Thursday, February 28, 2013

Extreme Prejudice

The films that usually come to mind when you think of Walter Hill are The Warriors, 48 Hrs and Red Heat. Extreme Prejudice, amongst action fans, is an underrated gem of a movie. A modern day western with plenty of gunfights and men being men, YEAH!

Nick Nolte plays Jack Benton, a hard as nails Texas Ranger, who doesn’t smile throughout the whole of the movie it seems. Powers Booth is his childhood friend who is now on the opposite side of the law as a drugs kingpin. Bentons girlfriend, is the ex to Booth's ruthless villain and is the link keeping these pair at loggerheads.

Into town comes Michael Ironside, an ex army soldier, along with his band of men including Clancy Brown and William Forsythe. On paper these soldiers are deceased and it appears they are in town to rob a bank, but everything has a link and its best to watch rather than me spoil it for you.

Is the action good?? Absolutely fantastic!!
There are a lot of guns fired in this movie, with bloody results. Walter Hill stages each set-piece perfectly, the climax of the movie especially. The story is great and moves along at a great pace, the script is also very well written with some great lines. Acting is also at avery high level, especially Powers Booth who is probably one of the most forgotten great actors in Hollywood.

Nolte and Booth collide on screen and the tension is fantastic between the pair. This movie is definitely one that myself and the Kick Ass Kid are looking forward to doing a commentary for. This movie is fun, action packed and well written and directed.
If you’ve not seen it yet, rectify it immediately.

This is a man movie, action, tough talkers and faster shooters.
- Dr.Action
After seeing this picture how can you not watch it?

Thursday, February 14, 2013

A Good Day To Die Hard - The Kick Ass Kid Review

THIS REVIEW IS SPOILER FREE BUT MAY CHANGE YOUR DESIRE TO SEE THE FILM.
A Good Day To Die Hard.
Bruce Willis said in the UK, on that dreadful turd of a TV program the One Show, that he didn't get the title, he thought it didn't make much sense. Then he muttered something about a sandwich and appeared to be very high on something.
Actually the title of this film is about the only thing that does make any sense. Honestly. I couldn't tell you what it was about at all but things caught fire, crashed or exploded A LOT.
Which was nice.

Alternative titles might include:
Die Hard The Computer Game: Mission To Moscow because the 3rd act looks exactly like something you might play on an XBox 360 (not that there's really any acts just one long...er.. thing with Bruce Willis occasionally holding a gun)
and/or
Die Hard Another Day (because of a James Bond reference, a James Bond cold war feel and the shitty soundtrack/CGI of the worst of the Bond franchise).

Ok so very quickly, because it pains me to do so, here is what is wrong with the 5th in a franchise that really should've died very hard somewhere around the point Willis thought it was quite reasonable that John McClane, scruffy, alcoholic, divorcee, New York cop hang around atop a spinning F35 fighter jet in the shambolic part 4.
Firstly the script. The script, when the "actors" are called upon to actually use it for the few minutes between leveling another indiscriminate grey communist city block, is appalling. The central premise behind whatever it is the bad guys are doing is never fully explained and the arguing/banter/bonding and joking between Willis and Bland McBeige (who plays his son) is, at its best, stilted and, at its worst, cringe inducing and painful. The CGI is laughable and the majority of the action you've seen in the 57 trailers that were released 6months in advance.
Finally, and this really crushes me, the performances across the board and throughout the film, sadly Willis included, were abysmal. Say what you like about the other 4 films, whether it's the good (Die Hard and Die Hard with a Vengeance) or the not quite as good as the good but still ok (Die Harder and Live Free or Die Hard) Willis's central performance as McClane was always solid. In part 5, however, while the swearing is back and he looks happily at home firing off machine guns, his overall McClane persona is really nowhere to be found. The whole film feels like the actors in a dress rehearsal, wearily trudging through their lines one last time in the hope to make the pub by closing. I am happy, though, to lay the blame for some of this at the script's feet because, it really is, shockingly awful.
Continuing to berate the script and the lackluster performances, the villain/s in Die Hard Another Day, and I am not enjoying saying any of this, are mostly terrible. There were some hopeful glimmers early on as one of the actors attempted to wring some menace and charm from the ham-fisted, cliche ridden, toilet paper pages of the script but, unfortunately, it doesn't really go anywhere. Why couldn't Hans Gruber have more brothers? heck I'd take Gruber's 3rd cousin twice removed over these characterless baddies.
I could go on but it would depress me and then I'd have to ask Willis for whatever relaxing meds he was taking when he made this.
"What you taking there Willis?"

