Action

‘Final Score’ Review

Published

5 years ago

September 14, 2018

Steven Brinn

Genre : Action
Rating : R
Director: Scott Mann

Cast:
Dave Bautista
Ray Stevenson
Pierce Brosnan

When it comes to different forms of entertainment the worlds of film and professional wrestling are closer than one may think. When done well pro wrestling can be an exhilarating mix of athleticism, storytelling and audience work. Considering how compatible these skills are to success in film it’s only natural for wrestlers to try their hand at acting. And while it seems like the skills seem perfect for acting they don’t always transfer over. For every Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson or John Cena finding success in Tinsel Town, wrestling hall of famers such as Kurt Angle, Stone Cold Steve Austin and Hulk Hogan have typically flopped when they tried to headlock Hollywood. And somewhere in the middle is Dave Bautista.

Trained by Afa Anoa’i, Bautista was signed by WWE in 2000 and made his debut in 2002 as Batista. Starting at the bottom of the ladder he became one of the top guys in the game winning multiple world championships and working with some of the best of all time. Popular whether he was a face or a heel he became one of the biggest stars in WWE history thanks to his unique look and seemingly endless amount of charisma. Since leaving in 2010 he has moved onto film appearing in movies such as Spectre, Blade Runner 2049 and, his big break, the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise. But as big as these movies have been he hasn’t been given a lead role since 2011’s House of the Rising Sun. For the most part he has been cast as, and excelled at being, the hulking giant. But like his wrestling career he has made a name for himself, worked his way up the ladder and finally gets another shot as a lead in the Die Hard-esque Final Score.

Taking time off to go overseas, U.S. veteran Michael Knox (Bautista) visits the family of a friend who was killed in the line of duty. Spending the evening with his friend’s daughter Danni (Lara Peake) the two go to a West Ham United match. As the game begins, international terrorist Arkady (Ray Stevenson) secretly takes control of Upton Park with his army of heavily armed terrorists. When Danni goes missing Michael needs all of his military training to not only save her but prevent a massive disaster.

I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical hearing Bautista would be the lead. Not that I think he can’t be the star of a movie but I didn’t think he could work as a John McClane-style action hero. It requires an everyman relatability that you don’t typically find in a guy that’s 6’6″ and nearly 300 lbs. of pure muscle. So, imagine my surprise when he not only pulls it off but turns out to be pretty good at it. Even though his ability as an action star is the focus he shows off a surprising amount of heart as Knox. Sharing a great on-screen chemistry with Lara Peake the two feels real. Whether it’s the playful teasing Bautista gives when he catches her sneaking out or the urgency on his face when Danni goes missing Bautista is able to make it all feel legitimate.

That isn’t to say that Final Score is too heavy on the dramatics. Because while Pierce Brosnan and Ray Stevenson put in the kind of dependable performance audiences have come to expect the real highlight in the supporting cast is Amit Shah as Faisal. A steward at the stadium he is pitch perfect as the movie’s comic relief. Nailing each of his lines he steals almost every scene he is in. Of course, this isn’t a comedy. More than anything else Final Score is a showcase for Bautista to kick butt. And for the most part it delivers.

Directed by Scott Mann (The Tournament) Final Score is a throwback to 90’s style action, Die Hard and Sudden Death in particular. And like those past movies Final Score‘s focus is on the fireworks which it mostly delivers on. We get a little bit of everything from gunplay to hand-to-hand and even a motorbike chase inside of the stadium. The problem arises when it comes to the editing.

Like a lot of action movies Final Score suffers from shaky cam syndrome. While it adds grit to the bike chase and shoot outs it becomes hard to follow when it comes to any hand-to-hand fight scenes. A shame because from what I could tell the fights were well choreographed. Each hit feeling big when you can actually see it. Complimenting the fights were some killer practical effects. We may not have seen the fight but we certainly got to see the aftermath. Certainly, good enough to make up for some lackluster CG effects and an overly cliché plot.

