catimeup Reviews

We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)

Writer/Director problems

[1/10 · 21 March 2024]

Saw this in 2024 (I know late) I won't delve too much into the fact that many writer/directors fail miserably simply due to the fact they haven't excelled at one aspect of either, so putting 2 things on their plate just makes it sloppy.

Instead I'll talk about how bad the movie is. You have Kevin, clearly a disturbed psychopath, hurts his sister, kills the family pet, gets caught masturbating by his mom and instead of being stopping he continues masturbating...spoiler alert Kevin later kills his sister and father, and commits a bow and arrow style school massacre.

The mom played by Tilda Swinton is a good performance if we are talking about her being a cold mother who didn't want to have children or at least resentful of the fact she birthed Kevin (who she sees as too troubled to raise) despite having a younger daughter who she clearly loves more.

John C. Riley does a decent portrayal of a naive witless father who doesn't seem to put too much stock into disturbing things happening around him.

Ezra Miller does a decent performance as a psychopath, which shouldn't be too hard for him seeing how the numerous accusations of various kinds of misconduct, arrested for break and entering among a miriad of other incidents, even red carpet wardrobe choices point to a deeper issue. Whether that is a mental health condition that has yet to be addressed or a psychopath that should be locked away in an asylum for the remainder of his life is not for me to decide.

In essence the movie is a social commentary of a family that at first glance appears like most other families, but needs to discuss and take action on their son's increasingly disturbing behavior.

Sitting through the first half felt very uneventful and could have been a lot more emotionally engaging, second half it picks up speed but falls short of making much of an impact despite the subject matter.

As far as social commentary movies go it fell short of making the audience of a group of myself and my friends give a damn.

You'd be better off wasting the movie time watching grass grow or paint dry.

The Poison Rose (2019)

Watching paint dry

[1/10 · 22 September 2023]

Take good actors and put them in very predictable plot, cheap dialogue, monologues that are supposed to give it a "film noir" vibe but really feels like a very campy who done it.

You can have good actors all you want in a movie, but give them a terrible script and give them a director I wouldn't trust to film a wedding reception of some random nobody's, and you'll have a movie that feels like a waste of time having sat down and viewed it. On second thought watching paint dry would have been more fun than this. Actors can do wonders, but talented as the cast is, there's only so much you can polish a heaping pile of crap.

The Cloverfield Paradox (2018)

Pure trash, couldn't pay me enough to enjoy it.

[1/10 · 24 April 2023]

Great cast, but no director alive could have saved this lousy attempt for a script.

The movie simply merges in with the fact that large alien beings have attacked earth like the first movie. The movie coasts on the intrigue built up from the first two Cloverfield movies of the who/what/where/when/why and the how they got there and what they want with earth. By the end of the movie, there's no answers, simply earth is doomed. Doesn't surprise me seeing as how that's how the other two movies ended off with no answers, so no surprise that the producers behind this movie are counting on viewers buying into the mystery for mystery's sake than any actual enjoyment of viewing something that contains some entertainment value. There's entertaining segments between the interactions of the characters, but few and far between and not much of any plot. Most of the movie is explaining why they are in space, and what they are doing to fix a global energy crisis. That's fine and all, but to be doing it in such a way that negates the reason people are really there to watch the movie...well that's just teasing. If I would have known that i'd only see a brief glimpse of giant aliens and that the plot was reaching for some crazy multiverse reasoning to merge plots together I would have found more enjoyment watching an adorable dog compilation repeatedly for the duration of the movie. Oddly enough there were a few people in the theatre with me who felt it best to get their phones out and start playing games or watching something else in silence.

You know a movie is bad when nobody in the theatre is caring that over a dozen people in various isles and rows of the theatre are on their phone, so much so that even the theatre security personnel didn't care that people had their phones out. By the end I'd say easily half the theatre had their phones out.

There simply was too much over-reaching and merging of various plots, plot holes, and so little fanfare of the magic of the first two Cloverfield movies that there was no sense having to watch it.

If I was paid to watch it, I wouldn't have accepted for any less than $200 (100 for my time I could have been earning money working for myself, and 100 for time I would otherwise not get back.

Rogue City (2020)

Unoriginal garbage disguised by good cinematography

[1/10 · 27 July 2022]

Cops in villas and nice boats akin to the crime lords, chief commissioners bribed by crime lords, and an undercover unit not afraid to kill every cop involved in the death of an undercover cop in an ambush of a drug deal...none of the cops knew the guy was undercover...so basically the undercover unit is as bad as the crime lords with no regard for overblown revenge, the cops are corrupt and the crime lords are no different than the law trying to bring them down.

