Out Of Sight 1998

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune: A darkly amusing and sly romantic comedy about an accident-prone bank robber (George Clooney) who falls in love with the sexy federal marshal (Jennifer Lopez) on his tail. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: As always with the best of Leonard, it's the journey, not the destination, that counts, and director Soderbergh has let it unfold with dry wit and great skill. Read more

Jay Boyar, Orlando Sentinel: Soderbergh understands the flaky, funny spirit of Leonard's characters and he gets his cast to express it. Read more

Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: [A] now-classic romantic comedy -- with plenty of action and suspense. Read more

Keith Phipps, AV Club: Out Of Sight works both as a great romance and a great, unconventional crime thriller. But step back from such distinctions, and it just looks like a great movie. Read more

Paul Tatara, CNN.com: Easily the best film I've seen in 1998. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: Out of Sight may be the first movie that has truly gotten an Elmore Leonard novel on screen, in all its hangdog wit and fractured-jigsaw form. Read more

Rick Groen, Globe and Mail: Out of Sight isn't just a rousing piece of entertainment, it's also a cinematic salvage operation. Read more

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader: Some reviewers have applauded Out of Sight for its nuances of character, but I and others don't see any characters at all. Read more

Anthony Lane, New Yorker: After many mishaps, the art of bringing Elmore Leonard's novels to the screen is coming to fruition. This latest adaptation, by director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Scott Frank, gets it just about right. Read more

Dave Kehr, New York Daily News: There isn't a character in the large, excellent cast that doesn't emerge with depth and precision. Read more

Janet Maslin, New York Times: Like Get Shorty, Out of Sight has been adapted with deftness and fidelity by Scott Frank, who knows exactly how to translate Leonard's narrative voice to the screen. Read more

Andrew Sarris, New York Observer: From the first shot to the last, Mr. Clooney is in complete command of the screen in the assured manner of the biggest stars in the past, and he doesn't need a ton of special effects and digital enhancement to generate excitement. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: It's refreshing to find a picture like Out of Sight, which is not only smart, but a great deal of fun, as well. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Steven Soderbergh's best film since Sex, Lies and Videotape a decade ago. Read more

Charles Taylor, Salon.com: Soderbergh takes real delight in giving his stars the star treatment. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: Out of Sight may go down in the annals of film as the movie in which George Clooney learned to keep his head still -- and became a leading man. Read more

David Edelstein, Slate: Out of Sight is slick in all the right ways. Read more

Richard Schickel, TIME Magazine: Out Of Sight is another fine mess Elmore Leonard has got us into. Read more

Geoff Andrew, Time Out: A splendid reminder of just how assured, intelligent and involving Soderbergh's movies can be. Read more

Emanuel Levy, Variety: Steven Soderbergh's most ambitious and most accomplished work to date. Read more

Stephen Hunter, Washington Post: Clooney is the most impressive he's been on film. Jack Foley feels real, not like some Hollywood improvisation. Foley is charming, handsome, graceful, cultured, energetic and disciplined. He just can't stop committing crimes. Read more

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: The characters all seem to have known each other for years, referring to long-held grudges and resentments that only gradually are revealed to the audience. They're a seedy, petty, dangerous and delightful bunch. Read more