A View From Mars:

Man on Fire (B-). To state that this is just another, typical Denzel Washington movie would more or less be an accurate description. However, this is not neccessarily a bad thing. This time around, Washington plays a grittier lead in the form of John W. Creasy. He was in the military anti-terrorism field, 'til his personal demons relegated him to "hittin' the sauce." Christopher Walken plays his ex-military buddy who now resides in Mexico and has acquired Creasy a cushy bodyguard job protecting the 10 year old daughter of a well-to-do Mexican industrialist in a Mexico that is very susceptible to kidnappings. Dakota Fanning (I Am Sam, Cat in the Hat) plays the very adorable, yet wise beyond her years, little girl 'Pita. Of course, the inevitable happens (without it, there would be no movie) and 'Pita gets kidnapped, putting a very upset Creasy on the trail of those responsible. What worked for me was the chemistry and bond between that of Washington's Creasy and Fanning's 'Pita; without this, you probably couldn't care less where this movie goes. The "make or break" factor somewhat relies on having a believable kid actor who can actually match her acting chops against a former Oscar winner. Walken is a bit underused for my taste, being that I'm a big fan of his. He is merely relegated to the friend who emphasizes what a stud Washington used to be. I appreciate Tony Scott's (Top Gun, True Romance) ambition in trying to elevate this relatively genre movie into something more. It's not bad at all; although it seems to last longer than its 2 hour and 15 minute run time. If you're in the mood for a revenge story and you've already seen Kill Bill (which is better in all aspects), then by all means, indulge in this cookie-cutter Denzel flick.