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''Salt'' is a 2010 American
action thriller film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...
directed by Phillip Noyce, written by
Kurt Wimmer Kurt Wimmer (born 1964) is an American screenwriter, film producer and film director. Biography He attended the University of South Florida and graduated with a BFA degree in Art History. He then moved to Los Angeles, where he worked for 12 yea ...
, and starring
Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...
,
Liev Schreiber Isaac Liev Schreiber (; born October 4, 1967) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and narrator. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s after appearing in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywood ...
,
Daniel Olbrychski Daniel Marcel Olbrychski (; born 27 February 1945) is a Polish film and theatre actor who is widely considered one of the greatest Polish actors of his generation. He appeared in 180 films and TV productions and is best known for leading roles ...
,
August Diehl August Diehl (; born 4 January 1976) is a German actor, primarily known to international audiences for playing Gestapo major Dieter Hellstrom in Quentin Tarantino's ''Inglourious Basterds'' and Michael "Mike" Krause, Evelyn Salt's husband, in the ...
and
Chiwetel Ejiofor Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor ( ; born 10 July 1977) is a British actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a BAFTA Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, an NAACP Image Award, and nominations for an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awa ...
. Jolie plays Evelyn Salt, who is accused of being a
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...
n
sleeper agent A sleeper agent, also called sleeper cell, is a spy who is placed in a target country or organization not to undertake an immediate mission but to act as a potential asset if activated. Even if unactivated, the "sleeper agent" is still an asset ...
and goes on the run to try to clear her name. Originally written with a male protagonist, with Tom Cruise initially secured for the lead, the script was ultimately rewritten by
Brian Helgeland Brian Thomas Helgeland (born January 17, 1961) is an American screenwriter, film producer and director. He is most known for writing the screenplays for the films '' L.A. Confidential'' and ''Mystic River''. He also wrote and directed the films ...
for Jolie. Filming took place on location in
Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, Na ...
, New York City, and
Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City. ...
, between March and June 2009, with reshoots in January 2010. Action scenes were primarily performed with practical stunts,
computer-generated imagery Computer-generated imagery (CGI) is the use of computer graphics to create or contribute to images in art, printed media, video games, simulators, and visual effects in films, television programs, shorts, commercials, and videos. The image ...
being used mostly for creating digital environments. The film had a panel at the San Diego Comic-Con on July 22 and was released in North America on July 23, 2010, and in the United Kingdom on August 18, 2010. ''Salt'' grossed $294 million at the worldwide box office and received generally positive reviews, with praise for the action scenes and Jolie's performance, but drawing criticism on the writing, with reviewers finding the plot implausible and convoluted. The DVD and Blu-ray disc were released December 21, 2010, and featured two alternate cuts providing different endings for the film. ''Salt'' was nominated for Best Sound Mixing at the
83rd Academy Awards The 83rd Academy Awards ceremony, organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2010 in the United States and took place on February 27, 2011, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles beg ...
.


