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Media coverage of the dissolution of Brad Pitt’s marriage to Jennifer Aniston and his subsequent attachment to Angelina Jolie, his costar in this loud and lively action comedy, unfortunately overshadowed the film itself. Pitt and Jolie portray the titular spouses, both of whom lead secret lives on the side -- unbeknownst to the other -- as assassins for competing interests. Assigned to the same hit, they get in each other’s way and blow the job, leading to a spy-vs.-spy showdown that only exacerbates their growing dissatisfaction with their marriage. Their long-simmering antipathy turns deadly, with a supposedly quiet dinner at home erupting into open warfare. Of course, the joke is on them: Their respective employers want them both dead and are prepared to deploy hit squads to take out the survivor. Director Doug Liman (The Bourne Identity) is not exactly subtle or restrained in his staging of action scenes, and this film’s armed confrontations are nothing short of cyclonic in their speed and intensity. The chemistry between Pitt and Jolie, however, is palpable, which lends the needed credibility -- and a leavening dollop of insouciance -- to one of the most patently absurd plots committed to celluloid in many a moon. Vince Vaughn adds his trademark wisecracking humor to the characterization of a hit man who lives with his mother, and the effectiveness of his contribution shouldn’t be underestimated. (You, too, will be forgiven for wondering what was in the water on this shoot, in light of Vaughn’s subsequent courting of the soon-to-be-erstwhile Mrs. Pitt.) But the whole show is watching Pitt and Jolie beat the heck out of each other, so if that’s your idea of a good time -- and we can’t imagine why it wouldn’t be -- this rapid-paced romp ought to be right up your alley. Ed Hulse

All Movie Guide

Many married couples have secrets, but one pair of lovebirds discover they've both been living dangerous secret lives in this action thriller laced with comedy. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt and play Jane Smith and John Smith, a suburban couple whose marriage has started to go a bit stale after five or six years. Both wish for more excitement in their relationship, but as it happens, each of them is finding plenty of thrills elsewhere. Both Jane and John are world-class assassins who will take on perilous missions for the right price, but neither is aware of the other's secret life - Jane thinks her husband runs a successful construction company, and John believes his wife works on Wall Street. However, when John and Jane are both assigned to take out the same target, one Benjamin Danz (Adam Brody), they become aware of each other's secret lives, and suddenly both their careers and their marriage go through some dramatic and potentially deadly changes. Mr. and Mrs. Smith also stars Vince Vaughn as an assassin with John's company who still lives with his mother and Kerry Washington as one of Jane's associates. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 024543213857
• Source: 20TH CENTURY FOX
• Region Code: 1
• Time: 2:00:00
• Sales Rank: 12,310

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Angelina Jolie Celebrity Pack
• Love Is War Box Set
• Lies & Deception Box Set
• Brad Pitt Triple Feature

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