Completely unoriginal.

Lucky Day (I) (2019)

Why ruin it

[2/10 · 19 July 2022]

Let me begin by saying the butchered French really ruined it for me, and if it hadn't been for that I might have considered giving the movie a 5/10.

Seeing as how you can't give a rating of 0/10 I decided to impress upon giving it 2 steaming piles of crap.

The Package (II) (2018)

Goofy and entertaining

[6/10 · 15 January 2022]

I wasn't going into it with many expectations other than what i saw from the trailer. I knew it was a B movie from the get go.

Barring the exception of the dong being cut, it had it moments and parts of the shenanigans and the general acts between friends in part felt relatable. Felt very much like reliving high school shenanigans and life.

If you're looking for movie that isn't long and should watch baked then this is worth a watch. I wouldn't call it great, but it's entertaining enough to say it was enjoyable.

BuyBust (2018)

PSA...stop any comparison to The Raid movies

[1/10 · 24 October 2021]

Whichever other reviewers compared this movie to The Raid or The Raid 2 clearly haven't seen this movie. To suggest any of the fight scenes, action taking place in this movie or the cinematography is anywhere in the same realm of The Raid or The Raid 2 is unquestionably void of sight.

The Raid movies were top notch high quality gruesomely amazing action movies, this movie is not even cracking the top 2000+ list of action movies i've seen.

If you want to see a movie with terribly choreographed fight scenes, absolutely poor sound editing, terrible camera work, and lazy plot... then yeah this is your jam.

I really need to repeat this, the fight scenes feel fake, are terribly choreographed and poorly shot. When you see a good action movie the punches and kicks look real, looks like it hurts. This particular movie however, the punches and kicks among other things look like they were being puller back. The only thing in the fight scenes that actually feels real and painful is the use of knives, but with the exception of that the fights and overall action falls flat.

The sound editing was bad throughout, most importantly during fight scenes and action sequences.

The awful camerawork didn't help, but wasn't the biggest problem. If the action and fights were better choreographed and the plot was there, then yes the lack of quality camerawork would have been the biggest obstacle in getting the rating more than a 6/10.

.

Jiu Jitsu (2020)

Why?

[1/10 · 20 June 2021]

We all know the Nicolas Cage drill, he's in everything no matter how bad, so i figured having him be a more secondary character to some of the martial artists in this movie why not give it a try.

I've seen over a thousand action movies good and bad, hundreds of martial arts movies good and bad, and seen just about everything done by Tony Jaa. As far as fight choreography and fight cinematography are concerned this movie is very low on the totem pole. Bring me an english dub of a terrible '80's or '90's martial arts movie and i would rather watch that over this movie.

The fight cinematography and choreography are terrible which could be ok if the movie was anything other than a martial arts/action movie. It makes me question whether or not the makers of the movie have even seen action movies. Combine it all with a bad script and you have arguably the worst martial arts film i've seen in the last 10 years.

1917 (2019)

Stunning visuals and camera work is not everything.

[5/10 · 27 December 2020]

Movie was stunningly beautiful to watch and the effects and cinematography....blah blah blah were all amazing.

Where i have trouble with it is the plot and the events that followed. Only 2 people are tasked to go on a mission of great importance and there was supposed to be no enemy in the way but it was more of an assumption. Seriously my commanding officer would have sent minimum 8, just in case. While the camera work and cinematography and sound effects were amazing, in terms of actual dread and despair there isn't much. As visually stunning as the movie is, filming a war that was known to be one of the worst in history... the plot, dialogue, and overall feel of the film felt campy. Platoon, Saving Private Ryan, Lebanon, Fury, Das Boot were all far more engaging and far more suspenseful.

Visuals, the long camera sequences and achievements done behind the camera is the only reason this movie gets a 5 out of 10. Considering all the WWI material i have read, and seen in movies or documentaries, and comparing it to other war movies this doesn't crack my top 15 war movies list.

The Raid 2 (2014)

ACTION MOVIE 101

[10/10 · 10 May 2020]

I have seen many action movies and martial arts movies come and go in my 30+ years of viewing experience. This is my mind is easily in my top 3 martial arts movies of all time.