Plot

Evelyn Salt is in prison in North Korea, suspected of being a U.S. spy. The
Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...
(CIA) arranges a prisoner exchange to stifle the publicity her boyfriend,
arachnologist Arachnology is the scientific study of arachnids, which comprise spiders and related invertebrates such as scorpions, pseudoscorpions, and harvestmen. Those who study spiders and other arachnids are arachnologists. More narrowly, the study of s ...
Mike Krause, is bringing to her case. Mike proposes marriage despite her admission that she is a CIA operative. Two years later, Salt interrogates Russian defector Oleg Vasilyevich Orlov, with CIA colleague Ted Winter and CIA counterintelligence officer Darryl Peabody observing. Orlov claims that on "Day X", Russian sleeper agents known as "KAs" will destroy the United States of America, and that Agent "KA-12" will assassinate Russian President Boris Matveyev at the impending funeral of the US Vice President. He says KA-12's name is Evelyn Salt. Peabody orders Salt to be detained, while Orlov kills two agents and escapes. Salt also escapes and tries to phone her husband Mike while traveling to her home and evading the chasing CIA and police. Mike has been kidnapped. Salt gathers supplies including weapons and a spider in a jar. Salt shoots Matveyev at the Vice President's funeral and surrenders to Peabody instead of taking the opportunity to kill him. Matveyev is pronounced dead. Salt escapes to a barge where Orlov is waiting with other sleeper agents. In flashback Salt recalls her childhood in the Soviet Union, being trained with other children and assuming the identity of the real Evelyn Salt, an American girl who died with her parents in a car crash in the Soviet Union. Orlov tests Salt by reuniting her with Mike only to immediately have him killed in front of her. Her lack of reaction convinces Orlov and he says she and another KA will assassinate U.S. president Howard Lewis. Salt kills Orlov and the other agents and leaves to meet with the KA Shnaider in his cover as a
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus' Places * Czech ...
- NATO liaison officer. Disguised as Shnaider's male attaché, she accompanies him into the White House, where Shnaider launches a suicide attack driving the President into a secure underground bunker, accompanied by Winter and other agents. Salt manages to enter the outer bunker before it is sealed. Russia mobilizes its nuclear arsenal in response to President Matveyev's assassination. US President Lewis orders preparations for retaliation. Upon realizing Salt has entered the outer bunker, Winter kills everyone in the inner bunker except the President, revealing himself to be KA Nikolai Tarkovsky. Incapacitating the President, Tarkovsky begins targeting missiles at Mecca and Tehran to incite a billion Muslims against the United States. Salt professes admiration and nearly persuades him to let her join him in the inner bunker when a broadcast reports that President Matveyev is alive, his vital signs having been merely suppressed by spider venom. Tarkovsky realises Salt is not on his side and reveals that she is to be the
patsy Patsy is a given name often used as a diminutive of the feminine given name Patricia or sometimes the masculine name Patrick, or occasionally other names containing the syllable "Pat" (such as Cleopatra, Patience, Patrice, or Patricia). Among I ...
for the nuclear attacks. Salt breaks into the bunker and, after a fight, aborts the missile launch. Reinforcements arrive and Salt is arrested as Tarkovsky identifies himself as CIA. As Salt is being led out in chains, Tarkovsky grabs a pair of scissors. As Salt is led past him she throws her chain around his neck and jumps over the railing, killing him. Alone with Peabody in a helicopter, Salt explains her actions to him, promising to hunt down the remaining KA agents if freed, pointing out that Matveyev is alive and that she hadn't shot Peabody earlier. Salt's fingerprints are found on the barge, convincing Peabody who allows her to jump from the helicopter into the
Potomac River The Potomac River () drains the Mid-Atlantic United States, flowing from the Potomac Highlands into Chesapeake Bay. It is long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map. Retrieved Augu ...
.


Cast

*
Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...
as Evelyn Salt, a CIA operative accused of being a
double agent In the field of counterintelligence, a double agent is an employee of a secret intelligence service for one country, whose primary purpose is to spy on a target organization of another country, but who is now spying on their own country's organ ...
for the
KGB The KGB (russian: links=no, lit=Committee for State Security, Комитет государственной безопасности (КГБ), a=ru-KGB.ogg, p=kəmʲɪˈtʲet ɡəsʊˈdarstvʲɪn(ː)əj bʲɪzɐˈpasnəsʲtʲɪ, Komitet gosud ...
*
Liev Schreiber Isaac Liev Schreiber (; born October 4, 1967) is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and narrator. He became known during the late 1990s and early 2000s after appearing in several independent films, and later mainstream Hollywood ...
as Theodore "Ted" Winter / Nikolai Tarkovsky, a corrupt head of the fictional CIA's Russia House *
Chiwetel Ejiofor Chiwetel Umeadi Ejiofor ( ; born 10 July 1977) is a British actor. He is the recipient of various accolades, including a BAFTA Award, a Laurence Olivier Award, an NAACP Image Award, and nominations for an Academy Award, two Primetime Emmy Awa ...
as Darryl Peabody, an ONCIX agent in pursuit of Salt *
Daniel Olbrychski Daniel Marcel Olbrychski (; born 27 February 1945) is a Polish film and theatre actor who is widely considered one of the greatest Polish actors of his generation. He appeared in 180 films and TV productions and is best known for leading roles ...
as Oleg Vassily Orlov, the Russian defector and
spymaster A spymaster is the person that leads a spy ring, or a secret service (such as an intelligence agency). Historical spymasters See also *List of American spies This is a list of spies who engaged in direct espionage. It includes Americans s ...
** Daniel Pearce as a younger Orlov in the flashbacks *
August Diehl August Diehl (; born 4 January 1976) is a German actor, primarily known to international audiences for playing Gestapo major Dieter Hellstrom in Quentin Tarantino's ''Inglourious Basterds'' and Michael "Mike" Krause, Evelyn Salt's husband, in the ...
as Mike Krause, Salt's husband * Tika Sumpter as Front Desk Woman *
Olek Krupa Aleksander Krupa (born 18 March 1947), often credited as Olek Krupa, is a Polish actor, active in film and television roles and best known for playing villains and/or criminals, such as in ''Eraser'', ''Blue Streak'', ''Home Alone 3'' as Peter B ...
as Boris Matveyev, the President of Russia *
Hunt Block Hunt Block (full name Huntington Macdonald Block, born February 16, 1954) is an American actor. Block graduated from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and has enjoyed a successful acting career over many decades. Career Bloc ...
as Howard Lewis, the President of the United States *
Corey Stoll Corey Stoll (born March 14, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Congressman Peter Russo on the Netflix political thriller series '' House of Cards'' (2013–2016), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination in 20 ...
as Shnaider, the Russian suicide-bomber sent to his death by Orlov *
Andre Braugher Andre Keith Braugher (; born July 1, 1962) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Detective Frank Pembleton in the police drama series '' Homicide: Life on the Street'' (1993–1999), used car salesman Owen Thoreau Jr. in the co ...
as Secretary of Defense


