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The Guardian Kevin Costner is a fine actor, sublime when appearing in one of his Westerns, less sure of himself when he dips his toe in the water, as Waterworld (1995) amply demonstrates (although personally I have a soft spot for that movie, a view not shared by all critics). Playing the role of a grizzled United States Coast Guard diver, who spends most of his time in freezing water, is therefore a bit of a risk, given his track record.
Following a disaster when all of his helicopter crew is killed on a rescue mission Ben Randall (Costner), who is something of a living legend in the service, takes a break to teach new Coast Guard recruits on the aviation survival technician program. One student stands out: Jake Fischer (Ashton Kutcher), a gifted swimmer who appears to have an attitude problem. However the parallels between Randall and Fischer are closer than either of them first imagine.
The Guardian is something of a by-the-numbers drama, containing few surprises as the action unfolds. It plays rather like an advert for the United States Coast Guard, in the same way that Top Gun (1986) was for Navy fighter pilots.
Most of the movie takes place at the Barksdale Air Force Base training camp in Louisainia as the recruits are whittled down by the gruelling course and Randall’s unorthodox teaching methods, which includes making them sit in iced water in order to really understand hypothermia rather than simply reading about it in books.
Meanwhile Randall is battling his own personal demons: haunted by the death of his friend and dealing with an impending divorce from his wife who tired of the long hours his job demands. He finds refuge in a bottle Wild Turkey bourbon and a handful of pills.
Kutcher demonstrates that there's more to him than slight comedic roles, dating older women and the Kabbalah. He’s played serious roles before, for example The Butterfly Effect (2004), but this could be the break-out role that transforms the public’s perceptions of him. Jake Fischer might be a character beset by fairly clichéd problems, but Kutcher plays him with gusto and conviction.
Costner sits comfortably in the skin of the Coast Guard vet, and manages to convey Randall’s inner turmoil with effortless minimalism (even though the script over eggs the pudding by making him wake up in cold sweat every night). But it's that kind of film, and subtlety is more often than not swept aside in favour of exaggerated spectacle.
The movie is bookended by tense drama amongst the freezing seas and roiling waves of Alaska’s Bering Sea. There are some occasionally shoddy compositing and visual effects, particularly at the beginning of the movie, but water is notoriously tough to recreate both in CGI and in miniatures. Very few films have totally nailed stormy oceans, with The Perfect Storm (2000) and Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003) being the only two examples that spring to mind. But frankly only the most critical and observant of movie audiences will notice or care.
The Guardian is a diverting, inoffensive popcorn muncher. Given the underwhelming lack of competition in movie theatres at the moment, this film could be the underdog that performs better than expected in the quiet period between the summer blockbusters and the big movies pumped out over the holiday season.
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