".45" at its very best is an uneven film. At its very worst it is downright schizophrenic. The trailer for the film suggests an action packed, gun toting, sexy, female revenge flick. But that is definitely not what you are going to get. There is no real butt kicking, no excessive gunfire, no heroic theatrics by Mila Jovovich; an actress who´s built a career out of playing tough machine gun firing superwomen. Really what you got here is a unique domestic abuse drama.
The plot can be summed up in just a few sentences. Kat (Milla Jovovich) is in a relationship with the local gun running tough guy, Big Al (Angus Macfadyen). Big Al beats Kat one too many times and finds himself being double crossed by Kat. This trailer hyped, bare bones plot isn´t the most interesting thing about the film—by far.
What is interesting about this film is the focus. Ever since James Cagney smashed a grapefruit into Mae Clark´s face, tough guy/gangster films have followed much of the same generic formula. Very rarely have we seen films that deepen the character of the gangster´s moll beyond the sexy punching bag. "Casino," "Goodfellas," and even "The Godfather" have given the molls bigger parts, but have not built an entire story around her. In many ways ".45" is an illumination of the relationship between the tough guy and his girl.
The best parts of this film are the everyday relationship between Kat and Big Al. Sex and the sexual attraction turns out to be a big part of the relationship, but we also get a glimpse of how Big Al´s powerful personality meshes with Kat´s powerful personality.
In a lot of films the gangster´s moll tends to be a weak pushover bending at the whim their male counterpart. Kat though is not such a pushover. Kat is a tough talking, controlling, and conniving personality; she is the female version of Big Al. This seems to be the reason for their closeness and why Kat has stayed despite the abuse. Of course a number of the scenes, especially the abuse scenes, could be straight out of a Lifetime TV movie. What separates this film is the fact that ".45" is concentrating less on what makes Big Al and Kat criminals and more on the domestic side of inner city crime.
Milla Jovovich and Angus Macfadyen should be praised for their performances. Milla Jovovich in this film still plays a kind of tough girl, but relies on her acting rather than fighting skills to show this. This Milla Jovovich film more so than any other gives her the platform she seems to deserve. She is a pretty good actor that should not be relegated just to action flicks.
The same can be said for Angus Macfadyen. I´ve seen him in a few films since his meek Robert the Bruce in "Braveheart" and this particular role is vastly different from each. In fact I cannot say I´ve seen him play the same role twice. He´s even played Orson Wells, Peter Lawford, and Richard Burton. MacFadyen in this role is a big beefy fella with a sensitive side. MacFadyen obviously has range, and I really was impressed with him in this film.
Unfortunately, the fine performances of the leads and the unique portrayal of a gangster and his moll can not save this film from its self. There are three major problems: the general tone of the film, the supporting actors, and the ending.
Part of this film—the part that excels—is a serious look into Big Al and Kat´s relationship. This serious tone, though, is intercut with comical musings by the film´s characters. The narrative of the film begins with a long speech by Kat on her affection for Big Al. Then, after the speech, comes the on screen action, which is again periodically interrupted by various people Kat, Big Al´s mother etc. telling about Big Al and where he went wrong. Some of these little interviews brutalize the flow of the film and bring in very corny levity. These interviews, this whole aspect of the film´s structure, which nearly ruins the piece, is a real head scratcher.
But this is not to say the film is terrible just because of the tone and structure problems. I and, my guess, the audience could live with these head scratching moments and find some viewing satisfaction, if not for the terrible supporting performances and the incredibly weak ending/plot surprise. Honestly, I couldn´t say which is worse. I won´t single any one actor out because across the board they were putting in bad to below average performances. And the terrible final scenes—the way the film is wrapped up—plays on every femme fatale cliché possible, not to mention the "look at how clever I am" feel.
Writer/Director Gary Lennon, in the second half of this film, wants to make it seem like your watching a big twist, guess who rigged what and killed who film. There is no surprise though, there is no moment that the viewer will shake their head and say wow. Trust me. Gary Lennon spent too much time trying to be clever, mixing genre and attempting to surprise the audience. He neglects to make any solid decisions to make this a good film. And this is a shame because his film´s lead performers put in solid performances.
