'Border' misses mark, can't hit one genre

There is a fine line between sentimental and pretentious, and Beyond Borders crosses it without looking back.\nBorders is supposed to evoke emotions of sympathy for people in underdeveloped countries suffering from lack of food and medications. This movie misses its mark while volleying back and forth through different genres. \nWhile the story actually doesn't have too many holes, it is confusing whether this movie is drama, suspense or romance. It might have been a halfway decent movie if they could have blended the genres, but instead it switches and just ignores the tone of previous scenes.\nAngelina Jolie tries to prove she's more than just a fluff actress by getting down and serious as Sarah Jordan, an English socialite who in a moment of guilt decides to contribute more help than just sending a check. She experiences this change in heart after hearing a protest speech from Nick (Clive Owen) at a gala for World Aid, which had just pulled his funding. \nThere are several running storylines after this. Although Sarah is married, she loves Nick and goes to different places around the world to help him aid the impoverished by providing food, medicine and water at different times. The drama lies in her scenes with the impoverished people of Cambodia and Ethiopia. Beyond Borders tries to go for a suspenseful ending by having Nick disappear. \nIf this movie had a message, it would either be to promote help in these areas or to pose the question: Is it okay to do immoral things if the end justifies the means? Owen plays a stereotypical I-can-act-like-a-jerk-but-my-hearts-in-the-right-place character, but he at least does this well. \nJolie, however, does not hit the mark as a socialite bleeding heart trying to find her way in the world. The audience cannot as much draw out why she's switching her emotions than the characters surrounding her. She often comes off bitchy, confronting other characters when she is clearly wrong about their motivations. How many times is she not going to get that everyone can't be saved? \nJolie is better at playing quirky, sexy and sly characters if she wants to get back to her Oscar-winning ways. But between the line of high-caliber film and overly preachy clutter, this goes way beyond that border.