Production


Development and writing

The early development of the script began while Kurt Wimmer was doing interviews promoting '' Equilibrium''. In a November 2002 interview, he discussed on which scripts he was working. He stated, "I have several scripts – foremost of which is one called ''The Far-Reaching Philosophy of Edwin A. Salt'' – kind of a high-action spy thriller..." In another interview, Wimmer described the project as "very much about me and my wife". The plot incorporated many elements from ''Equilibrium'', with an oppressive and paranoid political system of
brainwashing Brainwashing (also known as mind control, menticide, coercive persuasion, thought control, thought reform, and forced re-education) is the concept that the human mind can be altered or controlled by certain psychological techniques. Brainwashin ...
that gets overthrown by one of its high-ranking members, who rebels due to an emotional transformation. With the shortened title ''Edwin A. Salt'', the script was sold to
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mult ...
in January 2007. By July 2007, the script had attracted the attention of Tom Cruise.
Terry George Terence George (born 20 December 1952) is an Irish screenwriter and director. Much of his film work (e.g. ''The Boxer'', ''Some Mother's Son'', and '' In the Name of the Father'') involves " The Troubles" in Northern Ireland. He was nominated ...
was the first director to join the project, and he also did some revisions to the script, but he soon left the project.
Peter Berg Peter Berg (born March 11, 1964) is an American director, producer, writer, and actor. His directorial film works include the black comedy ''Very Bad Things'' (1998), the action comedy ''The Rundown'' (2003), the sports drama '' Friday Night Lig ...
was the next director to consider, but he, too, eventually dropped out for undisclosed reasons. A year later, Phillip Noyce was confirmed to direct. Noyce was attracted to ''Salt'' for its espionage themes, which are present in most of his filmography, as well as the tension of a character who tries to prove his innocence, yet also does what he was previously accused of.


