A -{ Mini }- Review .
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Roy Pulver ( Frank Grillo ) : " The only woman I've ever loved... who can stop this, is still alive. And I have to get killed, over, and over again, until I can save her " . ______________________________________________________
Right, So, ...Hypothetically... If you had queried me, about halfway through this picture, from one of the two " Pandemically-Correct 😉 ✅ " do-not-sit cinema seats beside me, as to how I thought this thoroughly 'relentless' movie's narrative arc might progress, or even culminate, I wouldn't have been able to answer correctly, 'to save my life'. And when it comes to movies & me .....that is -Most- definitely a " Very, Very, Very Good " Thing. Why❔because I'm an -Absolute- Stickler❗for films that ~{ End }~ up, when all is said & done, being, shall we say, ~{ " Wonderfully " }~ Unpredictable -DESPITE- the marked presence, within said film, of a seemingly obvious predilection towards a predetermined outcome .
However, even -{ Having }- said that... In Truth ...it took -A Good While- for the film to -Actually- start to grow on me. Let me 'Attempt' to describe whatever it was that ~{ Genuinely }~ surprised me in the case of -THIS- particular 'High Octane Big Action Blockbuster' flick , ( as follows ) . Well, so..... 👉{ On-The-One-Hand }👈, the ~{ Fact }~ is, that this film felt : -Not Only- a little annoying & 'repetitive, as well as " straight up gruesome to the point of being almost outright " Macabre " ; but -Also- rather 'Crass', Stereotypical, & chock full of standard, 'Run-of-the-mill' popcorn-flick clichés .....{ for what seemed like the ( -Entire- ) first quarter of its 01:45:00 run time }. Not to mention the decidedly "Glaring" fact that a movie utterly ~{ REPLETE }~ with all manner of Gaming-References ( including a few rather sweetly-Nostalgic 'Analog Type' ones ), is in effect... ~{ " Phenomenally " }~ ...inappropriate ⛔ for children of -Any- age, on account of the gore & language in the film, -Alone- ( ...& that's a bit tragic, really, come to think of it... ) .
But 👉{ On-The-Other-Hand }👈 though, when some loose ends "Very Gradually" start to be squared away & a few critical backstories begin to come to light ; ~{ EVEN }~ leading man Frank Grillo's potentially irksome, somewhat nasal, 'N.Y.C-By-Way-Of-Calabria', ( & profanity -"Saturated"- ), drawl... thankfully ...does -Not- stand in the way of bringing that real "Thrill-Factor" ( 👏 💥 ) into the house, & with "Full Effect", at that. So, in retrospect, I'm going to attribute this to the delightful ability of Director Joe Carnahan -( 2010's 'The A-Team' Remake )- to interweave 'A Little Heart And Soul' into his films, ~{ Irrespective }~ of how Chaotic, Irreverent & indeed, even outright " FRENETIC " the unfolding action in the picture might prove to be. An often subtle... yet ultimately " Tremendous " ...Performance from the "ever-Resplendent💎" Naomi Watts ( 'Jemma Wells' - Roy's ex-wife in the story ) is a huge & 'obvious' Boost to the entire paradigm ; while the -Biological- son that she & Roy Pulver share in the film, 'Joe Wells' ...{ get this : played by none other than Frank Grillo's ~{ Real Life 👦❗}~ child Rio }... brings a " Vividly Radiant " Cuteness & Innocence to the fray, -Significantly- lightening up what would otherwise ~{ Just }~ be fairly crude, bloody & -( Unquestionably )- less appealing cinematic fare .
Summary : Once you get over the slightly, err... ~{ Tedious }~ ...& remarkably violent flashback "Inundated" buildup to the -Actual- "Real-Time" narrative ( or as 'close-to-that' as is realistically possible, given the, um... 'Edge Of Tomorrow meets Groundhog Day' aspect of the film ) ; this ~{ Is }~ an ' Unabashed , & Refreshingly small-talk and B.S-Free { 👏 ✅ } ' ..... " In-Your-Face " sort of a film ..... & -Yes- it's most definitely laced with its fair share of some really ~{ " Darkly " }~ Funny Moments, as well. An { UN }-equivocal 9.50 Marks out of 10, motivated -Primarily- by the veritable smorgasbord of Uplifting & POWERFUL 👊 💜❗ Messages ; with -Most- of them being concentrated in the movie's Final Act .
