2008 Woodie Awards
The Guardian: A sea of dreams
** (of 4), 136 Minutes, PG-13
Roger Priddy
Issue date: 10/3/06 Section: Arts & Entertainment
The Guardian is one of those movies that's everything you'd expect it to be, but unfortunately, just not a lot more. For Kevin Costner's good performance there's Ashton Kutcher's to offset it; for the dramatic, well-done sea scenes, clichés and a cheesy romance; for every strong scene a weak one that drowns its momentum. Still, I was ready to give the film another half star, until it ran long and in some ways, literally sunk, with its unsatisfying ending.
The Guardian is a Coast Guard picture. It's about U.S. Coast Guard rescue swimmers and focuses on two of them, desperately looking for redemption. Two men, who by saving lives of others, hope to atone for the tragedies of their own pasts. You've seen this scenario before. A neo-talented, but troubled and inconsistent young man enlists in the Coast Guard (Jake Fischer portrayed by Ashton Kutcher). There he's led, fought, and taught by a renowned, veteran rescue swimmer, Ben Randall (Kevin Costner), who's haunted by the recent loss of his rescue team. The team was lost in an accident largely caused by Randall, because he stayed in the water too long. In spending that extra second trying to save others, Randall brought his entire crew down beneath the sea (except, of course, him). From there, and throughout, the film is pretty predictable.
It's been years since Kevin Costner has had a real hit. He was the star of one of my favorite movies, Field of Dreams (hence, my title for this review). His career has been a lot like this film-ups with JFK and Dances with Wolves; infamous drowns with Waterworld and The Postman. But there's no denying Costner is talented, and he displays that ability in The Guardian. Relaxed and almost effortlessly he brings alive the character of Ben Randall, and makes you believe, believe in, and sympathize with the character. Randall is tough, he's cold, and he brings down the people that love him, but his love and his life are saving lives on the sea, and Costner captures that passion.
Ashton Kutcher, on the other hand, doesn't fare so well. The popular model and TV star of That 70s Show is still looking for that picture to establish him as a serious movie actor. The Guardian isn't it. Kutcher will no doubt remind viewers of Tom Cruise's "Maverick" character from Top Gun. Everything about the characters are so similar the more one reflects upon it. Trying to fight for the country, the troubled pasts, the unbelievable easiness winning the hottest woman in the bar, the eventual crying. The only difference is Maverick ruled the air and Fischer rules the sea.
Here, Kutcher just isn't convincing. He may be a looker and a natural boyish charmer, but he's still got a long way to go before he's an "actor." Some scenes I could tell he was acting and some of his dialogue, or the way he delivered his lines, just made me cringe (and think "Razzie"). Kutcher is able to be cocky and arrogant, but he's a Titanic away from capturing the depth of his character, and he's not able to make you care about and root for Fischer. And since Fischer is such an integral part of the movie, it really suffers because of it.
But the biggest problem of the movie is that it's just too long, and it really drags, especially towards the end. There's also a weak, weak romance between Kutcher's character and a school teacher (Melissa Sagemiller) that just doesn't work. And though the water scenes are a strength of the movie, they too are too long and lack the intensity of say, scenes from director Andrew Davis's best movie, The Fugitive. Still, Costner is good, and The Guardian flows and has some impressive individual scenes. Then comes the long, drawn-out ending that sucks the additional half star off the film's score. It's an ending that, if you felt about the movie as I did, you'll sure wish went the other way around.
The Guardian is a Coast Guard picture. It's about U.S. Coast Guard rescue swimmers and focuses on two of them, desperately looking for redemption. Two men, who by saving lives of others, hope to atone for the tragedies of their own pasts. You've seen this scenario before. A neo-talented, but troubled and inconsistent young man enlists in the Coast Guard (Jake Fischer portrayed by Ashton Kutcher). There he's led, fought, and taught by a renowned, veteran rescue swimmer, Ben Randall (Kevin Costner), who's haunted by the recent loss of his rescue team. The team was lost in an accident largely caused by Randall, because he stayed in the water too long. In spending that extra second trying to save others, Randall brought his entire crew down beneath the sea (except, of course, him). From there, and throughout, the film is pretty predictable.
It's been years since Kevin Costner has had a real hit. He was the star of one of my favorite movies, Field of Dreams (hence, my title for this review). His career has been a lot like this film-ups with JFK and Dances with Wolves; infamous drowns with Waterworld and The Postman. But there's no denying Costner is talented, and he displays that ability in The Guardian. Relaxed and almost effortlessly he brings alive the character of Ben Randall, and makes you believe, believe in, and sympathize with the character. Randall is tough, he's cold, and he brings down the people that love him, but his love and his life are saving lives on the sea, and Costner captures that passion.
Ashton Kutcher, on the other hand, doesn't fare so well. The popular model and TV star of That 70s Show is still looking for that picture to establish him as a serious movie actor. The Guardian isn't it. Kutcher will no doubt remind viewers of Tom Cruise's "Maverick" character from Top Gun. Everything about the characters are so similar the more one reflects upon it. Trying to fight for the country, the troubled pasts, the unbelievable easiness winning the hottest woman in the bar, the eventual crying. The only difference is Maverick ruled the air and Fischer rules the sea.
Here, Kutcher just isn't convincing. He may be a looker and a natural boyish charmer, but he's still got a long way to go before he's an "actor." Some scenes I could tell he was acting and some of his dialogue, or the way he delivered his lines, just made me cringe (and think "Razzie"). Kutcher is able to be cocky and arrogant, but he's a Titanic away from capturing the depth of his character, and he's not able to make you care about and root for Fischer. And since Fischer is such an integral part of the movie, it really suffers because of it.
But the biggest problem of the movie is that it's just too long, and it really drags, especially towards the end. There's also a weak, weak romance between Kutcher's character and a school teacher (Melissa Sagemiller) that just doesn't work. And though the water scenes are a strength of the movie, they too are too long and lack the intensity of say, scenes from director Andrew Davis's best movie, The Fugitive. Still, Costner is good, and The Guardian flows and has some impressive individual scenes. Then comes the long, drawn-out ending that sucks the additional half star off the film's score. It's an ending that, if you felt about the movie as I did, you'll sure wish went the other way around.
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