Casting

Initial discussions took place in 2008 between Tom Cruise and Noyce about Cruise playing Edwin A. Salt. These discussions were going on for more than a year between the pair and their representatives. Cruise decided he was unable to commit to the script because he feared that the character was too close to his '' Mission: Impossible'' character
Ethan Hunt Ethan Matthew Hunt is a fictional character and the protagonist of the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series. He is portrayed by Tom Cruise. Appearances ''Mission: Impossible'' (1996) In the first film, Hunt acts as the IMF point man for an ex ...
. Cruise decided to work on '' Knight and Day'', instead. The filmmakers tried to differentiate the character from Hunt, but eventually came to accept they were too similar and decided not to change the characteristics of Salt. Noyce said, "But, you know, he had a valid point. It was kind of returning to an offshoot of a character that he'd already played. It's like playing the brother, or the cousin, of somebody that you played in another movie."
Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mult ...
executive
Amy Pascal Amy Beth Pascal (born March 25, 1958) is an American film producer and business executive. She served as the Chairperson of the Motion Pictures Group of Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) and Co-Chairperson of SPE, including Sony Pictures Televis ...
suggested
Angelina Jolie Angelina Jolie (; born Angelina Jolie Voight; June 4, 1975) is an American actress, filmmaker, humanitarian and former Special Envoy to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. The recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award ...
to Noyce, who had often spoken to Jolie in the past about a desire to create a female spy franchise. Pascal even invited Jolie for a
Bond girl A Bond girl is a character who is a love interest or female companion of James Bond in a novel, film or video game. Bond girls occasionally have names that are double entendres or puns, such as Pussy Galore, Plenty O'Toole, Xenia Onatopp, or ...
role, but the actress replied that she was more interested in playing James Bond herself, instead. Jolie was sent ''Salt''s script in September 2008 and liked it. Wimmer, Noyce, and producer
Lorenzo di Bonaventura Lorenzo di Bonaventura (; born January 13, 1957) is an American film producer and founder and owner of Di Bonaventura Pictures. He is best known for producing the G.I. Joe and ''Transformers'' film series. The films he produced have earned over ...
went to visit Jolie at her home in France to discuss a possible script and character change. Writer
Brian Helgeland Brian Thomas Helgeland (born January 17, 1961) is an American screenwriter, film producer and director. He is most known for writing the screenplays for the films '' L.A. Confidential'' and ''Mystic River''. He also wrote and directed the films ...
helped with the character development and dialogue of the script based on the notes that came out of those discussions with Jolie and to accompany the gender change, the title character's name was changed to Evelyn Salt. One of Jolie's requests was to rework the third act, which originally had Salt rescue his wife and son from a coalition of villains because she did not believe a mother would neglect her child in this kind of situation. Wimmer decided then to make Salt more crucial to the villain's schemes, and add a sequence where Salt breaks into "a place harder than Fort Knox" – after considering
Camp David Camp David is the country retreat for the president of the United States of America. It is located in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park, in Frederick County, Maryland, near the towns of Thurmont and Emmitsburg, about north-northwes ...
, Wimmer settled on the White House. When asked if the script written for Cruise was the same for Jolie, he said, "I think that it's just been a continual process, obviously accelerating by changing the central character, but the ideas, the locomotive of ideas that drive the film, are the same. An undercover CIA operative is accused of being a Russian
mole Mole (or Molé) may refer to: Animals * Mole (animal) or "true mole", mammals in the family Talpidae, found in Eurasia and North America * Golden moles, southern African mammals in the family Chrysochloridae, similar to but unrelated to Talpida ...
, and has to go on the run to defend himself. That's been the same since day one. The tone of the film has changed in this evolution. In the same way, I guess, as – you know – action thrillers have changed along the lines of the Bond films and the Bourne films". On February 19, 2009, Liev Schreiber was reported to play the role of Ted Winter, Evelyn Salt's friend and colleague in the CIA. Three days later, Chiwetel Ejiofor was named as CIA Officer Peabody, who is in pursuit of Salt. Noyce said Ejiofor, whom he first saw in '' Dirty Pretty Things'', seemed to have the "intelligence and disarming sort of obsessiveness" that a
counter-intelligence Counterintelligence is an activity aimed at protecting an agency's intelligence program from an opposition's intelligence service. It includes gathering information and conducting activities to prevent espionage, sabotage, assassinations or ot ...
officer would need.
August Diehl August Diehl (; born 4 January 1976) is a German actor, primarily known to international audiences for playing Gestapo major Dieter Hellstrom in Quentin Tarantino's ''Inglourious Basterds'' and Michael "Mike" Krause, Evelyn Salt's husband, in the ...
, who played Salt's husband Mike Krause, came after a recommendation from Jolie's partner
Brad Pitt William Bradley Pitt (born December 18, 1963) is an American actor and film producer. He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and a Primetime Emmy Award. ...
, who had worked with Diehl in ''
Inglourious Basterds ''Inglourious Basterds'' is a 2009 war film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, starring Brad Pitt, Christoph Waltz, Michael Fassbender, Eli Roth, Diane Kruger, Daniel Brühl, Til Schweiger and Mélanie Laurent. The film tells an altern ...
'', and
Daniel Olbrychski Daniel Marcel Olbrychski (; born 27 February 1945) is a Polish film and theatre actor who is widely considered one of the greatest Polish actors of his generation. He appeared in 180 films and TV productions and is best known for leading roles ...
was chosen for Orlov because
Andrei Konchalovsky Andrei Sergeyevich Mikhalkov-Konchalovsky (russian: link=no, Андрей Сергеевич Михалков-Кончаловский; born 20 August 1937) is a Russian filmmaker. He has worked in Soviet, Hollywood, and contemporary Russian c ...
told Noyce that such an evil Russian character could only be played by a Polish actor.


