Odelecol Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Taraparain Tells a fascinating and unsettling true story, and does so well, without pretending to have all the answers.

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

seymourblack-1 There are plenty of laughs in this crime thriller about a small-time thief who's given a clue to the location of a huge amount of stolen gold. The information he holds leads to him (unknowingly) being followed by both the Feds and the criminal who masterminded the gold robbery. The problem is, he's in no position to profit from the knowledge he has because he doesn't know what the clue means.Two robberies from different ends of the criminal spectrum are carried out at the same time and Alvin Sanders (Jamie Foxx) who'd been arrested for his part in the theft of a consignment of prawns, finds himself sharing a prison cell with John Jaster (Robert Pastorelli) who'd been involved in the theft of $42 million worth of gold from the Federal Reserve. Jaster, a man with a serious heart condition, fears that he may not live long enough to get out of prison and so gives Alvin a cryptic message to pass on to his wife. The message which refers to "The Bronx Zoo" and "There's no place like home", means nothing to Alvin and so he gives it no further thought.The gold robbery had been meticulously planned by Bristol (Doug Hutchison) but during the heist, when he needlessly killed two security guards in execution-style shootings, Jaster was so appalled that he deserted his partner and drove off in the getaway vehicle and hid the gold. After being incarcerated, Jaster is questioned by tough U.S. Treasury Agent Edgar Clenteen (David Morse) but suffers a heart attack during the interrogation and dies. This leaves the ruthless Clenteen with nothing to go on and so he decides to manipulate Alvin's early release from prison so that he can put him out on the street and make it generally known that Alvin knows where the gold is. In order to do this, Clenteen illegally arranges for a tracking device to be implanted in Alvin's jaw.The tracking device enables the agents at a control centre to monitor Alvin's precise location at all times and also to listen in to his conversations. This, Clenteen believes, will bring Bristol out into the open and eventually lead to the recovery of the stolen gold."Bait" is an entertaining mixture of action and comedy that includes some well choreographed car chases and stunts. The two dominant colours used are dark-blue and black and they complement the prevailing atmosphere perfectly. Jamie Foxx is brilliant as the hyperactive and apparently not-very-bright Alvin whose personal life and talent for getting into trouble cause problems for both him and the Feds and David Morse makes a big impression as the totally humourless Clenteen. Doug Hutchison is suitably creepy as the soft-spoken psychopathic computer genius whose ability to hack government networks, makes him an on-going threat to the authorities.There's nothing particularly original in "Bait" but what makes it so enjoyable is Jamie Foxx, some crazy over-the-top moments (like the stunt at the end of the movie) and the skillful way in which the violence and the humour are balanced so effectively.

Newsense I am amazed at how this movie(and most others has a average 5 stars and lower when there are crappy movies averaging 7 to 10 stars on IMDb. The fanboy mentality strikes again. When this movie came out just about everyone slammed it. Even my ex-girlfriend said this movie questionable. Years later I sat down to watch this movie and I found myself enjoying. Even laughing quite a bit. This and The Replacement Killers are the movies that had people labeling the director Antoine Fuqua as the black Michael Bay. I don't see how since most of Fuqua's movies are smarter than anything Michael Bay has came up with. At any rate...Story: Alvin Sanders(Jamie Foxx) is former convict that is used by a no-nonsense Treasury agent Edgar(David Morse) as a pawn to catch a killer named Bristol(Doug Hutchinson). Alvin's every moves are tracked by a bug implanted in his jaw after an accident. While these agents are after Bristol, Bristol is after the gold bricks that were taken in a heist gone awry.Jamie Foxx is funny as well as great as Alvin Sanders. Alvin is a fast-talker that is a lot smarter than he lets on. Doug Hutchinson is okay as Bristol. He can be over-the-top sometimes in his John Malkovitchesque demeanor. He was better here than he was as Looney Bin Jim in Punisher: War Zone. David Morse is good as the hard edged treasury agent. Even Mike Epps is funny as Alvin's brother Stevie. Both him and Jamie had some funny moments on screen.The only flaw of the movie is the some of the attempts at a thriller fall flat. The scenario at the horse race track is way over-the-top but I couldn't look away. The director went all out there so he gets points for that. Plus the bomb scene with the treasury agent tied to a chair while the detonator rests on the door was pretty nifty.All in all Bait is not a bad movie by a long shot. Its never boring, its always funny and I wasn't checking my watch every minute. That should count for something. Bait is one of the most underrated movies of 2000 period.PS: to the reviewer that claimed this movie is too violent.... How long have you been living under a rock? I'm pretty sure you've seen the Die Hard series and EVERY movie by Quentin Tarantino. But those movies aren't violent right? Weirdo.

