good film. This movie has a story that was fresh and new and exciting. I was really excited to watch this and was even more glad when it lived up to my expectations.

CONS: This movie is so close to being 5/5. The only thing that is holding it back is the ending. I loved loved loved the ending, but I wish there was a sneak peak that we could see into the future, but overall please watch!

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I just caught this movie without knowing what it is about other than a thriller, survivor-type genre. I never even caught the trailer before, and boy...i was surprised. i didn't see it coming.

I believed that nowadays, trailers tend to give a lot away or even critiques do, and giving credit to this film, if one were like me, this is one of the best movie experienced.

The characters were all likable and believable and the pacing of the story was handled extremely well. I was neither bored during the slow scenes as it constantly kept the characters growing as individuals. I'd be recommending it as much as other films that i do enjoy

A Perfect Getaway fmovies. During the honeymoon in Hawaii, the screenwriter Cliff Anderson (Steve Zahn) and his wife Cydney (Milla Jovovich) decide to hike in the Kalalau Trail to a paradisiacal beach. While driving to the spot, they refuse to give a lift to the strange couple Kale (Chris Hemsworth) and Cleo (Marley Shelton). Cliff and Cydney befriend the former marine Nick (Timothy Olyphant) in the trail and then they meet three girls that tell them that the police are chasing a man and a woman that had slaughtered a couple in honeymoon in Oahu, removing their teeth and finger tips. Cliff and Cydney decide to go along with Nick and they meet his girlfriend Gina (Kiele Sanchez) that is camped in Secret Falls. The two couples decide to tag along to the beach together, and along their journey, they feel tense with possible stalkers until the police helicopter captures Kale and Cleo. But danger is still in the Kalalau Trail.

"A Perfect Getaway" is a surprisingly great thriller, with Steve Zahn performing an unusual role. The screenplay is excellent and the plot is very well-constructed. When I finished watching the DVD, I decided to watch the beginning again to find any possible plot hole, but the dialogs are ambiguous and it is impossible to discover the identities of the killers. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "A Trilha" ("The Trail")

First the pros - 99% of the movie was shot in daylight in the beautiful Hawaiian nature, really relaxing to the eyes. Good cast, good acting overall. Interesting story, which actually pulled my attention and made me watch the movie. The promised twist was there and was a big one, but more about it in cons... Cons - Well, the promised "twist" was a huge and unexpected one. So unexpected it was really difficult to believe. It made me wondering like "Wow, wait a minute! Weren't they doing this and this a few minutes ago? Didn't they tell this and this? Ehmmm.... they actually did, so what the...?" The script wasn't really finished (well) IMHO, it made me feel like the story was born during writing the script, but after finishing it there was no time/will to rework the beginning and synchronize it with the end. This made the lead characters really inconsistent and left me quiet unsatisfied after the movie ended, even if I have to say the final action sequence was good enough.

It's hard to say anything about "The Perfect Getaway" without giving away the great way that director/writer David Twohy brings this classic tale of "screaming, running for your life" movie to the screen.

Some may call the first hour a bit slow but it's really the perfect build to the final act. Dialog and plot developments keep the viewer's mind fully guessing as to who might start killing whoever! And if you've never seen this movie, and never looked up any spoiler outlines, I'm guessing your guess will be wrong. Until the reveal, I couldn't decide who it was that's going to snap, even when I thought it was becoming obvious.

Timothy Olyphant is awesome in this role, as is the rest of the primary cast, with Chris Hemsworth being the angry hitchhiker and Steve Zahn & Milla Jovovich playing the part of the honeymooners.

I give Twohy 2 thumbs up for making this movie fresh, engaging and confusing.