Matinee Melee: All style, no substance make 'Wanted' cool, shallow flick

Casey Phillips: Watching “Wanted” is like a two-hour extension of the kung-fu training sequence in “The Matrix.” Throughout the first two-thirds of the film, Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy) undergoes extensive instruction in assassination do’s and don’ts by withstanding beatdowns, learning to make bullets defy physics and engaging in mock closequarters combat — usually in slow motion. The problem is, sequences where time crawls have been overdone since 1999, and the effect has lost its luster. Still, it’s undeniably thrilling to watch bullets spiraling out of foreheads and cheeks rippling from the impact of a fist. Unfortunately, “Wanted” doesn’t really do much else, and once you’re past the “whoa” factor, the film can feel a little repetitive, particularly since the plot telegraphs its twist and turns way ahead of time.

Holly Leber: This is a quintessential popcorn movie. There is lots of running, car chases, big guns, a bit of sexual tension and pretty people getting beaten to a bloody pulp. It’s what one would expect from a summer blockbuster. Kazakh director Timur Bekmambetov relies on camera work and special effects — letters flying off a keyboard to spell out obscenities as it ricochets off a man’s head or glass shattering as a man goes face-first through a window — to hold the audience’s interest. Plot-wise... well, in the first minutes of the film, McAvoy’s character says in a voiceover that he “only cares about the fact that (he) doesn’t care,” and I think that attitude is echoed in the execution of the story here. Sure, they try to be clever and mysterious, but it seems like there was no time taken to actually consider plausibility.

Casey: Yes, “Wanted” is seductive and retina-searing, like a porn star flying a jet through an ammunition factory hit simultaneously by a hydrogen bomb and Chuck Norris. It’s fun, but it’s not smart. At times, the action becomes too fantastic, like when bullets are colliding in mid-air (yes, in slow motion). To top off the ridiculousness, the action revolves around one of the stupidest plot concepts I’ve ever run across. Not to give anything away, but it involves the “Loom of Fate” or some such nonsense (it’s based on a comic, go figure). Still, I have to applaud the decision to include a scene with Angelina Jolie’s nude, glistening backside, which I know I wasn’t alone in enjoying. Jolie is definitely the star of this show with wickedly charming ways of filling people with bullets that fit this movie like a snakeskin glove.

Holly: There’s an expression for the type of character Jolie plays — I can’t use it here because we’re a family paper — but she hangs out of car windows shooting huge guns, and she train surfs. Do you have an inkling now? She does it very well. However I’ve decided I must add “A Mighty Heart” to my Netflix queue because I honestly cannot remember if the woman can act without beating someone up. The character of Wesley is generally a wuss, but McAvoy must have felt like he had some brass during a visually spectacular vengeance scene. Morgan Freeman, the black male Julie Andrews in that he can make swear words sound melodious, was probably cast to bring more depth to the film, but the role of textile-reading (it’s kind of like tea leaves, but with looms) Sloan could have been played by a lesser actor.

Casey: It’s a little jarring seeing Freeman act conniving and dark after tugging heart strings in “The Bucket List,” but there’s no love lost in the transition. All in all, there hasn’t been a movie this exciting since “Sin City,” and I can’t recommend it enough to armchair adrenaline junkies looking shut down their brains for two hours. It’s got it all: amazing stunts — including a blistering chase scene that all but destroys a gorgeous, cherry red Dodge Viper — and more bullets than “Saving Private Ryan.” But as styling as he is, this scarecrow still needs a brain.

Holly: “Wanted” is like a one-night stand with a really hot stranger. It’s wild, sexy, and it gets the blood flowing, but it’s basically devoid of intelligence or emotion. You’re going to feel kind of empty the next day. But for anyone looking to get off on some good action, by all means, this movie will satisfy.