Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on March 2011

On a picturesque Venice-bound train, a mild-mannered American schoolteacher (Johnny Depp) meets “by chance” a femme fatale (Angelina Jolie) trying to elude both the cops and the mob. Through endless plot machinations, she sets him up as a fall guy. Or not. Now, I like a good mystery. I enjoy picking up on dropped clues and figuring out what’s going on through ratiocination. What I don’t like is being jerked around by a Big Surprise Ending that renders all the clues false. This movie cheats seriously. And for two of the sexiest actors working today, there’s very little sexiness. Charade this ain’t.