Director: Baran bo Odar
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Michelle Monaghan, David Harbour, Dermot Mulroney, Gabrielle Union, Scoot McNairy, Tip "T.I." Harris.
We had been waiting for this film to come out for quite awhile and to begin with, the impressive trailer spurred my interest. The film looked like it had all the key ingredients, dirty, angry Jamie Foxx Cop, Las Vegas, muscle cars and intense action. I was expecting some Michael Mann'ish style action-cop-thriller. But seeing as the film wasn't released here in the UK until some four months after its US release, it was difficult to not notice the negativity it was receiving.
Foxx plays a dirty cop who's gotten too deep and has upset too many people, the wrong kind of people who then go about kidnapping his son until he can fix the mess he's left behind. Cue some fairly decent action and some double-crosses throughout.
It's fast paced but not fast enough to hide the plot holes that makes a mess of the attempting-to-be-clever script/story. The film feels quite disjointed and seems poorly edited, and after rewatching the trailer, which was both enticing and impressive, it's obvious that there's been some serious recuts to the whole story.
The action isn't so bad, back there was no tension where there should be. I felt more annoyance for the characters than anything else. You can tell Odar was trying his best to show us what he can do; it just didn't gel well together at all. Plus, it's set in Vegas! My second home, so that should allow for some great creativity but alas, no. The city could have been a character in itself but you would be forgiven for forgetting its set there. And to prop up the story in a fictional casino only results in lack of authenticity and believability. But, I suppose that's only because I know Vegas very well.
The performances are mixed, with Foxx and McNairy providing the best with the others being nothing more than mediocre tripe. It's Monaghan's worse film to date and Mulroney was just too plastic. It was almost like Foxx was fighting with the rest of the cast to get out to the end of the film himself. McNairy too, he seemed to be the only other actor who knew what to do; I actually really liked his character.
Even with going in with low expectations, sadly to say, the negativity that came with this film isn't to be disbelieved. Though it had great potential, it had all the key elements to be a great action thriller, but it lacks in every other department, or just tries.
Running Time: 7
The Cast: 4
Performance: 4
Direction: 3
Story: 4
Script: 4
Creativity: 3
Soundtrack: 6
Job Description: 3
The Extra Bonus Point: 0
Would I buy the Blu-ray?: Nah. But could be tempted if it has a director's cut or some sort.
38% 4/10
