Rewatching Knight and Day proves why this Tom Cruise action rom-com is better than you remember

Knight and Day is a film that I recently rewatched after a long time. The film came out on June 23, 2010, and it's directed by James Mangold. Patrick O'Neill wrote the script of this action comedy film starring Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz in the lead roles. Here's the official synopsis:

A young woman gets mixed up with a disgraced spy who is trying to clear his name.

While rewatching it, I realized that it doesn't truly deserve all the hate it might have received when it came out. I will be exploring more on this, so read on.

Rewatching Knight and Day made me appreciate it more

I don't even remember watching Knight and Day back when it came out. It might have been just a mundane action comedy with two A-listers. But rewatching it recently after more than a decade has changed my perspective on it. The film is about a girl who restores classic vehicles and gets caught up with a secret agent for some reason. The latter is getting chased by the CIA, and the rest of the film follows funny dialogues, funny situations, and a lot of action sequences. Surprisingly, the film has aged gracefully, at least for me.

Both Cruise and Diaz are having a lot of fun and just infuse themselves with the characters. Certain bits are a bit illogical, but that's cinema, and I can't single this film out. One of the major highlights is the chemistry between the two leads. I'm surprised that the two have not done more films together, as they look so good on-screen.

The pace of the film moves at a breakneck speed and doesn't allow you to get bored for a moment. When it came out, the film ended up grossing $262 million, becoming a financially profitable venture. But it was panned by critics and still holds a 51% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Looking at these reviews and rewatching the film, I feel Knight and Day was unfairly targeted. If you overlook the frivolousness of the overall story, it can actually be a fun watch. It's not a film with a strong message, and the makers are pretty clear about that.

So if you only watch it for the film it is, then you can embrace all its entertainment quotient. It works both ways, as an action film and as an effective romantic comedy with a lot of tender moments.

More about Knight and Day

A still from Knight and Day | Image via 20th Century Studios

Knight and Day is produced by Steve Pink, Todd Garner, and Cathy Konrad. Here's a list of its cast members:

Tom Cruise as Roy Miller/Matthew Knight
Jordi Mollà as Antonio Quintana
Falk Hentschel as Bernhard
Lennie Loftin as Braces
Viola Davis as CIA Director Isabel George
Cameron Diaz as June Havens
Peter Sarsgaard as John Fitzgerald
Paul Dano as Simon Feck
Marc Blucas as Rodney

This action rom-com is not a perfect film, but it's not as bad as it's perceived to be. So if you want to watch something light, then you can give this one a try.

Did you like Knight and Day?