Swordfish (2001)

A lot of people have pooh-poohed this film; OK, so they've painted it in soggy sheep dung. Come on, people, it's not that bad! At least it doesn't bear a faint nosegay of putrescence like Sneakers. On the plus side, it's better than Broken Arrow and Basic. At times, it's even better than Con Air. What do you want? The Matrix? Please! John Travolta does in Swordfish what he does best: He makes being the bad guy look not only good, but cool. He's smart, level-headed, cold-blooded, efficient, he anticipates all contingencies, and has a snappy ego-laden comeback for everything. That's worth seeing in itself. This movie also makes computer hacking cool again. Sure, it gets half the computer stuff wrong; but the guy's last name is Torvalds, so give them credit. The plot twists will keep you guessing, and the hostage situation drives the story for me. I must have missed Halle's bare moment; I think my doggy needed to go out at the time. (How did she know? Was she jealous?) Four stars.