Why would the owners of Las Vegas' Stratosphere want to see their high-rise landmark blown up onscreen? That such an event climaxes this helter-skelter biopic, however fictionalized, is merely the most unsettling of the numerous dislocations evident in "Domino," Tony Scott's aggressively grungy look at the life of the late femme bounty hunter Domino Harvey. Subject's novelty value and Keira Knightley in her first bad-ass role will provide some draw, but pic is satisfying neither as character study nor as straight-ahead actioner. Result is a between-the-cracks entertainment that might accrue a limited devoted fan base but appears destined for middling biz overall. (rotten tomatoes)
Scott, who can make films as slick as they come, goes the opposite way this time, using a grab-bag of extreme techniques that gives the picture a look as rough as its milieu. Often dousing scenes in a putrid shade of green and seemingly deliberately obscuring actors' eyes, Scott and lenser Dan Mindel create a collage effect by mixing formats, film stocks, levels of saturation, abrupt camera moves and anything else they can think of that might be perceived as edgy. Mostly, however, it's downright ugly, with color combos suggesting high toxicity quotients.(rotten tomatoes)
However annoying it can be to hear a native Brit saying "ass" instead of "arse" - or even having a go at "butt" - there are times when only the American word sounds right. Here to prove that is Keira Knightley, who has swapped her Jane Austen bonnets for some transfer tattoos, playing Domino Harvey, daughter of movie idol Laurence Harvey.Director Tony Scott's macho-sentimental tribute to Harvey neglects to mention her real-life drug problem, which contributed to her death in June this year after the movie was complete - discovered dead in her apartment due to a painkiller overdose, while awaiting trial for dealing narcotics. The omission of drugs is therefore all the more glaring and embarrassing, and Scott simply slaps an unexplained tribute on the closing credits, dedicating his film to her "memory". But what precisely is being remembered? And why? It's not a straight biopic but apparently a selective, fictionalised account of events which are of limited interest in the first place. The result is a chaotic, violent and baffling action thriller without shape or perspective, in which every frame has been cranked up with flashy editing and boiling cinematography.(guardian film reviews)
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