KNIGHT & DAY / ***

Distributor: Fox
Release Date: June 23, 2010
Genre: Comedy
Running Time: 130 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13

“Knight & Day” has a lot going against it. For one, I’ve been seeing the trailer since December (I believe “Avatar” was the first film it was attached to). Secondably, stars Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz are hardly my favorite actors, and they’ve both lost a great deal of the star luster they used to have. Finally, Fox mysteriously changed its release date to Wednesday, June 23 instead of the originally planned (and more sensible) Friday, June 25.

In a final interesting turn, the latest trailers I’ve seen on TV have touted it as “Tom Cruise at his ‘Jerry Maguire’ best” and “the best made for adults movie of the summer.” Did a focus group reveal that the only people who care about Tom Cruise nowadays are the people who are old enough to remember when he was relevant?

But I digress. I went into “Knight & Day” with a negative attitude, and to my surprise I actually enjoyed the movie. It’s certainly ridiculous on a grand scale, but Cruise, Diaz, and director James Mangold embrace the film’s inherent stupidity and run with it to supremely entertaining results.

Cruise plays Roy Miller, a super secret super spy who “runs into” June Havens (Diaz) in an airport. He tries to keep her off his flight, but she manages to weasel her way on board. While she’s in the bathroom Miller kills all the other passengers (who were assuredly bad guys) and the pilots. They crash land the plane, and somehow Miller manages to get June back home.

The next day June is approached by a man named Fitzgerald (the underused Peter Sarsgaard). They want Roy Miller. What does Roy Miller have that they want? Don’t worry – the screenplay by Patrick O’Neill (his first screenplay) will tell you what you need to know and when you need to know it, but I will say that it’s been years since I’ve seen a MacGuffin used to effectively.

The rest of the film is a nearly constant chase sequence peppered with witty, unrealistic banter. Mangold (“3:10 to Yuma,” “Walk the Line,” “Cop Land”) gets the most out of his stars, and also wisely surrounds them with a talented supporting cast like Sarsgaard, Viola Davis, Paul Dano, Marc Blucas, and Celia Weston.

With modest goals and a keen awareness of its own sense of ridiculous fun, “Knight & Day” managed to exceed my expectations and become a pleasant summer surprise.

Theater: Rave Motion Pictures Festival Plaza 16, Montgomery, AL
Time: 200 pm
Date: June 24, 2010

AN EDUCATION / ****

Distributor: Sony Classics
Release Date: October 9, 2009
Genre: Period Drama
Running Time: 95 minutes
MPAA Rating: PG-13

Sometimes performances come along that are destined to be iconic in the annals of film history. The 24-year-old Carey Mulligan delivers such a performance in Lone Scherfig’s “An Education.”

Mulligan plays Jenny, a teenage girl living in early 1960s London. Jenny is seemingly wise beyond her years, with an interest in all things French – poetry, music, film. Her father Jack (the great Alfred Molina) only encourages her do succeed in things that will look good on her resume. He desperately wants his daughter to get into Oxford, a sentiment echoed by her teacher Miss Stubbs (Olivia Williams).

Jenny has ambitions that may not line up with what her parents or teachers envision for her. Enter David (Peter Sarsgaard), a 30-something man who spots Jenny waiting for a bus in the rain with her cello. He professes to be a music lover worried about her cello, and eventually coaxes Jenny into his upscale car and gives her a ride home.

Despite their age difference, an immediate connection is forged between the two. David has seemingly experienced everything that Jenny longs for, and she sees him as her ticket to that lifestyle. For his part, David never comes off as a lecherous creep, but as a man eager to share his good fortune with s partner he finds deserving. Observe the scene in which Jenny informs him of her sexual intentions, and David’s reactions never strike a false note. It is truly a remarkable performance by Sarsgaard, one of the most underrated actors working today.

The same can be said for Molina and Cara Seymour as Jenny’s parents. They too are seduced by David’s charm, but only allow their daughter to spend time with this older man because they truly believe it is what’s best for her. Molina is long overdue for an Oscar nomination and I would love to see it happen here.

The screenplay by Nick Hornby (“High Fidelity,” “About a Boy”), from a memoir by Lynn Barber, sidesteps the usual conventions that lesser writers may have used as crutches. He’s helped in great part by the actors, who all embody their characters with an honesty that strikes to the core.

All in all, the film succeeds to the luminous leading lady, Carey Mulligan. Comparisons to Audrey Hepburn are inevitable, and I am truly excited to see where her career goes from here, after she lands what is sure to be her first Oscar nomination. Watching her Jenny gain “An Education” is one of the most rewarding film experiences this year.

Theater: AMC Oakview Plaza 24, Omaha, NE
Time: 445 pm
Date: November 29, 2009