The action is introduced early on but only get a glimpse, a taste, an appetizer. Throughout the movie the action ramps up culminating to a flurry of beautifully choreographed mayhem. The action and the fight scenes are not for the faint of heart either. You hear bones breaking, you see bones breaking, you see blood splattering everywhere, and the brutality unlike many movies feels real because the shots are up close and personal. No guy getting blown up or crushed by a bus dozens of feet away, you are there, and it looks excruciating.

The fight scenes, the cinematography, the story is beautifully done to create a masterpiece of chaos. The movie is almost 2 and a half hours long, but it doesn't feel like it. Every scene dives deeper into the realm of danger that is Rama's life. Ever deeper the plot thickens, ever more the action escalates. The villains are well done, but are not the main source of Rama's problems.

Mad Dog, Hammer girl and bat boy are martial arts dynamos who get their own appearances and ability to showcase their brand of style and prowess before the face-off with Rama. This serves as an appetizer and a sense of just how dangerous they can be and gives question to how is it gonna play out. They serve as the agents of evil for the madmen who lead them. Unlike other movies, the martial art baddies lean more on the side of fists to the highest bidder. You know they work for the bad guys, but you get the sense and feel that they work for whoever can get them the most challenge, the most to pit their wits and might against.

The movie never feels drawn out, or too long. You only get the sense of questioning how much more carnage can be squeezed out, and it never flutters. By the time the movie is done you feel as if only just moments before hit the brakes.

The action sequences are the thing of legend and serve as a tool to learn from. The amount of time between various angle shots and image breaks is long. The camera work and choreography for the fights took many months and it shows. You have real martial artists as actors, and it shows. Very much like having Jackie Chan, Tony Jaa, Jet Li, Bruce Lee, and other titans in the game, you have more chances of them not only performing their own stunts but also wanting to showcase their abilities by being part of the choreograph team. It takes a director such as Evens to be able to maximize runtime between cuts by doing some interesting camera work only seen by those who directors who truly love fight scenes.

This movie focuses on the brutality and the relentless focus that is one man's quest to doing his mission and getting back to his family.

2 and a half hours of brilliance, beauty and utter destruction. Thank you to everyone involved in the making of this gem, it will remain one of my top 3 martial arts films for the foreseeable future and will certainly take a great deal of effort to knock it off that list. I challenge directors to make martial arts movies this good. Keep it coming

Broken Arrow (1996)

John Woo classic

[8/10 · 27 January 2020]

So never mind that the nuke's are close to an actual ton in weight, or the you can have good aim while cartwheeling through the air, or that guns have a limited ammo capacity, that there isn't an actual gps tracker hardwired into the circuit board of all wareheads, and the timer is jumping about from scene to scene... If you can get past all the factual inaccuracies and all the directorial mishaps that is John Woo films you have yourself a fairly solid piece of entertainment. None of the actors are particularly good, and the plot has more holes than Swiss cheese, but you have a movie with over the top action and that's pretty much all you should care about John Woo films. If you're expecting something more high-brow or something more authentic you really should do your homework on directors.

As far as John Woo films is concerned this one keeps the pace going, and for an action movie that can be hard to do at times. considering the time and considering how little it wastes between bullets flying this movie is a staple for his film collection, it's not his best, but it's far from his worst.

3 from Hell (2019)

zombie's worst movie

[1/10 · 4 November 2019]

For a horror movie this felt almost too campy. throughout the whole movie you more or less got the sense that the trio would be alive and well in the end. The plot wasn't a whole lot different from the others in the trilogy, but you got the notion that the film was made merely for those who wanted to see the original trio for one last movie. It would have been much better if there was a better plot, and more thought was put into script and general direction of the film. Granted they had to work around captain Spaulding not being healthy to finish the movie so reworking had to be redone, but it felt rushed and thoughtless. I really wanted to enjoy this movie

The Bronx Bull (2016)

Just watch Raging Bull

[4/10 · 1 October 2019]

On the whole this movie isn't all bad, but if you want to watch the story of Jake Lamotta you have to see Raging Bull. More of the pain, more of the rage, more of the intrigue that was Jake Lamotta. The acting and directing in Raging Bull is miles ahead of this film, but it's hard to compare an A class big ticket movie to something that is a B class limited release feature.

This movie has it's moments, but the shadow cast by Raging Bull is too great to get away from.