The plot can be summed up in just a few sentences. Kat (Milla Jovovich) is in a relationship with the local gun running tough guy, Big Al (Angus Macfadyen). Big Al beats Kat one too many times and finds himself being double crossed by Kat. This trailer hyped, bare bones plot isn´t the most interesting thing about the film—by far.
What is interesting about this film is the focus. Ever since James Cagney smashed a grapefruit into Mae Clark´s face, tough guy/gangster films have followed much of the same generic formula. Very rarely have we seen films that deepen the character of the gangster´s moll beyond the sexy punching bag. "Casino," "Goodfellas," and even "The Godfather" have given the molls bigger parts, but have not built an entire story around her. In many ways ".45" is an illumination of the relationship between the tough guy and his girl.
The best parts of this film are the everyday relationship between Kat and Big Al. Sex and the sexual attraction turns out to be a big part of the relationship, but we also get a glimpse of how Big Al´s powerful personality meshes with Kat´s powerful personality.
In a lot of films the gangster´s moll tends to be a weak pushover bending at the whim their male counterpart. Kat though is not such a pushover. Kat is a tough talking, controlling, and conniving personality; she is the female version of Big Al. This seems to be the reason for their closeness and why Kat has stayed despite the abuse. Of course a number of the scenes, especially the abuse scenes, could be straight out of a Lifetime TV movie. What separates this film is the fact that ".45" is concentrating less on what makes Big Al and Kat criminals and more on the domestic side of inner city crime.
Milla Jovovich and Angus Macfadyen should be praised for their performances. Milla Jovovich in this film still plays a kind of tough girl, but relies on her acting rather than fighting skills to show this. This Milla Jovovich film more so than any other gives her the platform she seems to deserve. She is a pretty good actor that should not be relegated just to action flicks.
The same can be said for Angus Macfadyen. I´ve seen him in a few films since his meek Robert the Bruce in "Braveheart" and this particular role is vastly different from each. In fact I cannot say I´ve seen him play the same role twice. He´s even played Orson Wells, Peter Lawford, and Richard Burton. MacFadyen in this role is a big beefy fella with a sensitive side. MacFadyen obviously has range, and I really was impressed with him in this film.
Unfortunately, the fine performances of the leads and the unique portrayal of a gangster and his moll can not save this film from its self. There are three major problems: the general tone of the film, the supporting actors, and the ending.
Part of this film—the part that excels—is a serious look into Big Al and Kat´s relationship. This serious tone, though, is intercut with comical musings by the film´s characters. The narrative of the film begins with a long speech by Kat on her affection for Big Al. Then, after the speech, comes the on screen action, which is again periodically interrupted by various people Kat, Big Al´s mother etc. telling about Big Al and where he went wrong. Some of these little interviews brutalize the flow of the film and bring in very corny levity. These interviews, this whole aspect of the film´s structure, which nearly ruins the piece, is a real head scratcher.
But this is not to say the film is terrible just because of the tone and structure problems. I and, my guess, the audience could live with these head scratching moments and find some viewing satisfaction, if not for the terrible supporting performances and the incredibly weak ending/plot surprise. Honestly, I couldn´t say which is worse. I won´t single any one actor out because across the board they were putting in bad to below average performances. And the terrible final scenes—the way the film is wrapped up—plays on every femme fatale cliché possible, not to mention the "look at how clever I am" feel.
Writer/Director Gary Lennon, in the second half of this film, wants to make it seem like your watching a big twist, guess who rigged what and killed who film. There is no surprise though, there is no moment that the viewer will shake their head and say wow. Trust me. Gary Lennon spent too much time trying to be clever, mixing genre and attempting to surprise the audience. He neglects to make any solid decisions to make this a good film. And this is a shame because his film´s lead performers put in solid performances.
