Salt (2010 film)

Salt
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Phillip Noyce
Produced by	Lorenzo di Bonaventura Sunil Perkash
Written by	Kurt Wimmer
Starring	Angelina Jolie Liev Schreiber Chiwetel Ejiofor Daniel Olbrychski August Diehl
Music by	James Newton Howard
Cinematography	Robert Elswit
Edited by	Stuart Baird John Gilroy
Production company	Di Bonaventura Pictures Wintergreen Productions Rainmaker Digital Effects
Distributed by	Columbia Pictures
Release date	July 19, 2010 (2010-07-19) (Hollywood premiere) July 23, 2010 (2010-07-23)
Running time	104 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English Russian
Budget	$110 million
Box office	$293.5 million

Salt is a 2010 American action thriller film directed by Phillip Noyce, written by Kurt Wimmer, and starring Angelina Jolie, Liev Schreiber, Daniel Olbrychski, August Diehl and Chiwetel Ejiofor. Jolie plays Evelyn Salt, who is accused of being a Russian sleeper agent 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 for Jolie. Filming took place on location in Washington, D.C., the New York City area, and Albany, New York, between March and June 2009, with reshoots in January 2010. Action scenes were primarily performed with practical stunts, computer-generated imagery 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.

Evelyn Salt (Angelina Jolie) is being tortured in a North Korean prison on suspicion of being an American spy. Her boyfriend, arachnologist Mike Krause (August Diehl), generates so much publicity that the CIA is forced to arrange a prisoner exchange, despite the agency's policy against it. Salt's CIA colleague Ted Winter (Liev Schreiber) greets Salt at the border. As they drive away, Mike proposes marriage, despite Salt's admission that she is in fact a CIA operative.