Movie Review Rewind: From Paris With Love (2010)

Brandon Vick flips the calendar back to 2010 for a look at John Travolta in From Paris With Love on this edition of Movie Review Rewind.

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This action-packed, blood-spilling movie is fun and entertaining at times. At the same time, it is nothing we have not seen before and doesn’t really do anything to improve action flicks. From Paris With Love isn’t terrible, but it isn’t impressive either. From director Pierre Morel (Taken), From Paris With Love is about James Reese (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who is an agent at the bottom of the ladder and works in the office of the U.S. Ambassador in France. Usually, his main missions involve switching license plates and putting hidden devices in offices. Nothing fun and exciting and Reese wants that. He wants the big missions and he gets that opportunity when he is partnered up with Charlie Wax (John Travolta).

Wax is one of the best agents and does things his way. The reason he is so good is because he gets things done. His ways may involve a lot of shooting and killing  and only asking a few questions, but the job gets done. And Wax and Reese set out to find terrorists and shut them down. Along the way, Reese gets a rude awakening of what an agent does and if he is cut out for this kind of work. The movie has an impressive body count if you are in to that kind of thing. Morel knows how to film action, which is why the action sequences and fights are nice and fast. And the choreography of those type of scenes is tough to get just right, but Morel does a nice job.

This movie is not as good as Taken. I think that must be said right now. Taken had such a rush of thrills and action as a father goes on a quest to get his daughter. From Love With Paris just doesn’t have the same feeling. Sure, there is shooting, fighting, and car chases, but that is nothing new in this genre. It’s almost a rule to have all those things in an action movie. And even some of the action is so over-the-top that you know it is ridiculous and so do the people who are making the movie. I mean…during the car chase sequence, Wax is out the window with a bazooka. Yes – a bazooka. Now that’s extreme and kind of stupid.

Speaking of over-the-top, Travolta gets crazy in this movie. He is the action star in this and he’s pretty fun to watch. He wears a leather jacket with a scarf. His character has a flashy earring and he’s bald. Did I mention that? He looks crazy and acts it as well. Wax is mainly the one doing insane things all the time and it’s all in the name of death. If Wax was not the way he was, then this movie would almost be boring. Travolta even gets to sneak in a line from Pulp Fiction.

From Paris With Love will make most people happy as far as how movies like this one go. It has what you are looking for, but do not go in seeing this with high expectations. It’s a decent action movie but nothing that is anymore exciting than the thousands and thousands we have seen before. Where the movie reaches its highest point is during the action sequences and the charisma and charm of Travolta. His character is allowed to be crazy since the movie is the same way.

Brandon Vick is a member of The Music City Film Critics’ Association, the resident film critic of the SoBros Network, and the star of The Vick’s Flicks Podcast. Follow him on Twitter @SirBrandonV and be sure to search #VicksFlicks for all of his latest movie reviews.

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