This is my very first review on this site, as I rarely feel sufficiently invested in a movie to take the time to write a significant piece on a movie. However, I had to speak out because I could not tolerate the fake reviews obviously meant to trick innocent spectators like myself.
The movie started out as a decent, if by no means great or even good flick. Had it continued in such a vein, it could have earned 6, perhaps even 7 stars. After all, though the plot is all too predictable, the acting itself was not abysmal. However, all sense of normality flies out the window once you get to the action sequences. None of them make any sense whatsoever.
Spoiler warning ahead.
In one such example, one of the bad guys climbs up a mountain to "snipe" the protagonist, who is riding an ATV. Moments later, we get to see a very poorly conceived and shot scene where the camera's perspective is shown over the shooter's shoulder, who is aiming towards the fleeing protagonist. What makes this utterly ridiculous is that according to this shot the protagonist is on level ground with the shooter, and not 40 or 50 feet away from him. How did the shooter manage to close the distance so quickly, ascending then descending the mountain to cut his target off? Then, after shooting the protagonist off the ATV, the shooter inexplicably radio's one of his henchment to "finish him off" when he himself is almost right on top of the target.
Now, when this henchman arrives at the scene the protagonist seems to have miraculously shrugged off his gunshot wound (a wound which strangely enough, though it managed to knock him off the ATV, is still notably absent and at no point in the movie seems to inconvenience him at all) somehow manages to sneak up on the big, gun-toting bad guy (though the trees are so sparse that one wonders how he managed to disguise his own footprints in the snow AND approach the gun-wielding bad guy without being spotted) and clocks him on the head with a branch - from the FRONT. I replayed this scene numerous times just to confirm that yes, according to the camera shot the protagonist's blow comes from the front and hits the bad guy on the temple/forehead. How a supposedly alert guy who is aware that his target is around manages to miss this is just ridiculous and immersion breaking.
A struggle over the gun ensues, which our protagonist loses yet fortunately enough when the bad guy aims the gun and fires at him from a distance of maybe 6 feet, our nimble protagonist manages to fling himself to the ground, hiding behind the nearby ATV and thus narrowly avoiding the single shot fired by the bad guy. So, after firing a single shot with his automatic assault rifle, what does the bad guy do? Surely, take this chance to take some prudent distance while firing at his helpless foe, who still lies on the ground and is clearly visible behind the non-existent cover of the tiny ATV! Nope, instead the bad guy runs over to swing his rifle like a club at our protagonist, then proceeds to kick him. After this another small fight breaks out where the bad guy has plenty of chances to grab his gun, yet he doesn't. No, the protagonist even has all the time in the world to wrap the ATV's towing wire (which has been conveniently unwound - how did that happen?) around the bad guy's waist, then proceeds to drive the ATV over a nearby cliff.
I could continue a play-by-play rundown of the endless succession of such nonsensical, immersion breaking, and just awfully planned and even more terribly shot fight scenes. I could harp on and on about the way none of the good guys seem particularly inclined to pick up any number of guns that could be easily and swiftly collected from downed enemies. They also act recklessly and foolishly, shoulder charging gun-wielding enemies while armed with nothing but a great, roaring scream that does nothing but alert the enemy of their position and intent. Yet, the very moment they momentarily overwhelm their opponent, they flee like little girls instead of taking the opportunity to finish off their downed foe or pick up the gun lying on the ground right in front of them.
Don't even get me started on the final scene, where the character uses a rope as a laughably stupid and ineffective distraction (which of course, works flawlessly), then shoulder charges the gun wielding antagonist. When the poor man lies stunned on the ground, what does our brilliant protagonist do? He picks up the heavy, unwieldly bag of drugs instead of the gun, and takes off running into the woods. Of course, for some reason the bad guy doesn't shoot him in the back while laughing incredulously at his ambusher's sheer idiocy.
In the end, this is an action movie with some of the most ridiculous, idiotic action scenes that I have witnessed. At first, they were frustrating and upsetting. As they simply kept piling on and on, however, me and my friends couldn't help but laugh at the characters' mind-boggling antics.
Avoid this movie at all costs unless you want to see an unintentionally comical series of poorly designed and shot "action" scenes, very loosely tied together by a predictable, boring plot.
The movie started out as a decent, if by no means great or even good flick. Had it continued in such a vein, it could have earned 6, perhaps even 7 stars. After all, though the plot is all too predictable, the acting itself was not abysmal. However, all sense of normality flies out the window once you get to the action sequences. None of them make any sense whatsoever.
Spoiler warning ahead.
In one such example, one of the bad guys climbs up a mountain to "snipe" the protagonist, who is riding an ATV. Moments later, we get to see a very poorly conceived and shot scene where the camera's perspective is shown over the shooter's shoulder, who is aiming towards the fleeing protagonist. What makes this utterly ridiculous is that according to this shot the protagonist is on level ground with the shooter, and not 40 or 50 feet away from him. How did the shooter manage to close the distance so quickly, ascending then descending the mountain to cut his target off? Then, after shooting the protagonist off the ATV, the shooter inexplicably radio's one of his henchment to "finish him off" when he himself is almost right on top of the target.
Now, when this henchman arrives at the scene the protagonist seems to have miraculously shrugged off his gunshot wound (a wound which strangely enough, though it managed to knock him off the ATV, is still notably absent and at no point in the movie seems to inconvenience him at all) somehow manages to sneak up on the big, gun-toting bad guy (though the trees are so sparse that one wonders how he managed to disguise his own footprints in the snow AND approach the gun-wielding bad guy without being spotted) and clocks him on the head with a branch - from the FRONT. I replayed this scene numerous times just to confirm that yes, according to the camera shot the protagonist's blow comes from the front and hits the bad guy on the temple/forehead. How a supposedly alert guy who is aware that his target is around manages to miss this is just ridiculous and immersion breaking.
A struggle over the gun ensues, which our protagonist loses yet fortunately enough when the bad guy aims the gun and fires at him from a distance of maybe 6 feet, our nimble protagonist manages to fling himself to the ground, hiding behind the nearby ATV and thus narrowly avoiding the single shot fired by the bad guy. So, after firing a single shot with his automatic assault rifle, what does the bad guy do? Surely, take this chance to take some prudent distance while firing at his helpless foe, who still lies on the ground and is clearly visible behind the non-existent cover of the tiny ATV! Nope, instead the bad guy runs over to swing his rifle like a club at our protagonist, then proceeds to kick him. After this another small fight breaks out where the bad guy has plenty of chances to grab his gun, yet he doesn't. No, the protagonist even has all the time in the world to wrap the ATV's towing wire (which has been conveniently unwound - how did that happen?) around the bad guy's waist, then proceeds to drive the ATV over a nearby cliff.
I could continue a play-by-play rundown of the endless succession of such nonsensical, immersion breaking, and just awfully planned and even more terribly shot fight scenes. I could harp on and on about the way none of the good guys seem particularly inclined to pick up any number of guns that could be easily and swiftly collected from downed enemies. They also act recklessly and foolishly, shoulder charging gun-wielding enemies while armed with nothing but a great, roaring scream that does nothing but alert the enemy of their position and intent. Yet, the very moment they momentarily overwhelm their opponent, they flee like little girls instead of taking the opportunity to finish off their downed foe or pick up the gun lying on the ground right in front of them.
Don't even get me started on the final scene, where the character uses a rope as a laughably stupid and ineffective distraction (which of course, works flawlessly), then shoulder charges the gun wielding antagonist. When the poor man lies stunned on the ground, what does our brilliant protagonist do? He picks up the heavy, unwieldly bag of drugs instead of the gun, and takes off running into the woods. Of course, for some reason the bad guy doesn't shoot him in the back while laughing incredulously at his ambusher's sheer idiocy.
In the end, this is an action movie with some of the most ridiculous, idiotic action scenes that I have witnessed. At first, they were frustrating and upsetting. As they simply kept piling on and on, however, me and my friends couldn't help but laugh at the characters' mind-boggling antics.
Avoid this movie at all costs unless you want to see an unintentionally comical series of poorly designed and shot "action" scenes, very loosely tied together by a predictable, boring plot.