Review of Safe House (2012) by Jon N — 10 Aug 2012

Slick but familiar action thriller set in South Africa in which rookie CIA agent Matt Weston (Ryan Reynolds) finds himself taking custody of infamous rogue spy Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington) after the safe house he was stationed at is attacked.

Betrayed from within the CIA and with the world wary Frost gnawing at his doubts, Matt must get his dangerous prisoner to a new safe house. Washington could still be compelling by reading out of a phone book, and Reynolds is equally good as the young agent in over his head.

Director Daniel Espinosa pushes the film forward with brutal efficiency, though the story itself holds no real surprises (the traitor is so obvious that it makes me wonder why they didn't just reveal them straight away), but it is painless enough to make it a decent action flick.