Angel Eyes

Directed by Luis Mandoki, Angel Eyes follows Jennifer Lopez’s Sharon Pogue as she embarks upon an unexpected relationship with an enigmatic man (Jim Caviezel’s Catch). Filmmaker Mandoki, working from Gerald Di Pego’s screenplay, delivers an exceedingly (and often excessively) deliberate endeavor that never quite becomes as gripping or engrossing as one might’ve hoped, and yet it’s equally clear that the movie boasts a continuously watchable feel thanks to its assortment of compelling, appealing attributes – with this particularly true of Lopez and Caviezel’s compelling efforts, as well as their palpable chemistry together, and a fairly irresistible underlying mystery surrounding Catch’s tragic past. And although Mandoki’s perpetually sluggish sensibilities often threaten to alienate the viewer entirely, particularly within a midsection that drags more often than it doesn’t, Angel Eyes builds towards a satisfying climactic stretch that does, in the end, cement its place as a decent-enough, Nicholas Sparks-like romantic drama.

**1/2 out of ****