A Working Man (2025)

Considering the success that came from director David Ayer helming The Beekeeper last year, it was no surprise to hear about him working once again with Jason Statham in a vehicle that seemed tailor-made for his particular skillset. I was keen to see this as soon as I heard about it, and a standard trailer that basically showed me getting more of the Statham antics that had complemented his apiary time last year didn't do anything to dampen my enthusiasm.

Statham plays Levon Cade, a working man (ahem) with a military background that he's trying to leave in his past. He remains a formidable force though, and is asked to do what the police can't when his employers fear for the life of their daughter (Jenny, played by Arianna Rivas). Jenny has been snatched by human traffickers, caught up in a criminal web overseen by numerous Russian gangsters. Most people would be intimidated by such villains. Not Statham though. He'll tear through those baddies as if they were wet toilet paper.

I don't know why I bothered to write out that description because it doesn't really matter. This is a Jason Statham movie in which Jason Statham encounters a number of escalating problems that he can always manage to sort out with violence. It's very similar to many other Jason Statham movies, and that's not a bad thing for those who enjoy watching him do his stuff. The editing is a bit overdone at times, and the lighting doesn't always help, but it's very much in line with a lot of other action fare.

Based on a book, "Levon's Trade", by Chuck Dixon, this particular slice of kick-ass retribution is co-written by Ayer and Sylvester Stallone. Stallone has written for Statham previously (Homefront, based on a book by Chuck Logan, so maybe he just likes to adapt books written by people named Chuck), but this feels very much like a film that he would write with himself in mind for the lead role. There's more of an even balance between the fists flying and the gunfire, there's a sequence in which our hero speeds over some uneven terrain on a chunky motorbike, and the final confrontation feels as if it could easily have upped the numbers to allow for one or two Expendable-adjacent cameos adding even more firepower.

Statham remains an excellent lead, and he remains convincing enough when it comes to the action. This isn't going to convert anyone, but it should easily please those who know what they're letting themselves in for. Rivas is suitably likable and plucky in her role, although she's obviously sidelined for most of the runtime, and David Harbour has a bit of fun in his supporting role (playing a blind veteran friend who is ready to help our hero stock up on guns when it's needed). There are few highlights elsewhere though, with none of the many villains, minor or major, given enough truly great moments. Emmett J Scanlan, Eve Mauro, Maximilian Osinski, and Merab Ninidze fail to make the strong impression that they should. Jason Flemyng does better, but isn't around for long, and Chidi Ajufo seems set to engage in a grand confrontation that sadly never materialises, and they are the highlights. Isla Gie is okay as the the young daughter of our hero, allowing us to remember that he's a loving father who wants to get home in one piece, and many others jostle onscreen to be pushed to safety or punched in the face by The Stath.

Here's the main thing about A Working Man though. It's just not as good as many other Statham films, and it's definitely not as much fun as The Beekeeper. All we need is a nice and simple journey that has Statham moving up a ladder of criminals until he reaches the head honcho, but what A Working Man does is try to add a variety of extra steps that ultimately lessen the enjoyment and slow down any momentum. The finale doesn't even feel as satisfying as it should due to the network of higher-ups that seem positioned to cause problems in an inevitable sequel. Ayer can handle this kind of material, as he proved last year, but the script causes problems here. A weak script doesn't always matter for a decent action movie, just as it doesn't matter when it comes to certain horror movies, but you need enough bone-crunching action to distract from it. This doesn't quite get the balance right, which is a shame, although there are enough moments here and there to please fans of Statham doing Statham stuff.

6/10

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Netflix And Chill: Boiling Point (2021)

Let's get the negative out of the way first. I can see why some people might really dislike Boiling Point. I can see why they might get bored by it, and view it as a film in which "nothing happens". If you're after some standard entertainment then this may not be your first choice. I don't think this review will change your mind on it. Having said that, I LOVED this film. Technically impressive, full of actors doing flawless work, Boiling Point will also resonate strongly with anyone who has ever worked in a busy restaurant/service environment.

