This is a collision of two lives
All collapsed in the events of one night
The movie starts with Vincent (Tom Cruise) arriving to L.A., a guy who just looks perfect
Some people happen to people on purpose, in order to tell them something about their lives
And they sit somewhere and share two or three lines, and they leave, and you know, your life is changed
When Max (Jamie Foxx) first meets Vincent, it was "who cares? He was a dreamer when he said: "I just saw the woman of my dreams
I'm getting married in my mind right now." Vincent says, "I want you to disconnect so that when you guy do connect, it's like day and night." And continues
"I got five stops to make. Collect signatures, see some friends, and then I got a 6 a.m. out of LAX. Why don't you hang with me?"
It's not until the offering of the money that you see really connect
"Collateral" projects in a much deeper way into Cruise/Vincent character
He can become very quiet, and we can look at the screen, and we will feel that Cruise is totally in command
He's a quick draw
Vincent is fast
As an assassin, he must be economical in his moves
The film focused some of the wildness, and what lurks below the surface of L.A. Just the opening shot, when we look at that cab driving out and we see the big paintings on the walls, it was just visual sophistication
The movie is not an action story
It's a compelling drama with realistic action that works for the story
And it is done for an emotional reason
Cruise gives a dynamic performance as the cold-blooded killer
Foxx is terrific as the honest hearted guy driving a cab for twelve years, and both come together suddenly like a spike in a railroad right here in this point where things were going to change in one night
Jamie Foxx finds himself in the presence of a real adversary in the form of this bumbling cab driver, who has never fired a handgun in his life
