In 2006, WWE made a movie called The Marine, starring then-champion John Cena as the titular Marine on a mission to save his girlfriend from criminals.
In 2009, WWE made a movie called 12 Rounds, starring former champion John Cena as a police officer on a mission to save his girlfriend from a vengeful criminal.
The statute of limitation on plot replication is apparently three years because both movies' plots sound eerily similar, even if it's executed differently in each film. This makes it difficult for me to not compare the two as a result. However, the fundamental difference I've noticed between 12 Rounds and The Marine is that 12 Rounds is just a tad better... or at least just a tad more enjoyable.
Sure, I could argue that anything would be an improvement over The Marine, a terribly mediocre action film. But much to my surprise, 12 Rounds is actually okay.
Some people have attributed the plot as being a poor man's iteration of Die Hard With A Vengeance. Since I haven't seen that movie, I can't really comment in that regard. However, the plot itself is a fairly paper-thin affair anyway and while the flow of the movie tends to be erratic, it's at least paced fairly well and it won't put you to sleep, which was certainly the case with The Marine.
Of course, the script is still below par - it IS a WWE Films production, after all - but for what it's worth, the cast makes the best of it and the acting is serviceable if not decent. If anything, it shows that John Cena really is a capable actor who could shine if given better material. While this isn't a whole lot better than what was given on to him during The Marine, it's at least a step in the right direction.
12 Rounds isn't necessarily a good movie; it's strictly an okay movie at best - a step up from The Marine, which is a downright mediocre movie. And while there might be better alternatives out there when it comes to seeking out an action flick, you certainly can't go wrong with 12 Rounds if you're looking for a quick fix of action. Out of all the WWE Films released thus far, this is one of the few that can actually be considered anything within the neighborhood of GOOD.
Let's just hope that when Cena does another picture, it doesn't involve him being on a mission to save his girlfriend from criminals.
In 2009, WWE made a movie called 12 Rounds, starring former champion John Cena as a police officer on a mission to save his girlfriend from a vengeful criminal.
The statute of limitation on plot replication is apparently three years because both movies' plots sound eerily similar, even if it's executed differently in each film. This makes it difficult for me to not compare the two as a result. However, the fundamental difference I've noticed between 12 Rounds and The Marine is that 12 Rounds is just a tad better... or at least just a tad more enjoyable.
Sure, I could argue that anything would be an improvement over The Marine, a terribly mediocre action film. But much to my surprise, 12 Rounds is actually okay.
Some people have attributed the plot as being a poor man's iteration of Die Hard With A Vengeance. Since I haven't seen that movie, I can't really comment in that regard. However, the plot itself is a fairly paper-thin affair anyway and while the flow of the movie tends to be erratic, it's at least paced fairly well and it won't put you to sleep, which was certainly the case with The Marine.
Of course, the script is still below par - it IS a WWE Films production, after all - but for what it's worth, the cast makes the best of it and the acting is serviceable if not decent. If anything, it shows that John Cena really is a capable actor who could shine if given better material. While this isn't a whole lot better than what was given on to him during The Marine, it's at least a step in the right direction.
12 Rounds isn't necessarily a good movie; it's strictly an okay movie at best - a step up from The Marine, which is a downright mediocre movie. And while there might be better alternatives out there when it comes to seeking out an action flick, you certainly can't go wrong with 12 Rounds if you're looking for a quick fix of action. Out of all the WWE Films released thus far, this is one of the few that can actually be considered anything within the neighborhood of GOOD.
Let's just hope that when Cena does another picture, it doesn't involve him being on a mission to save his girlfriend from criminals.