______________________________________________________
Roy Pulver ( Frank Grillo ) : " The only woman I've ever loved... who can stop this, is still alive. And I have to get killed, over, and over again, until I can save her " . ______________________________________________________
Right, So, ...Hypothetically... If you had queried me, about halfway through this picture, from one of the two " Pandemically-Correct 😉 ✅ " do-not-sit cinema seats beside me, as to how I thought this thoroughly 'relentless' movie's narrative arc might progress, or even culminate, I wouldn't have been able to answer correctly, 'to save my life'. And when it comes to movies & me .....that is -Most- definitely a " Very, Very, Very Good " Thing. Why❔because I'm an -Absolute- Stickler❗for films that ~{ End }~ up, when all is said & done, being, shall we say, ~{ " Wonderfully " }~ Unpredictable -DESPITE- the marked presence, within said film, of a seemingly obvious predilection towards a predetermined outcome .
However, even -{ Having }- said that... In Truth ...it took -A Good While- for the film to -Actually- start to grow on me. Let me 'Attempt' to describe whatever it was that ~{ Genuinely }~ surprised me in the case of -THIS- particular 'High Octane Big Action Blockbuster' flick , ( as follows ) . Well, so..... 👉{ On-The-One-Hand }👈, the ~{ Fact }~ is, that this film felt : -Not Only- a little annoying & 'repetitive, as well as " straight up gruesome to the point of being almost outright " Macabre " ; but -Also- rather 'Crass', Stereotypical, & chock full of standard, 'Run-of-the-mill' popcorn-flick clichés .....{ for what seemed like the ( -Entire- ) first quarter of its 01:45:00 run time }. Not to mention the decidedly "Glaring" fact that a movie utterly ~{ REPLETE }~ with all manner of Gaming-References ( including a few rather sweetly-Nostalgic 'Analog Type' ones ), is in effect... ~{ " Phenomenally " }~ ...inappropriate ⛔ for children of -Any- age, on account of the gore & language in the film, -Alone- ( ...& that's a bit tragic, really, come to think of it... ) .
But 👉{ On-The-Other-Hand }👈 though, when some loose ends "Very Gradually" start to be squared away & a few critical backstories begin to come to light ; ~{ EVEN }~ leading man Frank Grillo's potentially irksome, somewhat nasal, 'N.Y.C-By-Way-Of-Calabria', ( & profanity -"Saturated"- ), drawl... thankfully ...does -Not- stand in the way of bringing that real "Thrill-Factor" ( 👏 💥 ) into the house, & with "Full Effect", at that. So, in retrospect, I'm going to attribute this to the delightful ability of Director Joe Carnahan -( 2010's 'The A-Team' Remake )- to interweave 'A Little Heart And Soul' into his films, ~{ Irrespective }~ of how Chaotic, Irreverent & indeed, even outright " FRENETIC " the unfolding action in the picture might prove to be. An often subtle... yet ultimately " Tremendous " ...Performance from the "ever-Resplendent💎" Naomi Watts ( 'Jemma Wells' - Roy's ex-wife in the story ) is a huge & 'obvious' Boost to the entire paradigm ; while the -Biological- son that she & Roy Pulver share in the film, 'Joe Wells' ...{ get this : played by none other than Frank Grillo's ~{ Real Life 👦❗}~ child Rio }... brings a " Vividly Radiant " Cuteness & Innocence to the fray, -Significantly- lightening up what would otherwise ~{ Just }~ be fairly crude, bloody & -( Unquestionably )- less appealing cinematic fare .
Summary : Once you get over the slightly, err... ~{ Tedious }~ ...& remarkably violent flashback "Inundated" buildup to the -Actual- "Real-Time" narrative ( or as 'close-to-that' as is realistically possible, given the, um... 'Edge Of Tomorrow meets Groundhog Day' aspect of the film ) ; this ~{ Is }~ an ' Unabashed , & Refreshingly small-talk and B.S-Free { 👏 ✅ } ' ..... " In-Your-Face " sort of a film ..... & -Yes- it's most definitely laced with its fair share of some really ~{ " Darkly " }~ Funny Moments, as well. An { UN }-equivocal 9.50 Marks out of 10, motivated -Primarily- by the veritable smorgasbord of Uplifting & POWERFUL 👊 💜❗ Messages ; with -Most- of them being concentrated in the movie's Final Act .