After a decade of globetrotting and attempts to evangelize Hollywood-style filmmaking in China and Arab world, Renny Harlin returns to stuff he does best.
Nine years ago, Aaron Eckhart starred in a masterful Philipp Stoelzl actioner Erased and in hie team up with Harlin he channels some of the good stuff that film brought us.
It's not just that Harlin is doing stuff he does best. It's also that he has the production environment that suits him.
He has a great cast and above all a game cast. He has Avi Lerner's Bulgarian action specialists in tow to inflict pain and have pain inflicted upon them. He has Greek locations that look great, like some shabby version of Italy. And he has 20 million bucks to spend.
And oh boy - he does deliver.
Aaron Eckhart is a great actor and he can be an action leading man anytime. Nina Dobrev found her footing here easily even though she comes from other genres. Ifenesh Hadera is femme fatale incarnate. Clifton Collins is a great villain and Tim Blake Nelson could do the ball busting boss in his sleep.
Action is old school. No gimmicks. No funny stuff. It's bone crunching fights, flesh piercing gunfights and high powered car chases. It's really well done.
Jason Bourne hit the Athens' Syntagma Square in the eponymous Paul Greengrass comeback to the franchise. Bricklayer continues where he left off and finds a nice milieu for the chicanery in volatile Greek politics. The script isn't a gamechanger but it's actually pretty decent when it comes to the setting and to the mismatched investigators element with Aaron Eckhart as a seasoned field operator and Nina Dobrev as a desk jockey trying to unleash her inner Jack Ryan.
This film could have been better. But I am not sure I would like it as much if it was.
Nine years ago, Aaron Eckhart starred in a masterful Philipp Stoelzl actioner Erased and in hie team up with Harlin he channels some of the good stuff that film brought us.
It's not just that Harlin is doing stuff he does best. It's also that he has the production environment that suits him.
He has a great cast and above all a game cast. He has Avi Lerner's Bulgarian action specialists in tow to inflict pain and have pain inflicted upon them. He has Greek locations that look great, like some shabby version of Italy. And he has 20 million bucks to spend.
And oh boy - he does deliver.
Aaron Eckhart is a great actor and he can be an action leading man anytime. Nina Dobrev found her footing here easily even though she comes from other genres. Ifenesh Hadera is femme fatale incarnate. Clifton Collins is a great villain and Tim Blake Nelson could do the ball busting boss in his sleep.
Action is old school. No gimmicks. No funny stuff. It's bone crunching fights, flesh piercing gunfights and high powered car chases. It's really well done.
Jason Bourne hit the Athens' Syntagma Square in the eponymous Paul Greengrass comeback to the franchise. Bricklayer continues where he left off and finds a nice milieu for the chicanery in volatile Greek politics. The script isn't a gamechanger but it's actually pretty decent when it comes to the setting and to the mismatched investigators element with Aaron Eckhart as a seasoned field operator and Nina Dobrev as a desk jockey trying to unleash her inner Jack Ryan.
This film could have been better. But I am not sure I would like it as much if it was.