[n] a security pledged for the repayment of a loan
[adj] descended from a common ancestor but through different lines; "cousins are collateral relatives"; "an indirect descendant of the Stuarts"
[adj] situated or running side by side; "collateral ridges of mountains"
[adj] accompaniment to something else; "collateral target damage from a bombing run"
[adj] serving to support or corroborate; "collateral evidence"
-- courtesy of hyperdictionary.com

I dont know why I sometimes keep referring to this show as Collateral Damage (note: there's actually a movie with this title.. an Arnold Schwarzenegger action flick that opened back in 2002). Maybe it's because the word "collateral" has such a nice sound to it when paired with the word "damage"... Am I making any sense??? LOL

Well anyway, I wasnt really too keen on watching this movie initially; I'm not a fan of Tom Cruise's highly intense acting and I had doubts about the competency of comedy actor Jamie Foxx to carry a serious flick like this. However, despite my doubts, this IS a Michael Mann movie afterall; the same guy who also helmed The Insider (1999, with Russell Crowe in an Oscar-winning performance) and most recently, Ali (2001), in which Will Smith was able to prove his mettle as a character actor. Surely, I asked myself, are these not corroborating evidence that this movie should be worth watching... ??

Thankfully, despite a few glitches here and there (especially when the intellectual dialogue gets abit too verbose), Collateral is actually quite good. It is NOT your typical action flick because Mann manages to punctuate the movie with thought-provoking discourses that balances out the "action" sequences pretty well. Furthermore, Jamie Foxx (surprisingly) acquitted himself pretty well in a serious role, making his unwitting Max character, a taxi-driver, a believably nice guy. Irma P. Hall (as Max's hospitalised mother) and Barry Shabaka Henley (as the world-weary jazz musician) are magnificient in their small supporting roles, even stealing the limelight from the riveting Tom Cruise. Speaking of whom, Cruise is actually playing the "bad" guy for once and he's quite credible too, replete with gray hairs that gave him a rather sagely appearance.

Ultimately, Collateral is a fascinating watch but one must be careful not to fall asleep during the "talky" bits ;p

my ratings -- 3.8/5 stars~!

 8:51 PM