**1/2 – Every once in a while a movie comes out that has such an intricately woven and extraordinary plot with an intriguing ending twist that the film becomes an instant classic. The 2010 film “The Tourist” starring Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie is not, unfortunately, one of those rare and spectacular films. It certainly does give its all to have that sort of vibe, though. I don’t want to give too much away here - in case you decide to see it - so I’ll try to be vague. The main reason the movie fails in its intended goal is that the twist aspect will be either easily figured out from the very beginning or the motivations of a number of the characters will seem so ridiculously incomprehensible that a viewer would be likely to just tune out. Another little peeve I have over this film is in its attempt to pass Jolie off as this supreme beauty that everyone stops and stares and gawks at and immediately falls in love with as soon as they lay eyes on her. Ten years ago she may (and I am being very generous here) have been able to pull that off, but now she looks like a haggard mound of sinew held together by make-up and tight clothes. Despite those qualms, I must admit that “The Tourist” does look very nice and the acting is certainly decent enough. So if you’re in the mood for a dopey Bond-lite sort of romance/action/drama/spy film with fancy scenery and a woman-y clothes obsession and such, and aren’t too picky about good stories, then I suppose I could recommend worse than this.
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