Stephen Graham plays Andy Jones, the head chef in a restaurant that is about to have its busiest night of the year. That would be tough going at the best of times, but Andy isn't having the best of times. He has recently separated from his partner, his mind isn't where it should be, and the only reason the restaurant has been doing as well as it has for the past few weeks is down to his second-in-command, Carly (Vinette Robinson). The front of house manager, Beth (Alice Feetham), doesn't really know enough to do her job properly, tensions soon start to rise in the kitchen, especially as Freeman (Ray Panthaki) is ready to call Andy out on his conduct, and various customers provide various problems, from general rudeness to a nut allergy. To make matters worse, a celebrity chef Andy used to work for, Alastair Skye (Jason Flemyng), is in to dine. And he's brought along a famous food critic, Sara Southworth (Lourdes Faberes).

Expanding a 2019 short, that version clocked in at about 22 minutes, Boiling Point is notable for being shot in one take, with a good chunk of the dialogue improvised around certain plot points that had to be hit at certain times. It's not the easiest way to approach a movie, but director Philip Barantini, who also co-wrote the script with James Cummings, helps himself immensely by using some of the best actors he could have hired. Say what you like about the film itself, if you can point to one weak performance here then I'll buy a hat, wear it for a week, and then eat it. The camerawork here is smooth enough to avoid any eye pain, but also constantly moving and taking viewers right into the heart of every important interaction that shows how the evening is going for various people.

Graham, already praised for years now as one of the best British actors of his generation, shows once again that he's one of the best British actors of his generation. He IS the head chef here, even if he's also ready to fall apart. The big surprise here is that everyone around him also feels as if they have genuinely just been caught on camera getting through a busy restaurant shift. Robinson conveys concern, support, strength, and anger in a perfect mix for the character she plays, Panthaki is spot on as the reliable chef who can easily keep doing his part to keep things running smoothly, but also isn't close enough to the head chef to overlook a series of frustrating errors. Feetham, as unlikable as her character is for most of the movie, is also VERY good in her role, the manager/hostess who will frustratingly side with the customer on every issue, and who likes to make every problem one that is caused by the kitchen, rather than maybe a front of house error. And then we have Flemyng, being a brilliantly smiling "snake in the grass" to our main character. It feels unfair to not mention everyone - Hannah Walters, Taz Skylar, Malachi Kirby, Izuka Hoyle, Lauryn Ajufo, Daniel Larkai, Áine Rose Daly, Gary Lamont, the aforementioned Faberes - so that list of names will have to suffice as acknowledgement for their consistently superb work.

What really sets this apart though, aside from the performances, is the recognition in almost every main moment. The arguments between the chefs and the front of house staff/manager, the bar staff always seeming to have the most fun, the table that can be perfectly pleasant to one waitress and utter horrors to another (for a variety of reasons, although the one here makes the head of the table particularly repugnant), the biggest douchebags who want to order off-menu, and the biggest of the biggest douchebags ordering his steak very well done, the list goes on and on. Seeing these things onscreen is like seeing a movie set in a busy bar that has someone ordering a busy round and asking for their pint of Guinness last (yes, my fellow bartenders know what I mean, those people are loathed). 

Boiling Point isn't just an enjoyable, and sometimes tense, drama. It's a highly accurate snapshot of restaurant life. I wish, but highly doubt, that everyone would watch this, and remember it the next time they are dining out. You still deserve the service and quality of food that you pay for, but it helps to remember that you are interacting with real human beings, all doing their job for a variety of reasons, and all often trying their best under difficult circumstances.

9/10

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Prime Time: Eat Locals (2017)

It all starts with an argument over feeding rights. Eat Locals is a vampire movie that shows the tricky task of vampires trying to navigate both the modern world and one another. And the best way to do that is to establish rules and rations on feeding. But you just know that there's always someone who will be greedy.

When the plot kicks in properly, Eat Locals focuses on a young man (Sebastian, played by Billy Cook) who unwittingly finds himself among a group of vampires, where he seems destined to be fed upon or turned into one of them. That cannot go as smoothly as planned, however, due to a special little army unit who are out to kill the pointy-toothed devils.

Directed by Jason Flemyng, making his debut, and written by Danny King (who has a number of shorts to his name, and one feature co-created with Dexter Fletcher), this is a film that may have viewers willing it to do better, although it never manages to hit the giddy heights of even an average horror comedy.

