One thing that struck me about Salt (2010) was at the end where the villain unveils his ultimate plan for destroying the United States. After a very complex series of conspiracies and gradual reveals (all of which show some attention to detail on the villain's part), he reveals that he will destroy the US by launching nuclear missiles on Mecca and Teheran.
When I first saw those city names, I was struck numb. Not because of how dramatic or insightful the plan might be, but rather due to its idiocy.
How on Earth would nuking those two cities destroy the US? Neither of the countries has the capability of retaliating against such an attack (with the exception of retaliating against US bases in the region, hardly the cornerstone the US' existence), so the US would be in no imminent danger. The kind of retaliation that is implied (terrorism and international sanctions) take too long be an actual threat to the existence of the US. That it would come to light by virtue of PotUS' death that the bombings were themselves not the intention of the US, but of a Soviet conspiracy would do much to put the US in the clear of things.
It's clearly an effort on the part of the writers to appear edgy and more up-to-date than the clichéd we'll-nuke-Moscow plans of villains past, but it falls flat and takes much of the punch of what, until then, had been an enjoyable thrillride.
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