Filming

On a budget of $130 million, principal photography took place mostly on location in New York City and Washington, D.C. from March to June 2009. Noyce decided to avoid "typical postcard views of Washington, D.C." to reflect "the more day-to-day environment of massive federal buildings inhabited by the typical bureaucrat". The opening sequence in North Korea was shot at the
Floyd Bennett Field Floyd Bennett Field is an airfield in the Marine Park neighborhood of southeast Brooklyn in New York City, along the shore of Jamaica Bay. The airport originally hosted commercial and general aviation traffic before being used as a naval air ...
, with an extra who had experience with
prisoner exchange A prisoner exchange or prisoner swap is a deal between opposing sides in a conflict to release prisoners: prisoners of war, spies, hostages, etc. Sometimes, dead bodies are involved in an exchange. Geneva Conventions Under the Geneva Conve ...
s acting as a consultant. Salt's rendezvous with Orlov was shot on the ''Frying Pan'', a former lighthouse ship, now moored in the Hudson River, at 26th Street in New York. The outside of the KA training facility was the
Makaryev Monastery Zheltovodsky Makaryev Convent (formerly Monastery) of the Holy Trinity (russian: Желтово́дский Тро́ицкий Мака́рьев монасты́рь or Свя́то-Тро́ице-Мака́рьево-Желтово́дски� ...
in Russia, while the interior was the
Russian Orthodox Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most C ...
Cathedral of the Holy Virgin Protection in New York's East Village, where the funeral was also shot. Filming for a chase sequence took place on Water Street in
Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City. ...
, near the Interstate 787 ramp, between April and May. Studio production took place at
Grumman Studios Grumman Studios is a sound stage complex in Bethpage, New York, United States, that offers 160,000 square feet with seven sound stages and 30 acres of paved outdoor space. Principal owner in the project is Parviz Farahzad whose production company i ...
in
Bethpage, New York Bethpage (formerly known as Central Park) is a hamlet and census-designated place (CDP) located within the Town of Oyster Bay in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population was 16,429 at the 2010 United States Cens ...
. While the film was in postproduction, di Bonaventura became dissatisfied with some scenes.
Steven Zaillian Steven Ernest Bernard Zaillian (born January 30, 1953) is an American screenwriter, film director and producer. He won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a BAFTA Award for his screenplay ''Schindler's List'' (1993) and has earned Oscar no ...
was brought for uncredited rewrites; reshoots, mostly of action scenes, were held in New York during January 2010. Filming also took place on 157th St and Riverside Drive in the upper Manhattan neighborhood of Washington Heights. Some scenes were also filmed outside of Manhattan, including the Bronx, Queens, and
Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull a ...
, and in
Westchester County Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...
. After Jolie had just given birth to twins, she spent time training before filming to get fit to perform almost all of the stunts herself. Bonaventura said, "She is so prepared and so ready and gung-ho, she'll do any stunt. We had her jumping out of helicopters, shooting, jumping off of all sorts of things and infiltrating places that are impossible to infiltrate". Salt's fighting style was described as a mixture of Muay Thai, Shaolin Kung-Fu, and
Jeet Kune Do Jeet Kune Do is a primarily wing chun kung fu inspired eclectic martial arts philosophy heavily influenced and adapted by the Taoist personal life philosophy and experiences of martial artist Bruce Lee. Overview and philosophy Jeet Kune D ...
, which was considered by the stunt team the most suitable for Jolie's physique, and
Krav Maga Krav Maga ( ; , ; ) is an Israeli martial art. Developed for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), it is derived from a combination of techniques used in aikido, judo, karate, boxing, and wrestling. It is known for its focus on real-world situations ...
, for its rawness and aggressiveness. Noyce wanted to film the scene where Salt hangs from the edge of the building in a studio with
chroma key Chroma key compositing, or chroma keying, is a visual-effects and post-production technique for compositing (layering) two images or video streams together based on colour hues ( chroma range). The technique has been used in many fields to ...
, but Jolie insisted on doing it herself in the actual location. On May 29, 2009, filming was temporarily halted after Jolie suffered a minor head injury while filming an action scene. She was taken to a hospital as a precautionary measure and released on the same day with no serious injuries, allowing filming to resume. Salt's escape after being captured in St. Bartholomew's originally involved her jumping off a building into a window-cleaning machine, but budgetary constraints caused the scene to be changed into a car chase. Computer-generated imagery (CGI) was used extensively throughout the film to create environments and elements, such as bullet holes and flames. More dangerous objects such as a
taser A taser is an electroshock weapon used to incapacitate people, allowing them to be approached and handled in an unresisting and thus safe manner. It is sold by Axon (company), Axon, formerly TASER International. It fires two small barbed d ...
or the handcuffs used to strangle Winter were also made from CGI. Five companies were responsible for visual effects. The two most involved were CIS Vancouver and
Framestore Framestore is a British animation, visual effects company and creative studio based on Chancery Lane in London. Formed in 1986, it acquired (and subsequently merged with) the Computer Film Company in 1997. It works on feature films and telev ...
. CIS Vancouver recreated the White House since the crew did not have permission to shoot in the building, and made a digital elevator shaft for the scene where Salt goes down into the White House bunker. Framestore was responsible for the assassination attempt on the Russian president, which combined actual shots of St. Bartholomew's Church, a digital recreation of the church's interior, and scenes with actor Olek Krupa falling down a collapsing floor. Female CIA officers were consulted about the creation of disguises, leading to the scene where Salt undergoes subtle changes to disguise herself as a Czech. The "sweet and caring" blonde Salt dyeing her hair black would represent the shift to Chenkov, the menacing Russian agent. For the scene where Salt disguises herself as a major, pictures of Angelina Jolie were treated on
Adobe Photoshop Adobe Photoshop is a raster graphics editor developed and published by Adobe Inc. for Microsoft Windows, Windows and macOS. It was originally created in 1988 by Thomas Knoll, Thomas and John Knoll. Since then, the software has become the indu ...
to create a believable male version, with the resulting image being used by the make-up team as an inspiration for the
prosthetics In medicine, a prosthesis (plural: prostheses; from grc, πρόσθεσις, prósthesis, addition, application, attachment), or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through trau ...
.


