Sadly that's about all there is to say. As John (Pitt) and Jane (Jolie) Smith discover their 5/6 year marriage to be a sham, they set out to kill each other. We're not talking a Kramer vs Kramer type of hellish divorce, we're talking When Leon met Lee Harvey Oswald; They're both - shock horror - hitmen, er, hit persons. And that is the most plausible section of plot. As the film progresses to its bloody-hell-get-on-with-it conclusion, reality is repeatedly suspended in order to allow John and Jane time to mince ferociously about, attacking, shagging and destroying pretty much everything in their paths. 

Having been married for approximately five years (John can't remember) the 'perfect' couple have drifted apart. No surprise seeing as they are not the contruction worker and executive they claim to be. Carrying out high profile assignments on the same day, it turns out that they work for rival assassin firms and so the chase is on. There are several funny moments, most of them involving some big old winks at the camera but at some point you'll be stumbling into those big treacherous plot-holes that make you wonder what you've paid £6.00 to see. 

From director Doug Liman (Swingers, The Bourne Identity), we were expecting better dialogue and better action. However, despite including some witty banter with a marriage counsellor and a biting parody of domestic bliss, Mr and Mrs Smith sizzles with sex appeal but ultimately fizzles out. Jolie and Pitt wham-bam their way through cars, houses, department stores, office blocks and each other, but they're not given the opportunity to deliver sparkling performances. A sparkling film needs a sparkling plot and Mr and Mrs Smith is about fifty IQ points short of a sparkle.

Shari Last
 
 

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