A Weekend of Movie Reviews – Part I

I’ve been under the weather the past few days – not the Swine flu thank you very much – basically just a cold. So I took it easy, and since Michigan was looking pretty pathetic at the half, and I wasn’t interested in this weekend’s Mecum Auto Auction, I thought I would catch up on some movies. Here are the four new-to-me releases I caught (in order of viewing):

Revolver (2005) – Viewed using Netflix Instant on my PC.

Starring Jason Statham (established enough to not need to go by “Handsome Rob”), Ray Liotta (playing Ray Liotta the nearly-unhinged casino owner, as opposed to Ray Liotta, renegade cop/mobster), Vincent Pastore (“Big Pussy” from Sopranos), and Andre Benjamin (“Coffee Black” from Semi-Pro). Directed by the usually awesome Guy Ritchie.

Netflix synopsis: Guy Ritchie delivers another fast-paced crime thriller starring Jason Statham (of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch), who this time plays Jake, a gangster and ace gambler recently released from prison. Determined to hustle the crime boss (Ray Liotta) who killed his sister-in-law, Jake deliberately humiliates the kingpin in a private game. But when the mobster calls for Jake’s head, a mysterious duo steps in to save his skin.

This movie should be right up my alley. Guy Ritchie, directing a confidence scheme movie, this time with a psychological twist. The problem with the official synopsis is that it covers only the first 15 minutes. The intrigue is who the mysterious duo actually is (we find out in the final minutes), and the joy is the contemplation on where Jake goes from here. The psychological part seemed like part Fight Club, with a dash of Smokin’ Aces, of all things. Add the improbability of Jason Statham transplanting Peter Stormare’s hair, and a touch of Wes Anderson’s uncertain timeframe, and, and now you’ve got something.

And seriously, we (the audience, not the “royal we”) have no idea if this is in London (filmed there, anyway, but all vehicles are Cadillacs), or if it’s in the 1970’s or present day. Only the lack of cell phones and a few English accents help us out. Equally puzzling is the B-roll documentary-style interviews (during the credits) with leading experts testifying to the voracity of the plot, which, while interesting, doesn’t help the suspension of disbelief. Unfortunately this is a more-serious effort for Ritchie, as the only real laughs are from the (predictable) ever-increasing meltdown of Liotta’s character, which we’ve seen elsewhere. If I were a ratings man, I’d give it a 6.5 out of 10. Bonus points for Mark Strong as a (bald) hit man (he was Archie in RocknRolla). The plus side is that I’m still thinking about it a bit, so there’s a chance that score will warm up with re-watching over time, which cannot be said for. . .

The Code (alternate title: Thick as Thieves) (2009) – Viewed using Netflix Instant on my PC.

thecode Starring Morgan Freeman, Antonio Banderas, Robert Forster (the bail bonds guy from Jackie Brown) and Radha Mitchell (Dakota Fanning’s mom from Man on Fire), along with uber-Russian Rade Serbedzija (“24″, EuroTrip, Shooter, Snatch, Space Cowboys, MI:2, and he was the Russian president in The Saint)

Netflix synopsis: Deeply in debt to the Russian mob, master jewel thief Ripley (Morgan Freeman) recruits a talented burglar (Antonio Banderas) to help him pull off one more daring heist: filching two gem-encrusted Fabergé eggs worth a cool $20 million each. The stakes stack up when Ripley’s criminal creditors threaten to kill his goddaughter (Radha Mitchell), while the cop (Robert Forster) who’s been trying to nail Ripley for years is hot on his trail.

Meh. The heist stuff seems too easy, and the big “Code” is a 7-digit safe code that they finally figure out while trying to drill said safe containing said Faberge eggs. Not enough team and skills development scenes, like (surprisingly, Entrapment had), and superficial Brighton Beach Russian settings let us down (much better in Lord of War, or even last weekend’s Bored to Death). The technology and the heist goes too easily, and apparently there are iPhone apps that make live video feeds that transmorgrify into 3-D vault blueprints (think Ocean’s Eleven’s PowerPoint presentation done on an iPhone. Live.)

Even the big twist [Spoiler Alert] that Banderas is actually a cop assigned to go undercover with Morgan Freeman leaves us disappointed in the eventual second twist [Spoiler Alert] that Freeman escapes, and that the Russian king pin was actually Freeman’s old partner (and father of Banderas’ love interest). The thieves escape with the loot, and the disgraced cop eventually hooks back up with the daughter. Just like Keanu Reeves and Lori Petty in Point Break. I think you see the problem here – the comparable movies aren’t that good. Additionally, this one went straight to DVD, but even so, I give it a 4.5.

Posted by Andrew Flynn on October 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment
Tags: movie reviews, Netflix, Revolver, The Code