Versions

Director Phillip Noyce has said that, due to the extensive usage of flashbacks, "there was always going to be a mountain of alternative material that would not fit into the theatrical version". The film ended up having two extra versions, the director's cut, and the extended cut – which Noyce refers to in his
audio commentary An audio commentary is an additional audio track, usually digital, consisting of a lecture or comments by one or more speakers, that plays in real time with a video. Commentaries can be serious or entertaining in nature, and can add informatio ...
as the film's original cut – both included on the
DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kin ...
and
Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of stori ...
disc deluxe editions. The director's cut was described by Noyce as "my own personal take on the material, free from the politics and restrictions of producers, studio, or censorship ratings". Four minutes of film were added, leading to a running time of 104 minutes. More flashbacks were added, and the violence was amped up, for example, Mike being drowned rather than shot to death. The ending is also different; in the bunker scene, Winter shoots the President instead of only knocking him unconscious, and a media report during the final scene reports that the new US president had been orphaned on a family visit to Russia, implying he is also a sleeper agent. Noyce has described this ending as "an ending yet just a beginning – and it's an ending that turns the whole story on its head." The extended cut increases the running time by only one minute, but rewrites the plot by removing, rearranging, and adding scenes. The ending has Salt escaping from CIA custody and going to Russia, where she kills Orlov – his death scene at the barge does not appear in this cut, along with the child-spy training facility getting blown up at the end of the cut.


Soundtrack

''Salt: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' was released on July 20, 2010 on
iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mu ...
and on August 11, 2010 as an on-demand
CD-R CD-R (Compact disc-recordable) is a digital optical disc storage format. A CD-R disc is a compact disc that can be written once and read arbitrarily many times. CD-R discs (CD-Rs) are readable by most CD readers manufactured prior to the in ...
from
Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc. ( ) is an American multinational technology company focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. It has been referred to as "one of the most influential economi ...
. The music was composed by
James Newton Howard James Newton Howard (born June 9, 1951) is an American film composer, music producer and keyboardist. He has scored over 100 films and is the recipient of a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, and nine nominations for Academy Awards. His film scores i ...
and released by Madison Gate Records. The song "Orlov's Story" includes a Russian lullaby that music editor Joe E. Rand found at
Amoeba Music Amoeba Music is an American independent music store chain with locations in Berkeley, San Francisco, and Hollywood, Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1990 in Berkeley, California, and remains in operation, having survived the decline ...
, and which served as inspiration for the choir heard in other tracks – but the chants in the rest of the score are only random syllables, as Rand and Howard thought actual Russian words would be a spoil about Salt's allegiance. ;Track listing


Release

The film's marketing campaign included a panel at the San Diego Comic-Con on July 22, 2010, and an episodic
advergame An advergame is a form of advertising in video games, in which the video game is developed by or in close collaboration with a corporate entity for purposes of advertising a brand-name product. While other video games may use in-game advertising (s ...
titled "Day X Exists", where players watched webisodes and performed missions to unveil the terrorist plot. It was released in the United States on July 23, 2010. It was released on August 18 in the United Kingdom, despite poster advertisements suggesting it would be released on August 20. The deluxe unrated-edition Blu-ray disc and DVD were released on December 21, 2010, by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. It includes three versions of the film – the original theatrical film and two additional unrated extended cuts not seen in theaters with two alternate endings. A theatrical-edition DVD was also released. In the home video charts, ''Salt'' debuted at first in the rentals and third in sales.