But in all honesty, do these faults really matter? Final Score has no aspirations to revolutionize the world of film or become the next big thing in action cinema. Instead what it aims for is an old school, 90’s action movie such as Sudden Death. And in that respect, it’s near perfect. With a likable cast and some fun action scenes it makes for a brisk, enjoyable watch. Pure popcorn fluff Final Score is perfect for a night in. As for Big Dave, quick with a quip and believable as a badass he pulls off the tough guy with a heart of gold beautifully. Like his time in wrestling it may have taken a bit but he’s finally ready for the main event.

Rating 6/10
Links : IMDB

Final Score is now available on In Theaters and on VOD and Digital HD Now

FILM RATING

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Action

Godzilla Minus One | Official Trailer #2

Post war Japan is at its lowest point when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster, baptized in the horrific power of the atomic bomb

Published

3 weeks ago

November 6, 2023

Staff

Genre:

Action, Adventure, Drama

Release Date:

December 1, 2023

Director:

Takashi Yamazaki

Cast:

Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada

Plot Summary:

Post war Japan is at its lowest point when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster, baptized in the horrific power of the atomic bomb

FILM RATING

Action

The Continental Review: Not The Prequel We Needed

Published

2 months ago

October 4, 2023

Kevin Verma

Ever since Lionsgate greenlit this series in early 2017, fans of the franchise have been eagerly anticipating to see how the John Wick universe expands. 4 movies in, the John Wick franchise is widely known as one of the greatest action movie franchises of all time with our titular character (a.k.a Baba Yaga) becoming one of the most iconic and bad-ass figures ever in Hollywood. The Continental: From The World of John Wick is a prequel series that tells the story of Winston Scott and how he became the manager of New York’s The Continental branch.

The miniseries was developed by Greg Coolidge, Kirk Ward and Shawn Simmons. It is executive produced by Paul Wernick, Rhett Reese, Derek Kolstad, David Leitch and Chad Stahelski, the director of all four John Wick movies. It is structured as a 3-night event told through three 90-minute episodes. The series was originally supposed to air on Starz, but the network sold it to Peacock in 2022. After 6 years in development, it finally aired on Peacock this September.

A lot has been made of the subtitle of the project ever since it was announced. The fact that the makers needed to include it says a lot about the show. It almost felt like the prime marketing asset for it many times as the other promotional material didn’t necessarily create a lot of hype for the show. Albert Hughes directed the first and third episodes, while Charlotte Branstrom directed the second, and disappointingly both directors do not bring the same novelty or creative prowess that Chad Stahelski managed to bring in the John Wick movies.

The show also surprisingly lacks any real star power. This franchise is one of Lionsgate’s most prized assets, so you would imagine that they would make sure to get a big cast and crew for this prequel miniseries, but they didn’t. Colin Woodell as Winston Scott is the clear standout among the cast despite delivering only a decent performance, which says a lot about the acting standards in this 3-episode miniseries. Many have criticized the casting of Mel Gibson in the series, but I personally had no issue with his performance and he’s also the most recognizable member of the cast despite having no real audience pull anymore.

The writing doesn’t offer too much to ponder upon or any seriously shocking turns in the story as most of the focus is on making the product as epic, badass and action-packed as possible. Some of the characters had some interesting layers to them, especially Charon (Ayomide Adegun) and Lou (Jessica Allain). Lemmy (Adam Shapiro) provides some much-needed comic relief with his witty dialogues. The structuring of the story works really well as a 3-night event which sets the high stakes and sets a standard of intensity for the narrative.

But the thing that people were most looking forward to, was the action and how it fared against John Wick. Unfortunately, that department was inconsistent as well. Ben Robson’s fight sequence in the early part of the first episode was great and it makes you optimistic that the action would get better from here on, but it never does. Most of the action blocks here involve explosions and guns rather than the hand-to-hand combat John Wick franchise is known for. Some of the action was awesome and some of it sadly wasn’t.

The Continental: From the World of John Wick brings a lot of glamour as it tries to expand its world but fails to engage with its paper-thin plot. The characters are mostly dull with a formulaic villain and misses the presence of a magnetic protagonist like Wick. A prequel about Wick’s backstory would’ve been much more interesting than this inconsistent prequel event saved by its style and some great action. It has almost enough to be its own thing but doesn’t quite have enough to match its parent movies.

The Continental: From the World of John Wick premieres on Peacock in the US and Prime Video in the UK and Australia on 22 September, with new episodes weekly.