Revan (2015)

Labouring to watch

[1/10 · 16 December 2018]

In theory I would give this a 3 out of 10 for a fan film, but given the fact that they mention over 100 people worked on this I definitely scratch that down to a 1 simply based on the sheer lack of quality. Costumes, makeup, dialogue, effects, plot, none of that was any good. As a Star Wars fan I was really hoping to like this, but it was labouring to watch after the first 20 minutes. I pushed through, but as a whole I had a hard time enjoying any of it.

I've sat through many B movies and even the ones that are excruciatingly bad (aka the ones that are past the point of being good because they were bad), and I can honestly say i'd rather watch those.

I knew a guy who in highschool could make decent half hour films with a crew of 10, given 100+ people for this movie makes me sad to see how bad they were unable to find quality talent. Fan movie aside, this is Star Wars, they should have been able to find enough people to make a quality fan film.

The Garden of Eden (2008)

Scenery and nothing

[2/10 · 19 November 2018]

Not much of a reader, so I haven't read the book, so I can't compare the movie to the book.

For the purposes of the review I will rate it as if it were a movie unto itself. The scenery looks great, but the script and acting was garbage. I understand Catherine was a bored and entitled rich woman, but nothing in the script gave us any in depth look into her or into the love triangle she was trying to make. Instead it appeared as if she was some sort of mentally unstable individual. One minute being cold for the sake of being cold, the next creating an argument for the sheer fun of it. I'm describing it all with more depth than the mere words she was saying. The script and direction were very plain, very much like my writing, though i'm not the one being paid to write.

The other pieces of the triangle being Marita and David acted well enough. The script itself wasn't helping much, and the overall storyline was all over the place.

Having more erotica than substance certainly seems unlike some reviewers would say about this film, but i'm hoping the book did a better job with regards to setting up the story, and actually conveying a triangle that made some sense.

Hopefully my review is informative and will give a non-reader enough information to peruse the book in hopes of a better plot line

Shot Caller (2017)

Jamie Lannister doing it again.

[9/10 · 13 November 2018]

The movie driven by a one man performance, and some solid writing and assisted by a cast and crew that did their job well. I thought it was going to be one of those b movies, but instead was a very easily missed A movie. It was less well known and that I believe is the greater crime. Brawl In Cell Block 99 also had that same problem. Both great prison movies, both well made and acted and yet both were dark horses in the A movie category.

We were painted with the idea of prison as being a club med being able to walk in and out without gang assistance. Many prisons can be like that, but some correctional facilities are meant for the cream of the violent crop. With this movie we saw once again they were placing the main man in an environment where he had no real choice. Yes we wanted the main character to be back with his family with his minimum term, but we are thrown into this chaos because he was placed in a prison of hardened criminals and not your usual run of the mill average criminals. You are lined up and ready for your meal next to Jacob when it first started, but you start to see how his reality is shaped evermore by his environment where his only choices are pain/death or survival/persecution.

I thoroughly enjoyed the film going back and forth between past and present. It felt smooth and even if the character took a drastic turn, you feel step by step he was always making the choices about others and not for himself, always keeping a level head even when he looked scared out of his mind.

I really think this movie deserves a wider viewing audience, because I stumbled upon this one accidentally. I was glad I checked it out, and it definitely exceeded my expectations.

To anyone who reads this review...please watch it. You will be entertained.

Incredibles 2 (2018)

Solid, but not like the first

[8/10 · 5 November 2018]

The first movie was amazing, the second (aka this one) was still pretty good, but not as good as the first. Part of it had to do with the first being more of a groundbreaking movie. A more serious superhero animation movie without being out of the PG realm. Great art, great story, and for a Pixar movie I felt it introduces a new concept of realism to the superhero fitting into society.

While this movie has the same elements, I felt there was 2 aspects different. 1. It didn't have the same hit as the first because it wasn't new, and therefore had big shoes to fill because the first was great, so our expectations were shifted higher. 2. while the first had the aspect of everything working out in the end, this movie had the same but with the added bonus of everything about superheros being legal again. While it made sense to have a movie resolving this issue in the narrative, I felt that it being illegal was part of what made the first movie great.

There wasn't as much plot-wise in this movie, although that was a lot to do with discovering Jack Jack's powers and while it was adorable I think it took up much of the time that could have been spent delving into the unveiling and backstory development of the villain.

Overall the movie was good, could have been better, but to be honest I still felt it was enjoyable to watch.

Showgirls 2: Penny's from Heaven (2011)

Bad in the worst ways

[1/10 · 21 October 2018]

First off, while I didn't think the first film was great by any standards, it served up as a half decent b movie. The kind of movie you can watch if you want to make fun of and yet still have a semi decent viewing experience.