Reception


Box office

''Salt'' grossed $118.3 million in the United States and Canada, and $175.2 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $293.5 million. Sony predicted an opening-weekend take in the low-$30 million range, while commentators thought it would come in closer to $40 million and possibly beat ''
Inception ''Inception'' is a 2010 science fiction action film written and directed by Christopher Nolan, who also produced the film with Emma Thomas, his wife. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a professional thief who steals information by infilt ...
'' for the number-one spot at the box office. ''Salt'' opened in 3,612 theaters, with a first-day gross of $12.5 million and an opening weekend total of $36.0 million, finishing behind ''Inception'', which made $42.7 million in its second weekend. ''Salt'' also grossed $15 million from 19 international markets. in its second weekend, it declined in ticket sales by 45.9% making $19.5 million and placed number three behind ''Inception'' and '' Dinner for Schmucks''. It was released in 29 countries that same weekend, and grossed $25.4 million.


Critical response

''Salt'' received generally positive reviews from critics. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 62% based on 250 reviews, with an average rating of 6.00/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Angelina Jolie gives it her all in the title role, and her seasoned performance is almost enough to save ''Salt'' from its predictable and ludicrous plot." Metacritic assigned the film a weighted average score of 65 out of 100 based on 42 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews." Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...
gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale. Many reviewers highlighted the coincidence of ''Salt'' release shortly after the reveal of real Russian sleeper agents in the
Illegals Program The Illegals Program (so named by the United States Department of Justice) was a network of Russian sleeper agents under unofficial cover. An investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) culminated in the arrest of ten agents on ...
, with some comparing Salt to one of the agents,
Anna Chapman Anna Vasilyevna Chapman (russian: А́нна Васи́льевна Ча́пман; born Anna Vasilyevna Kushchenko on 23 February 1982) is a Russian intelligence agent, media personality and model who was arrested in the United States on 27 J ...
. Kirk Honeycutt of '' The Hollywood Reporter'' said that, "While preposterous at every turn, ''Salt'' is a better Bond movie than most recent Bond movies, as its makers keep the stunts real and severely limit CGI gimmickry". Justin Chang of ''Variety'' said Jolie was "in her element, submitting gamely to the mayhem and hitting crucial emotional notes with effective understatement", and called the film a "brisk, professionally assembled, but finally shrug-inducing thriller."''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicag ...
'' critic
Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...
gave the film four stars (his maximum), saying "''Salt'' is a damn fine thriller. ... It's gloriously absurd. This movie has holes in it big enough to drive the whole movie through. The laws of physics seem to be suspended here the same way as in a Road Runner cartoon." ''Time'' magazine reviewer Richard Corliss praised the action scenes and Noyce's persistence in keeping a serious tone – "he ignores the story's preposterous elements and lets the audience decide whether to laugh, shudder, or both". ''Empire'''s William Thomas praised Jolie's performance, remarking, "when it comes to selling incredible, crazy, death-defying antics, Jolie has few peers in the action business", and '' The Village Voice''s
Karina Longworth Karina Longworth (born July 10, 1980) is an American film critic, author, and journalist based in Los Angeles. Longworth writes, hosts and produces the podcast ''You Must Remember This'', about the "secret and/or forgotten histories of Hollywoo ...
considered that original star Tom Cruise would never express the protagonist's ambiguity as well as Jolie. Among negative responses, '' The New Yorker''s David Denby said ''Salt'' "is as impersonal an action thriller as we've seen in years", finding the supporting cast underexplored – "the tricky plot locks them into purely functional responses". Claudia Puig of the '' USA Today'' considered the film a "by-the-book thriller" with Jolie's performance as the only distinguishing feature. Lawrence Toppman of '' The Charlotte Observer'' described the film as absurd, overplotted, and incoherent, and said the villainous schemes "would have been called off 20 years ago at the latest when the Soviet Union dissolved". Steven Rea of '' The Philadelphia Inquirer'' described ''Salt'' as "commendably swift and progressively inane", saying the script was a "sloppy concoction of story elements from '70s espionage classics" that ended up not working right with its "nonsensical setups and wildly illogical twists". James Berardinelli of Reelviews considered that, while the film was fast-paced and the action scenes competently shot, the plot was predictable and "the spy aspects, which are, by far, the most intriguing elements of the movie, are shunted aside in favor of spectacular stunts and long chases".