".45" at its very best is an uneven film. At its very worst it is downright schizophrenic. The trailer for the film suggests an action packed, gun toting, sexy, female revenge flick. But that is definitely not what you are going to get. There is no real butt kicking, no excessive gunfire, no heroic theatrics by Mila Jovovich; an actress who´s built a career out of playing tough machine gun firing superwomen. Really what you got here is a unique domestic abuse drama.
The plot can be summed up in just a few sentences. Kat (Milla Jovovich) is in a relationship with the local gun running tough guy, Big Al (Angus Macfadyen). Big Al beats Kat one too many times and finds himself being double crossed by Kat. This trailer hyped, bare bones plot isn´t the most interesting thing about the film—by far.
What is interesting about this film is the focus. Ever since James Cagney smashed a grapefruit into Mae Clark´s face, tough guy/gangster films have followed much of the same generic formula. Very rarely have we seen films that deepen the character of the gangster´s moll beyond the sexy punching bag. "Casino," "Goodfellas," and even "The Godfather" have given the molls bigger parts, but have not built an entire story around her. In many ways ".45" is an illumination of the relationship between the tough guy and his girl.
The best parts of this film are the everyday relationship between Kat and Big Al. Sex and the sexual attraction turns out to be a big part of the relationship, but we also get a glimpse of how Big Al´s powerful personality meshes with Kat´s powerful personality.
In a lot of films the gangster´s moll tends to be a weak pushover bending at the whim their male counterpart. Kat though is not such a pushover. Kat is a tough talking, controlling, and conniving personality; she is the female version of Big Al. This seems to be the reason for their closeness and why Kat has stayed despite the abuse. Of course a number of the scenes, especially the abuse scenes, could be straight out of a Lifetime TV movie. What separates this film is the fact that ".45" is concentrating less on what makes Big Al and Kat criminals and more on the domestic side of inner city crime.
Milla Jovovich and Angus Macfadyen should be praised for their performances. Milla Jovovich in this film still plays a kind of tough girl, but relies on her acting rather than fighting skills to show this. This Milla Jovovich film more so than any other gives her the platform she seems to deserve. She is a pretty good actor that should not be relegated just to action flicks.
The same can be said for Angus Macfadyen. I´ve seen him in a few films since his meek Robert the Bruce in "Braveheart" and this particular role is vastly different from each. In fact I cannot say I´ve seen him play the same role twice. He´s even played Orson Wells, Peter Lawford, and Richard Burton. MacFadyen in this role is a big beefy fella with a sensitive side. MacFadyen obviously has range, and I really was impressed with him in this film.
Unfortunately, the fine performances of the leads and the unique portrayal of a gangster and his moll can not save this film from its self. There are three major problems: the general tone of the film, the supporting actors, and the ending.
Part of this film—the part that excels—is a serious look into Big Al and Kat´s relationship. This serious tone, though, is intercut with comical musings by the film´s characters. The narrative of the film begins with a long speech by Kat on her affection for Big Al. Then, after the speech, comes the on screen action, which is again periodically interrupted by various people Kat, Big Al´s mother etc. telling about Big Al and where he went wrong. Some of these little interviews brutalize the flow of the film and bring in very corny levity. These interviews, this whole aspect of the film´s structure, which nearly ruins the piece, is a real head scratcher.
But this is not to say the film is terrible just because of the tone and structure problems. I and, my guess, the audience could live with these head scratching moments and find some viewing satisfaction, if not for the terrible supporting performances and the incredibly weak ending/plot surprise. Honestly, I couldn´t say which is worse. I won´t single any one actor out because across the board they were putting in bad to below average performances. And the terrible final scenes—the way the film is wrapped up—plays on every femme fatale cliché possible, not to mention the "look at how clever I am" feel.
Writer/Director Gary Lennon, in the second half of this film, wants to make it seem like your watching a big twist, guess who rigged what and killed who film. There is no surprise though, there is no moment that the viewer will shake their head and say wow. Trust me. Gary Lennon spent too much time trying to be clever, mixing genre and attempting to surprise the audience. He neglects to make any solid decisions to make this a good film. And this is a shame because his film´s lead performers put in solid performances.
