Movies / Movie Reviews

Deja Vu

By Mitch Emerson
November 22, 2006 - 14:46

Everyone has experienced the unsettling mystery of déjà vu--that flash of memory when you meet someone new you feel you've known all your life or recognize a place even though you've never been there before. But what if the feelings were actually warnings sent from the past or clues to the future? It is déjà vu that unexpectedly guides ATF agent Doug Carlin (Denzel Washington) through an investigation into a shattering crime. Called in to recover evidence after a bomb sets off a cataclysmic explosion on a New Orleans Ferry, Carlin is about to discover that what most people believe "is only in their heads" is actually something far more powerful--and will lead him on a mind-bending race to save hundreds of innocent people. (Taken from Yahoo Movies)

The synopsis above doesn't tell you much in the way of the sci-fi influence so I will spill the beans, which may be considered a spoiler. Some readers may want to skip to the next section but i won't give away too much. You are warned, lol. See, the government has the technology that enables them to see four days into the past. That's all I'm gonna say as it would ruin it for you. Let's just say that once Carlin learns what this machine can do, he uses it above and beyond the potential that anybody ever expected.

Denzel Washington finally lightens it up a bit after the last few movies I've seen him in. John Q , The Manchurian Candidate, The Bone Collector, and Man On Fire, where he basically plays the same character (himself) thrust into extreme situations. In fact he was starting to fall into the same rut that Harrison Ford has been in for years – only playing himself. Thankfully, he breaks the monotony, not only in his performance, but in his choice of films. I have always enjoyed his science fiction influenced films like Fallen and Virtuosity. Déjà Vu is a slight return to those types of movies. The rest of the team, Val Kilmer, Adam Goldberg, Elden Henson and Erika Alexander serve the film well. Goldberg and Henson add the tech and humor, Kilmer is the straight man and Alexander is the heart/conscience of the group. Rounding out the cast is Jim Caviezel as the patriotic nut case and Paula Patton as the catalyst (and weak romance side plot) for Carlin's continued involvement.

The film has a slight undercurrent of humor. Not as in funny ha-ha, but as these guys are trying to cope with a technology and a situation that they know next to nothing about and have to vent their frustrations some way.. How else would you cope? By getting off a few good one liners. This lends a more realistic touch to the film only made better because of the fact that this is a new technology that they don't really understand. They are trying to figure out the best possible way to use this machine.

Tony Scott is one of the few directors that I can recognize their style. I really enjoyed his last film Domino, the really strange visual style fit that movie perfectly. He has toned those effects down quite a bit using that style in only one aspect of the film. I thoroughly enjoyed Déjà Vu and plan on renting it if not outright buying it on DVD. It has everything. Action, suspense, drama, humor, a bit of romance and the sci-fi factor thrown in for good measure. Another all around good movie. While it may not win any awards it sure isn't your normal popcorn fare either.

Keep reading,
Mitch E

Last Updated: November 29, 2025 - 16:51