1999, 1 hr 52 minutes, Rated PG-13 for some language, sensuality, violence and drug content. Dir: Jon Amiel. Cast: Sean Connery (MacDougal), Catherine Zeta-Jones (Virginia Baker), Ving Rhames (Thibadeaux), Will Patton (Hector Cruz).

Some people say Star Wars Episode 1 was a big disappointment. Not me, I say it is Entrapment. The movie had Sean Connery, still one of the sexiest men alive, and Catherine Zeta-Jones, definitely one of the most sizzling actresses out there, yet it failed to hold my interest. How sad.

PLOT: Connery plays a man named Mac, who is getting along in years but is still respected as the most reourceful master thief in the world. Jones plays Gin, who in the early scenes is established as an insurance investigator who sets an elaborate trap for Mac. I can't reveal too much about the plot because there are supposed to be a couple of surprises. But they end up stealing a few expensive things, and we watch.

Besides Connery and Zeta-Jones, the film had Ving Rhames, widely respected as a leading supporting actor. In Entrapment, well, he's trapped, underused. They never let him branch out and make a difference. The filmmakers try to throw in a surprise at the end about his character, but I didn't care by then. Somehow he could have had something to do that would've spiced up this doldrums of a movie.

Now to something debated frequently in the press, the issue of the age difference between the two romantic leads. Connery may still be a sexy man for someone 69, but I didn't believe one bit that he and Zeta-Jones (age: 29) had any kind of spark. Sorry Sean, I think you're fantastic, but I'd rather see you with an older leading lady, such as Meryl Streep. Zeta-Jones, however, is friggin' hot! She could recite "Green Eggs and Ham" and I would swoon. They share the screen together fine, and have a nice working relationship, providing for some wry comedy and banter. I'd just rather they not be lovers.

One plus for the film is the cool gadgets, which is a natural if you're going to have a movie about thieves doing their "jobs." I'm a sucker for cool stuff like that, and would consider it the best part of the film, other than Zeta-Jones in her sexy outfits.

As for those who applaud the exotic locations, I have to say, "What the hell movie were you talking about?" Sure, Mac's castle in Scotland was in a nice area, but we never got a good look at it; what we saw of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, wouldn't have anyone running to their travel agent. It looked dingy and poor except for the unrealistically clean subway station, and the Potronas Towers--the tallest in the world--were cool, but that's the only thing it seemed to be worth visiting and I guess we can't trust the security.

Wrapping up, the finale was forced, and even with the surprise-at-every-turn format, just wasn't interesting. By then I wasn't having fun anymore.