The Constant Rewinding: A Review of "Vantage Point"

Don't you hate it when the movie trailers give away the key points to a plot? I know I do. One of the most blatant violators of this particular faux pas is in theaters right now and it's entitled "Vanage" Point." I am not going to explain what the major plot point is that is going to give away a major part of the plot, but you need only go on YouTube or something like that and watch the trailer yourself. Or, perhaps you can just turn on the television and see it, since it's been running pretty frequently for a while now.

The movie itself is an interesting concept. The President of the United States is in a foreign country and about to make a huge speech at an Anti-Terrorist Summit. Apparently he has huge plans that will make great in-roads in the war on terror. However, during his speech, the President is shot. Shortly thereafter, far from the spot where the shooting has happened, there is the sound of an explosion as a suicide bombers blows himself up. Then, suddenly, within the plaza where the shooting happened another bomb goes off. What's happened? Who is responsible? Who saw what? We follow eight different people and get to see their particlar vantage point. Each person's view adds a little bit more of the plot and, the conceit is, that by the end of the movie you will have a complete picture of what happened and why.

As soon as you start watching the movie, if you are like me, you will soon feel like it is a movie playing in the same arena at the TV show "24." It may not be its exact twin, but they are kissing cousins. Cricket may not exactly be the same thing as baseball, but you can see the family resemblance and how they may have, at one time, been related. The thing is, I feel that "24" does it much better.