The Saint (1997)
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30% of critics liked it
(44 reviews) -
60% of users liked it
(66,656 ratings)
Based on the popular novels about that other suave, globe-trotting man of action, this genre picture from director Phillip Noyce mixed romance and character development with dangerous stunts, geopolitical intrigue, and a variety of elaborate disguises, resulting in an uneven stew of a spy thriller.… More Based on the popular novels about that other suave, globe-trotting man of action, this genre picture from director Phillip Noyce mixed romance and character development with dangerous stunts, geopolitical intrigue, and a variety of elaborate disguises, resulting in an uneven stew of a spy thriller. Val Kilmer is Simon Templar, a classy, cunning master thief and "man of a thousand faces" who cribs his phony names from those of obscure saints and sells his illegal services to the highest bidder. Hired by an ambitious Russian politician (Rade Serbedzija) to steal the formula for cold fusion, Templar falls in love with Dr. Emma Russell (Elisabeth Shue), the frail Oxford scientist who has unlocked the secret of the process. Back in Moscow, the thief debates whether to betray his new love or the powerful madman who is paying him millions, until he discovers that his client is concealing oil reserves that could save his freezing people. Often seen as an also-ran to the legendary James Bond, Templar, the creation of author Leslie Charteris, in fact predated the first Bond novel by decades and probably inspired Ian Fleming in his creation of the debonair agent. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi
- Directed By
- Phillip Noyce
- Written By
- Jonathan Hensleigh, Wesley Strick
- Genres
- Mystery & Suspense, Action & Adventure
- In Theaters
- Apr 4, 1997 Wide
- Studio
- Paramount
Critic Reviews
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Todd McCarthy, Variety
A generic suspenser that doesn't taste bad at first bite but becomes increasingly hard to swallow.
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Lisa Alspector, Chicago Reader
This insufferable romance-adventure includes vague comedy as well as unintentional humor, and its target audience seems to be preadolescents who won't notice the calculated enthusiasm with which it sidesteps sexuality.
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Derek Adams, Time Out
Eminently forgettable.
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Peter Travers, Rolling Stone
Love redeems this profiteer; it also renders him conventional.
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Rita Kempley, Washington Post
Reinvention in the hands of Hollywood is seldom cause for celebration.
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Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)
Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)
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Cast
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Val Kilmer
as Simon Templer
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Elisabeth Shue
as Dr. Emma Russell
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Rade Serbedzija
as Ivan Tretiak
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Valery Nikolaev
as Ilya Tretiak
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Henry Goodman
as Dr. Lev Botvin
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Alun Armstrong
as Chief Inspector Teal
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Michael Byrne
as Tretiak's Aide Vereshagin
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Charlotte Cornwell
as Inspector Rabineau
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Pat Laffan
as Catholic Priest
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Yevgeny Lazarev
as President Karpov
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Irina Apeksimova
as Frankie
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Emily Mortimer
as Woman on Plane
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Verity Dearsley
as Agnes
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Lev Prygunov
as General Sklarov
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Lucija Serbedzija
as Russian Prostitute
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Adam Smith
as Young Simon Templar
- Tommy Flanagan
- Ian Hendry
- Roger Moore