Awards

''Salt'' received one
Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
nomination, for Best Sound Mixing (
Jeffrey J. Haboush Jeffrey J. Haboush is an American sound engineer. He has been nominated for four Academy Awards in the category Best Sound Mixing. He has worked on more than 150 films since 1983. He won a Daytime Emmy Award in 1989 for Outstanding Film Sound M ...
,
Greg P. Russell Greg P. Russell is an American sound engineer. He has worked on more than 200 films since 1970, and has received 16 Academy Award nominations for Best Sound Mixing, although he has never won. Greg has also been nominated for 11 Cinema Audio So ...
,
Scott Millan Scott Alexander Millan (born 1954) is an American sound re-recording mixer, a member of the board of governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, and Sound Director for Technicolor at Paramount Studios. He is known for his colla ...
and William Sarokin), which it lost to ''
Inception ''Inception'' is a 2010 science fiction action film written and directed by Christopher Nolan, who also produced the film with Emma Thomas, his wife. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio as a professional thief who steals information by infilt ...
''. The film won Best Action/Adventure Film at the
Saturn Award The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films bel ...
s, with Angelina Jolie being nominated for Best Actress, and the Deluxe Unrated Edition being nominated for Best DVD Special Edition. At the
Taurus World Stunt Awards The Taurus World Stunt Awards is a yearly award ceremony held midyear that honors stunt performers in movies. It is held each year in Los Angeles. The first awards were given out in 2001. The deciding committee has been around since the year 2000 ...
, stuntwoman Janene Carleton's jump on a moving truck won Best Overall Stunt by a Stunt Woman, and the film was nominated for Best Stunt Coordinator and/or 2nd Unit Director. It was also nominated for Satellite Awards for Cinematography and Original Score, a Golden Reel Award for Sound Effects and Foley, a
People's Choice Award The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls unt ...
for Favorite Action Movie, and two Teen Choice Awards. The film was nominated for a Visual Effects Society Award for Outstanding Supporting Visual Effects in a Feature Motion Picture but lost to ''Hereafter''.


Possible sequel

Director Phillip Noyce was optimistic about a sequel, saying "Hopefully within a couple of years, we'll have another one. Angelina's so great in this part. When audiences see the movie they're going to feel like it's only just the beginning." Producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura also expressed further interest: "Angie, I know, loved that character, and would love to explore the character some more first and foremost." Noyce later said he had other projects and would not participate. "Those 3 Blu-ray disc cuts represent just about everything I have to offer on Evelyn Salt. If there ever is a sequel, better it's directed by someone with a completely fresh take on what I believe could be a totally entertaining and complex series of stories." On June 6, 2011, Wimmer was announced as a screenwriter, but Jolie equivocated, "if it comes together right". On December 10, 2012, Sony Pictures announced hiring screenwriter
Becky Johnston Becky Johnston (born in South Haven, Michigan) is an American screenwriter. Early life Johnston attended public school in South Haven but graduated from the Interlochen Fine Arts High School in 1973. Career Johnston wrote the screenplays for ''U ...
(known for ''
The Prince of Tides ''The Prince of Tides'' is a 1991 American romantic drama film directed and co-produced by Barbra Streisand, from a screenplay written by Pat Conroy and Becky Johnston, based on Conroy's 1986 novel ''The Prince of Tides''. It stars Streisand ...
'', '' Seven Years in Tibet'', and '' Arthur Newman''), as well as producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Sunil Perkash. As of 2022, no sequel has materialized.


References


External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Salt 2010 films 2010 action thriller films 2010s mystery thriller films 2010s spy thriller films American action thriller films American mystery thriller films American spy thriller films American films about revenge American Muay Thai films Cold War spy films Columbia Pictures films Di Bonaventura Pictures films Films about the Central Intelligence Agency Films about fictional presidents of the United States Films about nuclear war and weapons Films directed by Phillip Noyce Films produced by Lorenzo di Bonaventura Films scored by James Newton Howard Films set in North Korea Films set in New York City Films set in the White House Films set in Washington, D.C. Films shot in New York (state) Films shot in New York City Films set in South Korea Films shot in Washington, D.C. Films with screenplays by Kurt Wimmer Girls with guns films Jeet Kune Do films Kung fu films Relativity Media films 2010s English-language films 2010s American films Films set in bunkers