On, then, to the good bits because, believe it or not, despite all its flaws I did enjoy the experience of watching this.
The pacing is good, considering the occasional pauses for some almost vomit inducing asides between the two John McClanes in this picture, for me, it zipped along.
There's a car chase at the beginning which is absolutely phenomenal and very very cool. It was definitely my favourite part of the movie and mainly because I hadn't seen all of it in the aforementioned trailers but also because it was legitimately kick ass.
The other action is good too, shitty CGI not withstanding, it's just that, having seen the trailers, once the characters strolled onto a recognisable set you weren't really caring what they were doing or saying, you were waiting for that bit you'd seen with the helicopter to happen. Thank you marketing team, you bunch of moldy bell ends.
Willis, although not really playing much of a character at all, like I said, looked really at home with a big gun and what humour there was in the film was derived from the ready glee one feels from seeing ol' Brucie mow down some black suited henchmen with a fucking huge weapon.
If you like action there is enough in this to keep you moving along and if you're feeling generous there's even a few solid laughs to be had along the way, it's just that, even being generous, there are nowhere near enough.
Putting this up against the other 3 big action releases this year so far I would say it was the weakest but it's still well worth the price of a cinema ticket and if they make part 6 (like they've promised) I will still go and see it because it's Die Hard, it's action, it's Willis, it's explosions and it's a bit of escapism after a long day dealing with reality.
- The Kick Ass Kid 
What do you mean there's no script?

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Universal Soldier 4 - Day of Reckoning

 
I’ve been wanting to see this for a while now and finally viewed it today. It re-teams Jean Claude-Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, plus, the main reason for watching, Scott Adkins. 
The British martial arts star is a big favorite for the Doc and the Kid, well, for us Brits, he is flying our flag in the action genre! 

Plot wise it’s a pretty simple premise. Adkins' wife and daughter are killed by Luc Deveraux (JCVD) and his group of UniSols leaving Adkins for dead and in a coma. After coming round months later, Adkins character John sets about uncovering the truth about the UniSols, finding them and avenging his loved ones murder. 
Both JCVD and Lundgren reprise their roles from previous Universal Soldier movies, but don’t be mislead they do not feature heavily, both take on Adkins in fights in the movie though. 


Andrei Arlovski also returns after his role in Universal Soldier-Regeneration and the MMA fighter, again, has great fight scenes.

John Hyams again takes the directing reigns, he’s a great action director. 
The movie takes a while to get started and you’d be forgiven for thinking it was a horror movie for the first half hour or so, but once the action gets underway it doesn’t let up. The action and violence in this movie is pretty damn brutal and absolutely bone crunching. 

The star here is Scott Adkins though, what a martial artist, he is fantastic here, a very welcome addition to the series and not only that, a really fantastic actor in my opinion. He has a packed roster of action coming up, so lets all rejoice that a talented action man is getting his due! 
Van Damme was it your idea to open the ketchup bottle with a machete, jesus I can't take you anywhere!
Doc’s Prescription, don’t worry too much about the plot, get past the first half hour and relish the action.
Van Damme took all the ketchup!!
By Dr.Action

Bullet To The Head

So after Rocky Balboa, Rambo and the Expendables movies, Sly takes on a new movie, based on a graphic novel, Bullet to the Head. So is this the first comic book movie of the year? If so, its a pretty great start, after all Stalone is a real life hero.
Plot wise, Stallone plays a hitman named Jimmy Bonomo, whose partner is killed by a rival hitman Keegan played by Jason Momoa.
I will have that pudding...how dare they keep it from me
Also on the scene is Police detective Talor Kwon played by Sung Kang. He's hunting for the people who had his partner killed and this leads to the hitman and detective teaming up to find out who is behind all the mayhem.
With both people coming from different sides, their ethics start to clash.

So of course as an action fan, the main question, is the action good?
You better believe it is! There's gunfights, fistfights and as the trailer shows, something new, an Axe fight! Stallone can still hold his own and is still in great shape, not what you'd expect of a 66 year old!
It’s a great performance, in my opinion one of his best. Anyone who knocks Stallone take a good look at him in this, especially one of his last fights, a genuine look of fear, just great acting. He still goes for it though, he is Stallone after all!

The support is also great, especially Momoa, he has a great presence about him and plays his part well. After this, I hope he’s given a lead performance in a new action franchise of his own to develop, not Conan though, the Doc ain’t going there.

Of course I haven’t mentioned another reason I was so excited for this movie, Walter Hill.
Imagine the breast to be just here... she was a very tall woman
Welcome back sir! Just a great, great action director. He’s made another great buddy type action movie like 48 Hrs, with a real gritty style and the violence pulls no punches.
hubba hubba phhhwoooaarrrr!
So I loved it, will you? Go see it folks!
yeah go see it... or else
On a side note, I took my brother in law, I’ve known him since he was 2 years old and it was his first Sly flick. So, did he like it? Yes! he’s now a Sly fan! Just wait till he see’s RAMBO!!

Thanks for reading,
The Docs prescription? - see it now!!

Written by Dr.Action