Showgirls 2 on the other hand makes a C movie (severely low budget amateur movies) look like Hollywood A films. The acting, camera work, sets, script...I'm not an accountant but even I want to do some forensic accounting to figure out where all the budget for this film went. i've seen better camera work by highschool students, and even better acting and scripts from low budget porn movies.

I was halfway through before I pulled the plug on it. do yourself a favour, watching anything more than the trailer is a waste of time.

Cat Run (2011)

It knows it's B movie, and it gets gold.

[8/10 · 9 September 2018]

Normally smaller budget or made for tv kind of movies really do nothing for me. This movie worked. The way these do work for me is taking themselves for what they are, and by that I mean not serious.

How to do that...sprinkle in some gratuity, pinches of comedy, teaspoon of "how do we get out of this", don't bother measuring the action, just add that until it goes bang. Think of it like action movie cheese, all the ingredients needed for a good action flick. All those old classic action films and westerns, you see enough of them you begin to know the way it goes down. This movie gets away with utilizing a lot of what we have already seen because it doesn't fail to deliver the goods with extra toppings. The movie doesn't try and sell itself off as high quality multimillion dollar budget movie. Instead it delivers what we can expect from lower budget movies. Mistakes, tom foolery, and more importantly that intangible feeling you get when you watch people overdue it but get away with it because deep down you know this was fun for them.

This movie does have some draw backs, but honestly i'll save that for people who can sit through a b movie on a regular basis to figure out.

Overall I was pleased and this is something i'd watch if I was inclined to satisfy my urge for a cheesy but not too cheesy action movie.

Gotti (2018)

E (aka Kevin Connolly) stick to making pizzas on entourage

[1/10 · 3 September 2018]

I'm not sure i've seen a worse mobster movie. Hard to portray a mobster when the man in question couldn't keep his own mouth shut. Bear in mind I always thought the real life Gotti was my number 1 punching bag when it came down to trashing mobsters. He is to organized crime as Isis is to any terror attack, claiming responsibility left right and center.

I understand the real life story could have made for some intriguing plot points and some decent filler for a film, but everything from the Son's death to Travolta's performance felt laughable, and the movie as a whole was all over the place. Are you supposed to like him, hate him?

Had this been a more low budget picture, I could forgive this poorly executed movie. Sadly this tried to be a box office motion picture when it should have gone straight to DVD or even TV movie. It's a movie I could see someone randomly changing tv stations stopping to see for a few minutes before realizing they were better off watching re-runs of some bad reality tv show.

Seriously E (Kevin Connolly) stick to what you were good at, it's clearly not directing.

Happy Christmas (2014)

Uses "like" more times than John Wayne cocked his guns.

[1/10 · 2 September 2018]

The movie was simple, it was relatable, but I wasn't drawn to it enough to be able to say it was funny or a dramady. Personally speaking, it was worth checking out for the sake of saying I checked it out.

I have no real comment or critique on the actors, writing or anything else apart from the experience that it left a very bland taste on my movie loving pallet.

I'm very much against others using sentences with the word "like" more than once per every few minutes when i'm talking to them. In hopes of giving you a taste for how annoying it is to me, I will use the word "like" enough times in the next paragraph to sum up my hate for it without overdueing the ranting.

The last time I heard the word "like" used that many times was like back in must have been like high school, or maybe like a few other times like hanging out with ummmm the people from like university who were just there to like get a piece of paper with a degree saying that they you know like studied and passed the program. Like seriously guys, you're paid to like write a script. The least you can do is like write something with some kind of effort and like thought process, as opposed to something that looks like the first draft of the first draft written on a cardboard menu at a bar you got like super smashed at.

12 Strong (2018)

'Merica!!!!

[1/10 · 26 August 2018]

Shortest review I will ever do. This movie so centered on American patriotism that I had an impossible time forgetting that the war lasted...oh wait no, still American troops in Afghanistan.

Knowing how the remainder of the war in Afghanistan goes...this movie illustrates how 12 men, braved through very tough odds, only to accomplish 1 fruitless victory in a losing war. winning a battle but not the war... seems to be how America like to operate last 2 decades.

Billionaire Boys Club (2018)

Kevin Spacey...still working...

[3/10 · 20 August 2018]

The movie seemed like it hit all the generic broke to rich as hell tropes. Didn't really seem to capture how someone really processes that. Instead focuses on all the stuff they could now do and buy...oh wait, Hollywood being highly dubious with capitalism and feeding the image of needing and wanting stuff beyond our means and collecting things we already have enough of.

