Terrible Title...Not A Bad Movie..."Skiptrace"

Skiptrace (2016)  

Rated PG-13

Starring Jackie Chan, Johnny Knoxville, Bingbing Fan, Eric Tsang, Eve Torres, Winston Chao,

Directed by Renny Harlin

The Story:

Detective Bennie Chan (Chan) is on the trail of shadowy gangster who killed his partner (Tsang) years ago. His obsession with a case is taking a toll on him, and he is sent on vacation. Meanwhile, an American gambler (Knoxville) is having issues of his own. When he witnesses a murder, he might finally have the evidence that Chan needs to finally catch the bad guy red-handed!

If that plot sounds awfully familiar, it's pretty much the plot to Rush Hour and works pretty much the same way:

Chan can't find notorious bad guy.

Chan meets his humorous partner.

The two are oil and water.

They work against each other.

They finally work with each other.

They catch the bad guy.

Happy ending.

And if you've got a successful scenario like that, and the most famous international action movie star of all time, you don't tinker with it too terribly much.

So yes, it's familiar enough...

That's what you get with just about any Jackie Chan film.

And if you're a fan, that's really more than enough.

Considering the man is over 60, his action scenes are still really enjoyable to behold and it's amazing what he can still do out there.

Knoxville works well as an obnoxious American, but when hasn't he?

:)

Final Grade: C+

The Man...The Myth..."The Legend Of Hercules"

The Legend of Hercules (2014)

Rated PG-13 for violence

Starring Kellan Lutz, Scott Adkins, Roxanne McKee

Directed by Renny Harlin

The Story:

The Queen (McKee) doesn't care much for the bloodthirsty King (Adkins) anymore, so she prays that she could have a child that could bring peace to the world.  Enter Zeus... pun fully intended.  As the young prince grows, he is hated by his father, and sent to die in a foreign land.  But when asked his name, he gives them the name that his mother said he was to be called: Hercules (Lutz)  Hercules works his way back to his homeland to save himself, and his people from the tyranny of his father.

Eh... it wasn't too bad.

Hercules: Year One.

Not a whole lot of Herculean Tasks or feats are performed.  Heck, the big guy doesn't even get his power until the movie is nearing the conclusion.

Think of it as Gladiator, with superpowers.

Again, it's not a horrible film by any stretch of the imagination.

Renny Harlin is at the helm, and Renny Harlin does know how to direct a competent action flick, which he once again proves here.

My hope... the one coming out this summer with The Rock, Dwayne Johnson, will be much, much better.

Final Grade: C... maybe even a C+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: Wouldn't own it, wouldn't have a problem watching it again.

WWEekend Movies: Get Ready to Go "12 Rounds" With The Champ!

You can't see me...

The Story:

Danny (John Cena) is a New Orleans cop who gets promoted to detective when he takes down a terrorist, Miles Jackson (Aiden Gillen).  The only problem, Miles' girlfriend gets caught in the crossfire, and he blames Danny for her death.  One year later, Miles gets free, and Danny's house explodes!  It seems Miles has a series of 12 tasks for Danny to tackle if he wants to see his wife alive again.  Can Danny survive all 12 rounds, save his wife and take down the bad guy?

Yeah... it's John Cena, remember?!

: )

2009, and WWE Studios decides to give John Cena another crack at stardom.  It's not a bad effort at all, and perhaps a bit better than The Marine.  I can't recall, it's been a few years since I last saw that one.

Cena is a bit more at ease behind the camera, letting his natural ability and charisma to carry him through the action.  The story itself is a good one, reminiscent of Die Hard 3, which is always a good thing.

Lending Cena a hand behind the camera is Renny Harlin.  People can mock his body of work, but when he does a good film, it's really very good.  He is a firm believer in reality over CGI, and that's a refreshing change and carries over on the big screen.

But let's be honest, most things coming out of Vince McMahon's studio is going to be seen on the small screen, however, that may be for the best.

The action and pacing is good, and very little wasted time and effort from start to finish.

It's a nice budget action flick...no complaints.

Final Grade: C+... borderline B-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor:  It's been over 5 years... not going to be buying it but if I stumble across it again in a few years, why not?

If At First You Do Succeed..."Die Hard 2: Die Harder"

Déjà vu...

The Story:

Holly (Bonnie Bedelia) is flying back to DC to visit the parents.  John McClane (Bruce Willis) is at the airport to meet her.  John notices some goings-on that seem suspicious at best, but the airport police (Dennis Franz) aren't buying it.  Imagine everyone's surprise when Colonel Stuart (William Sadler) and his military brethren take over the airport and demand the arrival of General Esperanza to be turned over to them.  It's up to John McClane once again to save the day... by himself...

If he ever wants to see his wife again!

Renny Harlin steps in to continue the franchise, and he wanted to give us a film that was a radical departure from the original.

On that point, he scores!

The problem, and I could be wrong here, but I've finally noticed a pattern after watching these films a few times...

This film is not a heist film.

Remember, I've said in the past I'm a sucker for a good heist film.

Die Hard is the ultimate heist film.  Thieves, under the guise of terrorists, out to steal billions.

Well, in part 2, yeah, there's apparently money to be had by the traitors if they can get the general out of the US...

But they aren't stealing anything otherwise.

In a way, the political/military  aspect overshadows any heist that may be going on.

This is to the detriment of the franchise.

Cops take down thieves, not overthrow governments.

That said, Bruce Willis is back on point as McClane.  He's aided with some great supporting characters in the airport, including Dennis Franz as the cop everyone wants to see punched out.

Overall, it's a step down for the franchise.  It suffers what the majority of franchises endure with a sequel.

Still, it's better than most action films.

The problem with Die Hard, it set the bar so high with the first one, everything has paled in comparison since.  The fans expect more from this franchise.

Luckily, like Indiana Jones, John McClane would ride back a third time, and almost equal the greatness of the first film.

But then, I'm getting ahead of myself.


: )

Final Grade: B+

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I own it and enjoy it, but it doesn't get nearly as much replay value as the bookends to the original trilogy.