BAIT
A Warner Bros.  release 

review by C.J. Henderson

SYNOPSIS: Two sets of thieves hit New York City on the same night. The first, Jaster (Robert Pastorelli) and Bristol (Doug Hutchison) get away with forty-two million in gold bullion from the Manhattan Federal Reserve. The second pair, brothers Alvin (Jamie Foxx) and Stevie (Mike Epps) set their sights on a couple of sacks of prawns from a Brooklyn seafood warehouse. Both score, but only one member of each team escapes. 

Jaster and Alvin find themselves in the lock-up together.  Jaster suffers a mild heart attack, he clues Alvin as to where the gold is so Alvin can tell his wife. The Feds force it out of Alvin, and it turns out to be worthless. Worse, Bristol murders Jaster's wife in an attempt to get the information. The government realizes that Bristol is a super criminal with hacking abilities that could do far worse damage than simply steal gold bricks. He could create havoc on a global level.

Capturing Bristol is law enforcement's number one priority. In an attempt to lure him into the open, the government releases Alvin from jail and leaks his connection with Jaster. Alvin heads for his girl friend, looking to start a new life. He wants to get a job, go straight and become a decent person. However, keeping his goals is tough with a world class terrorist after him. On top of that and an army of government agents are watching his every move and listening to every word he says. Ah yes, Alvin's life has become bait!

REVIEW: Some years back, a screenplay was written for Sylvester Stallone in which he was to play an East Coast cop who ends up going to L.A. to solve a crime for personal reasons. Stallone didn't make that film, so it was given to a young black performer who needed a vehicle. The star was Eddie Murphy and the movie was "Beverly Hills Cop." That may not be what happened with BAIT, but it certainly seems the case.

Jamie Foxx is essentially known as a comedy star, and this is a serious crime drama. The villain is extremely well crafted, his crimes methodical and logical. There is an over-ridding tension throughout the movie that the jokes do not diminish. Foxx himself describes the film as a "high tech action thriller with some fun and comedy thrown in," and he's absolutely right. In fact, the above comparison to "Beverly Hills Cop" might be misleading.

In the earlier Murphy vehicle, comedy was king and the laughs a mile a minute. Not here. There is far more blood and far more serious violence. Director Antoine Fuqua explained his take on the balance as, "The humor in the film is subtle, not slapstick. I wanted to find a way to balance the humor, suspense and action, where the humor doesn't become slapstick and the action satisfies you when it's meant to be serious."

For the most part, Fuqua succeeds throughout. Known primarily as a director of rock videos, his only previous film was the hideously awful "The Replacement Killers," a film so terrible it's amazing anyone thought it a good idea to give the director another chance. Luckily they did, for BAIT is a fast-moving, clever movie with more than one nice surprise. The story is well written, the sound track is rumbling and well-placed and the acting is good all around.   

On top of that, it has one of the best movie villains in years. Doug Hutchison is well known to TV audiences for his recurring characters Eugene Victor Tooms ("The X-Files") and The Polaroid Man ("Millennium") as well as for his work as the sadistic prison guard Percy Wetmore in "The Green Mile." 

This film isn't being particularly well promoted, but it deserves a look. If you're an action fan, a thriller fan, or a Jamie Foxx fan, you may want to break out some of the cash in your entertainment budget and head for the theater. This one can wait for a bargain matinee, but you might not want to wait for video.

OFFICIAL WEB SITE:
http://www.baitmovie.com

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