Filipino director Brillante Mendoza's gritty street-level crime drama is a mixed bag to be honest. I've had fairly high expectations given that it superficially resembles films like Tropa de elite series - tough, uncompromising action thrillers that show the dangers of being a cop in the slums. Unfortunately, after a brief raid scene in the beginning that is also the film's high point, Alpha settles into a slower tempo while following two protagonists trying to outrun the long hand of the law. It doesn't illuminate them much, though, because there's little dialogue or introspection here. When the film ended, I just shrugged my shoulders even if I wasn't really bored while watching it. It's just too predictable and unexceptional to linger in your memory, but it does have potential to reach a wider audience than many other Filipino films, based on Mendoza's reputation and its easy-to-follow narrative.
Review of Alpha: The Right to Kill
