Nominated for two Academy Awards, Collateral is an electrifying, high-energy drama about a paid assassin who kidnaps a cab driver in order to carry out his work. With a high quality performance by Jamie Foxx, Collateral is a movie that draws viewer interest with relative ease. Tom Cruise turns in an outstanding performance as the noted hit man, and Jada Pinkett Smith enjoys one of her more notable roles as a high profile assistant district attorney. One of the best action-packed thrillers of 2004, Collateral is an unforgettable glimpse into the seedy underworld of drug-running and criminal activity. You wont want to miss it

Collateral centers around the life of a Los Angeles taxicab driver named Max (Jamie Foxx), an easy to get along with guy, a guy with big dreams of owning his own company and vacationing on a beautiful Caribbean island. When he picks up an unusually beautiful fare, an attorney named Annie (Jada Pinkett Smith), the two hit it off real well. Before Annie leaves, she hands Max her card and the two agree to go out on a date. However, Maxs next fare has other ideas in mind

When Max picks up the silver-haired, well-dressed Vincent, he thinks hes got himself just another paying customer. But Max is actually a highly trained professional hit man, and he wants to utilize Maxs services for the entirety of the night, in order to take out each of his allotted victims. Regardless of the money flashed in his face, Max doesnt want anything to do with the killings, but Vincent threatens to kill Max if he doesnt comply.

The result is a night in which Vincent methodically carries out murder after murder while Max becomes human collateral, used by Vincent in a war between a murderous drug cartel and eye-witnesses who threaten to destroy them via federal grand jury testimony. As Vincent commits each of his murders-for-hire, the police follow up with an investigation of their own. Slowly, they piece things together. A number of past killings with a similar MO occurred in LA in years ago and always ended with a dead cab driver. As the cops chase after them, the fates of both Vincent and Max become intertwined. Through Vincents manipulations, Max becomes a tool enlisted to act in other capacities besides driving. And as the night wears on, and Vincent approaches the conclusion of his killing spree, the identity of his last victim becomes glaringly clear, and only Max can stop the notorious hit man before its too late

Wrought with suspense and a number of high-energy action sequences, Collateral is an enjoyable film. The blood and gore is not excessive, and the violence is tempered with comic relief, interesting banter, and the evolving relationship between Vincent and Max. The onscreen relationship between the two characters makes an otherwise humdrum script a very fun movie. With stellar performances by Jamie Foxx and Tom Cruise, Collateral is a film well worth seeing.