An awful, ugly film, chock full of rampant racism, misogyny, and homophobia, with one of the worst scripts ever put on screen. No amount of cheesy Sly one-liners can save this thing.

But at least it gave us Christian Slater back, so there's that.

They should put this on the poster to entice Algren further.

Sarah Shahi is in this? Her hotness may be the only reason I ever watch this movie in the future.

Looking forward to read David's review. It will be informative, unbiased and with no ulterior motive.

I am seeing it tomorrow afternoon, along with Warm Bodies.

Outside his two iconic franchises, Bullet to the Head, adapted from the French graphic novel Du Plomb Dans la Tête, is action legend Sylvester Stallone's finest film to date, eclipsing even Cop Land. Moving at a furious clip, the film is constructed with both a playful understanding of and a devout respect for the unique pleasure of old-fashioned action and crime cinema. Behind the camera for his first feature in a decade, director Walter Hill crafts a convincing and nuanced case for himself as a continued master of masculine, nocturnal, violent film; reviving his authorial vision and staging great sequences of men operating outside the law under cover of night, driving to and fro in fast cars and fighting with axes, explosives, and guns, the audience sees firsthand the welcome death of the Hill who lost control of the science-fiction picture Supernova to such an extent he removed his name from it in shame and the refreshed rise of the Hill of, among other gems, 48 Hrs. and The Driver (the film, along with Thief by Michael Mann, most referenced in modern cult favorite Drive). With certain details (including the presentation of the title as a gargantuan neon sign) and entire sequences (the mounting tension of a bathhouse confrontation), one can just sense the director smiling as he conducts this live-wire composition. He and the screenwriter also lace the film with a curious and potent melancholia as our hero rages against the dying of the light of his generation. For example, there is a dynamic, left-field moment involving a placard honoring firemen in the early 20th century who fought and died to save a building which is now in disrepair and set to be demolished. Which brings me to the man himself: Stallone, older, slower, his once beautiful face now diminished and lined (a transformation displayed here in a touching and vanity free display of the protagonist's mug shots over the years), is, forgive me, still sly. He nails each dramatic beat, each light one-liner, and, of course, each imposing physical gesture. The Reagan and Clinton eras are long gone, but he remains a silver-screen Olympian in which we nostalgic children at heart can believe and find a rush of enfranchisement.

A-

WHAT

"You have to be good to these guys, and he'll be singing like a pigeon"
"Let me break is legs, he'll be performing a fucking Who Concert"


This film is a lot of fun. Stallone is pretty great here, and this is probably his best original action film since Assassins. He's funny and quite the bad ass. The main villain (The new Conan) doesn't do much but he is certainly intimidating. The violence is not too over the top but not too ridiculous, actually pretty well done. There is basically nothing to it plot wise, it's very tight and is just a "climb the ladder" revenge film and that's why it works. There are no lulls to it, and Christian Slater is nice in his small role. Come on Val if he can make it back to theaters so can you. After it being shelved for such a long time I was expecting a really trashy film, but I'd say it's more surprising with it's quality than Last Stand did. Ah man for these guys to be in their prime again, both would have been easy hits.

A-

Wow. High praise indeed.



Yes! This is what I was hoping for. Sometimes Sly isn't the best with humour, but I guess with Hill in the directors chair, it worked.



Great review, man.

I was pleasantly surprised by The Last Stand, so this looks like it will not disappoint me. Cannot wait.

One of my favorite details in this film is Stallone's character always having his favorite bourbon with him and just renting a glass from bartenders.

Actually the nice detail is that he only does so after his partner recommends him to do so, right before he is offed.

On another note, Jason Momoa plays a great antagonist here. He is downright frightening in his brutality and size. The axe fight is intense. It is 100x superior to the Stallone/Van Damme fight at the end of The Expendables 2.

That's one of the few things I can agree on. Momoa makes for a physically impressive villain. His character is burdened with some shitty dialogue, but damn, the guy is MASSIVE. The film couldn't lead me into believeing that Stallone could realistically defeat him.

I believe Stallone's triumph. Size is not the only factor.

Indeed, it's not - Momoa's character has shown himself to be a ferocious fighter too.

I liked this better when it was 48 HRS. It's pretty much a remake. It's just missing the compelling storyline, humor, and personality. Other than that its fantastic.

** (C)

What a horse's ass.

Please return to the banana boat.

Maybe we'll get Another Another 48 HRS. out of this.

That was such an underwhelming fight. Pretty much any finale showdown will beat that.