Introducing an exciting new talent: Tom Cruise. Sure, we know
Tom Cruise after his three decades in the business. We know way too
much about Tom Cruise, actually, thanks to his well-documented
off-screen antics the past few years. “Knight and Day” is a
refreshing reminder, though, of why he is a superstar: He has that
undeniable charisma about him and he really can act, something for
which he doesn’t always get the credit he deserves. Here, he plays
a Vintage Tom Cruise Role: He gets to be charming but also toy with
the idea that he might be a little nuts. As secret agent Roy
Miller, he has that twinkle in his eye and that sexy little smile
but he’s also strangely calm in the middle of elaborate car chases
and shootouts — relaxed, articulate and abidingly courteous when
most mortals would be freaking out. That’s part of the fun of the
character and the movie as a whole, that contradiction. Cruise’s
presence also helps keep James Mangold’s film light, breezy and
watchable when the action — and the story itself — spin
ridiculously out of control. Cruise and Cameron Diaz make an oddly
appealing pair as a (possibly) rogue spy and the innocent woman he
must now protect. But the romance between them feels forced and is
one of the movie’s chief weaknesses. PG-13 for sequences of action
violence throughout, and brief strong language. 109 min. Two and a
half stars out of four.

— Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic