Paul Schrader made a well staged thriller that lets the audience recognize a certain experience of its maker. Experience in this context isn't only meant positive. On the one hand it guarantees that "The Walker" doesn't end up as a total flop. Throughout the movie I felt there is a man behind the camera, that knows which buttons to push when, and there were some shots or short scenes I found really great. But on the other hand this routine makes the whole movie seem a bit dated. "The Walker" maybe would have had more relevance if made a few centuries earlier. But today a film that explicitly wants to be political but has nothing more to say than some often heard phrases or unmotivated side blows on targets like George Bush, where everybody will agree anyway, has to be considered a failure. What is just great about this movie, however, is Woody Harrelson. When he started talking I often thought I'm sitting in one of Schrader's great movies. "The Walker" is only okay.
Review of The Walker