The plot can be summed up in just a few sentences. Kat (Milla Jovovich) is in a relationship with the local gun running tough guy, Big Al (Angus Macfadyen). Big Al beats Kat one too many times and finds himself being double crossed by Kat. This trailer hyped, bare bones plot isn´t the most interesting thing about the film—by far.
What is interesting about this film is the focus. Ever since James Cagney smashed a grapefruit into Mae Clark´s face, tough guy/gangster films have followed much of the same generic formula. Very rarely have we seen films that deepen the character of the gangster´s moll beyond the sexy punching bag. "Casino," "Goodfellas," and even "The Godfather" have given the molls bigger parts, but have not built an entire story around her. In many ways ".45" is an illumination of the relationship between the tough guy and his girl.
The best parts of this film are the everyday relationship between Kat and Big Al. Sex and the sexual attraction turns out to be a big part of the relationship, but we also get a glimpse of how Big Al´s powerful personality meshes with Kat´s powerful personality.
In a lot of films the gangster´s moll tends to be a weak pushover bending at the whim their male counterpart. Kat though is not such a pushover. Kat is a tough talking, controlling, and conniving personality; she is the female version of Big Al. This seems to be the reason for their closeness and why Kat has stayed despite the abuse. Of course a number of the scenes, especially the abuse scenes, could be straight out of a Lifetime TV movie. What separates this film is the fact that ".45" is concentrating less on what makes Big Al and Kat criminals and more on the domestic side of inner city crime.
Milla Jovovich and Angus Macfadyen should be praised for their performances. Milla Jovovich in this film still plays a kind of tough girl, but relies on her acting rather than fighting skills to show this. This Milla Jovovich film more so than any other gives her the platform she seems to deserve. She is a pretty good actor that should not be relegated just to action flicks.
The same can be said for Angus Macfadyen. I´ve seen him in a few films since his meek Robert the Bruce in "Braveheart" and this particular role is vastly different from each. In fact I cannot say I´ve seen him play the same role twice. He´s even played Orson Wells, Peter Lawford, and Richard Burton. MacFadyen in this role is a big beefy fella with a sensitive side. MacFadyen obviously has range, and I really was impressed with him in this film.
Unfortunately, the fine performances of the leads and the unique portrayal of a gangster and his moll can not save this film from its self. There are three major problems: the general tone of the film, the supporting actors, and the ending.
Part of this film—the part that excels—is a serious look into Big Al and Kat´s relationship. This serious tone, though, is intercut with comical musings by the film´s characters. The narrative of the film begins with a long speech by Kat on her affection for Big Al. Then, after the speech, comes the on screen action, which is again periodically interrupted by various people Kat, Big Al´s mother etc. telling about Big Al and where he went wrong. Some of these little interviews brutalize the flow of the film and bring in very corny levity. These interviews, this whole aspect of the film´s structure, which nearly ruins the piece, is a real head scratcher.
But this is not to say the film is terrible just because of the tone and structure problems. I and, my guess, the audience could live with these head scratching moments and find some viewing satisfaction, if not for the terrible supporting performances and the incredibly weak ending/plot surprise. Honestly, I couldn´t say which is worse. I won´t single any one actor out because across the board they were putting in bad to below average performances. And the terrible final scenes—the way the film is wrapped up—plays on every femme fatale cliché possible, not to mention the "look at how clever I am" feel.
Writer/Director Gary Lennon, in the second half of this film, wants to make it seem like your watching a big twist, guess who rigged what and killed who film. There is no surprise though, there is no moment that the viewer will shake their head and say wow. Trust me. Gary Lennon spent too much time trying to be clever, mixing genre and attempting to surprise the audience. He neglects to make any solid decisions to make this a good film. And this is a shame because his film´s lead performers put in solid performances.
No comments:
Post a Comment