Characters could have been a lot more dynamic. I think Kevin Spacey was the only actor actually doing a decent job of the script, which definitely lacked. Spacey normally a shoe in for a good performance because of the quality of his craft and work ethic. Sadly things surface of him being a bad guy.

I feel people should stop hiring Spacey. Good actor yes, but a certain shift needs to happen in rendering that kind of behaviour to be not ok in Hollywood as it's not ok with the rest of us. This movie definitely portrays that whole mentality of being rich getting you off the hook for crazy stuff, whether they be an actor or just some incredibly wealthy person. While it is technically part of the story, I feel that using an actor who himself has done transgressions to play in a movie with transgressions of some sort seem almost as if they were trying to make it seem almost normal. One instance of it and I might question the legitimacy of it, because it's Hollywood, people would stab each other in the back for a shot at millions or getting back at someone. Seeing as though he has quite a few allegations I see it as a shoe certainly fits kind of situation.

Anyway back to the movie at hand, script could have given the characters something more to utilize. Spacey can make his roles work because again, solid actor, everyone else looked to be plucking at strings though to their credit only so much an actor can salvage from a bad script.

Some movies should not be remade, and certainly many movies should not try to feed us what seem to be recycled themes and stories. I'd like to see more original plots or minimum using unique ways of telling a story already done. This is neither.

Death Note (I) (2017)

This movie would 5/10 if you haven't seen source material.

[1/10 · 20 August 2018]

I've loved the anime since I seen it many years ago. the complex characters, the fact it's an actual thriller, and the fact it was a philosophical starting point in asking "what if criminals were eliminated".

If you haven't read the source material or seen the anime, start with this movie and afterwards treat yourself to either the anime or the manga.

If you haven't seen or read either and only seen this movie, I would give it a 5 out of 10, and that is being more than generous. I was largely disappointed with this movie not using any of what made the former so successful.

Overall though, i'd honestly avoid this movie. I was reluctant to watch the movie to begin with as I know exactly what Hollywood would do to the storyline. Hint...totally ruin it for the sake of money. Understandable if you consider what Hollywood is built on.

Given that my motto is anything once, I was compelled to watch it. I was hoping it wouldn't be as bad as it was, but then again I wasn't completely surprised either.

Do yourselves a favour and watch the anime or read the manga.

All the Money in the World (2017)

Can't afford to save your favourite grandson...

[3/10 · 12 August 2018]

Let me get this out of the way first, the story does get in the way of me enjoying the movie. A billionaire who can't afford to pay for his favorite grandson's ransom, makes sense when considering they could go after the other dozen or so grandkids he has. In that respect it makes sense. The first amount he agrees to actually pay ends up being the amount that is tax deductible...sounds like Shylock asking for his pound of flesh. Later paying the 4 or so million after being threatened by his liaison/security man.

I admit Williams did a solid performance as the mother, Plummer plays a convincing Scrooge type character, Mark Wahlberg perhaps is a bit bland or out of place enough to not have a clue how to portray the role. The later is understandable considering his character felt out of place in relation to the movie, so I don't blame him for his lack of any scene chemistry.

The kidnappers started out fine, take the kid to secure location, don't give him any details of where he is. So far nothing wrong. Soon enough the kidnappers are lowering their price after months and everything seems to be poorly managed. For 17 million I would expect better organizational and planning skills, combined with a better watchful eye on the bait who seems capable of pulling a MacGyver.

In the credits they mention the plot and sequence of events was altered to better suit the movie. It seemed all over the place. There remained elements that could have been added and quite a few that could have been easily left out of the script. While technically not a change of plot, I believe adding Christopher Plummer as old man tight wallet was a better fit for the role than Kevin Spacey. No offence to Spacey's acting, but Plummer in my opinion suits the character more. The change being done initially for the sake of Spacey's allegations was also a great choice for a mainstream movie to say no to actors who have checkered pasts due to allegations. Whether those allegations prove true or not is a whole other can of worms.

As much praise as I give the studio for having gotten rid of Spacey, I don't consider carrying that sentiment over toward the movie.

In all the movie seemed chaotic, and having only 2 characters carrying the movie alone is not enough. Could have used more emotion, more dramatic effect. I felt as if the kidnapping could have used more elements of terror. Given 3 stars seems more than a fair pound of flesh.