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Spartan

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Spartan (2004)

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Reviews Counted:129

Fresh:82

Rotten:47

Average Rating:6.5/10

Consensus: A good cast and Mamet's mastery over the written language elevate an otherwise conventional thriller.

Rated: R [See Full Rating] for violence and language

Runtime: 1 hr 47 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Mar 12, 2004 Wide

Box Office: $4,291,858

Synopsis: Robert Scott (VAL KILMER) is a career military officer working in a highly secretive special operations force. A man hardened by years of brutal service, he is respected by his peers and elders in... Robert Scott (VAL KILMER) is a career military officer working in a highly secretive special operations force. A man hardened by years of brutal service, he is respected by his peers and elders in the world of espionage. When Scott is recruited to find Laura Newton (KRISTEN BELL), the daughter of a high-ranking government official, he is paired with novice Curtis (DEREK LUKE), who becomes his protégé. Working with a special task force comprised of Presidential Advisors, the Secret Service, FBI and CIA, Scott and Derek stumble upon a white slavery ring, which may have some connection to Laura’s disappearance. As the story unfolds, the straightforward search-and-rescue mission becomes complicated by the political ambitions of those in high places – like Stoddard (WILLIAM H. MACY), a political operative who may know more than he’s telling about the clandestine circumstances surrounding Laura’s abduction. Scott and Curtis are at the brink of tracking Laura’s whereabouts when the mission comes to an abrupt conclusion, with the media issuing reports of the girl’s death. Scott returns to the quiet life of landowner in a rural location and awaits his next assignment in relative peace. But Curtis can’t rest. In his naiveté, he seeks out Scott to confide his belief that Laura is in fact alive. If she is, their continued unofficial investigation will put them as well as Laura at the center of a dangerous conspiracy that reaches the highest levels. Franchise Pictures presents Spartan, a political thriller written and directed by DAVID MAMET and starring VAL KILMER, DEREK LUKE, ED O’NEILL and WILLIAM H. MACY. Spartan is produced by ART LINSON, MOSHE DIAMANT and ELIE SAMAHA, and executive produced by FRANK HUBNER. The director of photography is JUAN RUIZ ANCHIA; the production designer is GEMMA JACKSON; and the editor BARBARA TULLIVER. Spartan will distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company. -- © Warner Bros. [More]

Starring: Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, William H. Macy, Tia Texada

Starring: Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, William H. Macy, Tia Texada, Kristen Bell, Ed O'Neill

Director: David Mamet

Director: David Mamet
Screenwriter: David Mamet
Producer: Moshe Diamant, Art Linson, Elie Samaha
Composer: Mark Isham
Studio: Warner Bros.

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Release:

Jun 15, 2004

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Reviews for Spartan

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41 - 60 (sorted by date)
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As a thriller, Spartan will hold your attention, but unfortunately writer/director's David Mamet's style doesn't fit well in this milieu.

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
03/19/04
Kit Bowen
Kit Bowen
Hollywood.com

deflates the well-worn Tom Clancy-ish spy genre of its emphasis on straightforward plot-point-to-plot-point narrative and refills it with a politically charged undercurrent

Full Review Source: Q Network Film Desk | comment Comment
03/19/04
James Kendrick
James Kendrick
Q Network Film Desk

The first two-thirds of the film is one of the best of the year. Then it doesn’t exactly fall apart, just goes down a couple of notches to mediocrity.

Full Review Source: Greenwich Village Gazette | comment Comment
03/19/04
Eric Lurio
Eric Lurio
Greenwich Village Gazette

...the latest voyage into David Mamet land, as removed from real life as Bill Gates is from a job at Starbucks.

Full Review Source: Boulder Weekly | comment Comment
03/18/04
Thomas Delapa
Thomas Delapa
Boulder Weekly

Not one character makes sense, there is no shred of craft, and the script sounds like it was written by a 6-year-old who has accidentally swallowed a microchip.

Full Review Source: New York Observer | comment Comment
03/18/04
Rex Reed
Rex Reed
New York Observer
Top Critic Icon Top Critic

Spartan demands you participate. I hope I'm not the only person who finds that refreshing.

Full Review Source: Movie Habit | comment Comment
03/17/04
Marty Mapes
Marty Mapes
Movie Habit

This gritty bit of pulp fiction is more than just lurid action and violence... Spartan is lean and spare, but it delivers.

Full Review Source: Worcester Telegram & Gazette | comment Comment
03/17/04
Daniel M. Kimmel
Daniel M. Kimmel
Worcester Telegram & Gazette
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
03/16/04
Boston Phoenix
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Orlando Weekly | comment Comment
03/16/04
Orlando Weekly
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch | comment Comment
03/16/04
St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Hollywood.com | comment Comment
03/16/04
Hollywood.com

The trajectory of the film's storyline is impossible to predict, as it changes every 20 minutes or so.

Full Review Source: Reel Film Reviews | comment Comment
03/16/04
David Nusair
David Nusair
Reel Film Reviews

A political thriller with topical currency, Spartan delivers the goods.

Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
03/16/04
Marjorie Baumgarten
Marjorie Baumgarten
Austin Chronicle

Those who figure the phrase 'smart action movie' is a contradiction in terms should be referred to celebrated playwright-turned- filmmaker David Mamet's Spartan.

Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
03/16/04
Michael Tunison
Michael Tunison
Boxoffice Magazine
N/R

Click to read the article

Full Review Source: Fantastica Daily | comment Comment
03/16/04
Staci Layne Wilson
Staci Layne Wilson
Fantastica Daily

The message may not be comforting, but it's a wake-up call to consider individual rights and responsibilities, political wrongdoing and spin-doctoring, and the role of the press.

Full Review Source: Palo Alto Weekly | comment Comment
03/16/04
Susan Tavernetti
Susan Tavernetti
Palo Alto Weekly

...neither a stylish thriller nor is it a deep probing look at the human condition...

Full Review Source: Talking Pictures (U.S.) | comment Comment
03/16/04
Tony Toscano
Tony Toscano
Talking Pictures (U.S.)

[A] superb drama...Kilmer’s performance is a searing portrait of a man whose professional dedication has overtaken his soul.

Full Review Source: Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia) | comment Comment
03/15/04
Mark Palermo
Mark Palermo
Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Entertaining, riddled with movement, suspenseful and packed with intrigue, intrigue and oh, did I mention...intrigue?

Full Review Source: JoBlo's Movie Emporium | comment Comment
03/15/04
JoBlo
JoBlo
JoBlo's Movie Emporium

He commits the very last sin his characters would permit -- he loses control with multiply paranoid layers that wear out instead of boring in.

Full Review Source: Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies | comment Comment
03/14/04
Nell Minow
Nell Minow
Movie Mom at Yahoo! Movies
 
 
41 - 60 (sorted by date)
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Latest News for Spartan

October 26, 2006: Critical Consensus: "Fire" Blazes; "Scissors" Isn't Sharp Enough; "Saw III" Not Screened: Guess The Tomatometer!
This week at the movies, we've got the return of Jigsaw ("Saw III," starring Tobin Bell), a tale of rebellion in apartheid-era South Africa ("Catch a Fire,"... More...

June 06, 2005: Milian and Bell Feel the "Pulse"
Variety reports that pop star Christina Milian ("Be Cool") and actress Kristen Bell ("Spartan") have signed on to appear in the Weinstein Company horror... More...

March 30, 2005: Weinsteins to Restart Dimension with an All-New "Pulse"
The Hollywood Reporter reminds us that there's always another Japanese horror flick worth remaking. Dimension Pictures has just signed Kristen Bell ("Spartan," TV's... More...

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