guyfromjerzee ...that Jamie Foxx would ever deliver such a wonderful, Oscar-winning performance. One of the reasons why I was so impressed with Foxx's performance in "Ray" was because from watching his hammy, obnoxious acting in movies like "Bait" and "Booty Call," I would never imagine he would ever hold the Oscar. If people told me five years ago that Jamie Foxx was one day going to win an Oscar, I would laugh right in their faces. Who knows? Maybe he's better off sticking to drama, because if you watch "Bait," it's clearly evident that comedy is not his forte. I swear, Jamie mugs so much in this movie that I'm surprised his face didn't fall off. And why does he have to do those stupid voices at every chance he gets? Anyone familiar with comedians like Bob Newhart and Steven Wright knows that doing comedy doesn't require being loud and obnoxious. If a joke is funny, it's funny. If it's not funny, then doing some crazy accent is not going to make it any funnier. The problem I have with some comedians who decide to try acting is that they favor getting laughs over being in character. In real life, normal people don't always have witty comebacks and quips. Like Albert Brooks said in an interview discussing his character in "Taxi Driver," it's important to be funny as your character, rather than be funny as a comedian. A prime example of Jamie violating that rule is the nauseatingly awful scene where his mug shots are being taken, and he starts posing for the photographs like a model. If a regular person were being thrown in jail, would he really be acting goofy while having his mug shots taken? And wouldn't the police try to scold him if he was? There are many scenes like that throughout the film. Another awful sequence is one where Jamie is on the unwittingly on the phone with the villain, and he starts doing a phony Caribbean accent. Not funny! Not to mention Jamie never seems to acknowledge the timing of a joke. Giving a comedic performance requires patience, whereas he goes straight to the punchline, whether it's the right time for it or not. I'm not even a big Mike Epps fan, but even his performance is good in comparison to Jamie's. As a matter of fact, this is the first time I felt somewhat relieved whenever he would appear on screen. Epps has the same flaws when it comes to comedy, but at least he chooses a more low-key approach. One of the few bright spots in this clunker of a comedy is David Morse, a highly underrated actor mostly known for his supporting roles as villains. He seems to be the only actor in the film concerned with grounding it in reality. However, fellow "Green Mile" star Doug Hutchison is disgustingly over-the-top as the villain. A big surprise, considering he gave a superb performance in "The Green Mile," also playing a heavy. Antoine Fuqua has proved his directing chops in movies like "The Replacement Killers" and "Training Day." Even in "Bait," he shows he can direct a hell of an action sequence. His only problem seemed to be in disciplining Jamie Foxx, who probably improvised half the script with one bad joke after another. Unless you're a die-hard fan of Foxx, please don't take the bait.

ray-280 I tuned into "Bait" one night on cable when I had nothing better to do, and was quite glad I did. Some have called this film a poor impersonation of "Enemy of the State," but the cast from this movie is actually superior to that cast.Jamie Foxx plays Alvin Sanders, a typical New York City hustler type who runs afoul of the law without being violent. His main game is to steal large quantities of prawns (expensive shrimp) and sell them on the black market. He winds up busted by a guard dog and sent to prison, and that's where his troubles begin.Alvin's cellmate turns out to be "Jasper," who dies of a heart attack during questioning about the heist of $42 million in gold from the US Treasury, in which a Treasury agent is murdered (otherwise, they wouldn't have gone to the trouble to catch him). Before he dies, Jasper confides in Alvin (in code) where the gold is, and the T-men realize that he can be used as "bait" to flush out the superhacker who thinks that he knows where the gold is.Alvin is clueless as to what's going on, but slowly comes to realize during the film that the killer wants him dead, and the government doesn't care if he dies in order for them to catch the Killer. To that extent, the movie uses the formula that "The Firm" did so well years earlier. Foxx's comedic talents greatly enhance his performance, and show once again (as John Candy did in "Cool Runnings") that the proper use for a comedian in a major motion picture is to use his talent to add depth to a dramatic role.Jamie Foxx has won an Oscar for "Ray" since this movie came out, and is now on the A-list. David Morse went on to star in "Hack" on television and has impressive credentials all his own. The supporting cast is solid and you'll recognize most of them from their other work (such as Robert Pastorelli of Murphy Brown playing Jasper, or David Paymer, who also was good in "Joe And Max" on Showtime).When a "bad" movie takes itself too seriously, and pretends it's a good movie, it can be insufferable. Fortunately for the viewer, this movie takes itself seriously because it really is a good movie, well-acted, and with a cast that makes the most out of what it was given. Sure, the movie could have been better, but not by as much as one might think if they haven't seen it.The only thing I didn't like about the movie was Kimberly Elise as the stereotypical "together" single black mother who looks down on the very type of man she rushed into bed with to have her child.