People try though, I'll at least say that, and the cast has plenty of familiar faces to help keep things ticking along nicely enough. Freema Agyeman, Charlie Cox, Annette Crosbie, Vincent Regan, Eve Myles, and Tony Curran are the most memorable vampires, Dexter Fletcher and Ruth Jones are a couple living close to Fanged Feeders HQ with their own dark secret, and Mackenzie Crook has a minute or two in the role of a military man named Larousse.

It's a shame that Eat Locals tries to mix in a bit of everything without ever doing it well enough. There's some blood and gore, but usually either hampered by some dodgy FX work or the fact that it doesn't go far enough. There are some very low-key laughs, but this material seems to be crying out for much better dialogue and a number of smarter gags. There are a couple of good ideas as the plot looks, at one point, as if it is going to tie together some separate elements in time for a cracking grand finale. That doesn't happen.

Lovers of vampire movies will find nothing here to draw them in. The sub-genre has so many other films to choose from, and many of those are funnier, or bloodier, or smarter than this. Which leaves the cast as the main selling point. As a selection of names, the list isn't bad, but they have the same problem that everything else in the film has. Nobody gets enough time/space to properly realise their potential. That's a real shame, especially in the scenes featuring someone as great as Curran.

Maybe Flemyng will use this as a learning experience. Maybe he had fun and will just make his next film in exactly the same vein (no pun intended). Or maybe this is all we'll see from him. Not everyone who has a career in front of the camera can slide into place behind the camera. At least he didn't make something absolutely dire though, so that's something.

4/10

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Deep Rising (1998)

Part action movie, part disaster movie, part creature feature, Deep Rising is one of those little films that genre films always view with affection, and rightly so. It may be very cheesy at times, and there are some moments nowadays that highlight the FX budget, but everyone is working well with the tone of the material.

Treat Williams plays John Finnegan, a cocky captain of a speedy little ship that has been hired by some tough guys to take them to an ocean liner in the South Pacific Ocean. The liner has been rigged to sink, but not before it is looted. Things don't go to plan, however, and when Finnegan and co. get to the liner, it's already been attacked and raided by someone. Or something.

Deep Rising hits all of the beats that you want it to, from the enjoyable opening scene displaying some unseen threat to the big ship to the perverse and satisfying comeuppance that ends the storyline for one of the baddies. Williams is posited as a very reluctant hero, with his repeated refrain of "now what?" every time things seem about to go from bad to worse, and the supporting cast is a good mix of people who provide varying degrees of enjoyment.

Writer-director Stephen Sommers certainly uses every trick in the book to make the most of his budget and resources, with a lot of the first half of the movie benefiting from very little actually being seen onscreen (the creatures remain underwater, or can be seen/heard trying to get into rooms from the other side of the walls). And there are a lot of good moments that show off some special effects, it's just a case of them not quite having the capability to perfectly render everything they want to display in the third act. The dialogue is a grab bag of clichés and exposition, but it all works well enough. This is a film that isn't attempting to hide the many films influencing it, from the old b-movies with giant monsters in them to the adventure flicks with a square-jawed hero doing his best while out of his depth. It's a formula that Sommers would arguably hone to perfection in his Mummy movies, but it's here in an even more horror-tinged form.

Williams is decent in the lead. He never quite made the step up to full-on cinematic hero, but this is the closest that he comes. The main female in the cast is Famke Janssen, playing a thief named Trillian, and she's fantastic, but that is usually my reaction to any Famke Janssen performance. Wes Studi is the leader of the looters, he's a formidable bit of wretchedness, and Kevin J. O'Connor is supposed to be someone you root for, but is so bloody annoying that you're wishing for his onscreen death from just about the first moment he speaks. Elsewhere, you get Anthony Heald trying to stay smug in the face of overwhelming danger, Jason Flemying, Cliff Curtis, Clifton Powell, Trevor Goddard, Djimon Hounsou, Una Damon, and Clint Curtis making up most of the other players (I may have forgotten one or two main names, it's an impressive cast anyway).

You have some great set-pieces, a number of really impressive death scenes, and a finale that pulls out all the stops when it comes to some stunts involving a Jet Ski zooming along on the water (no sarcasm, more people should appreciate just how good that stuntwork is). Deep Rising is a very fun way to spend 106 minutes, and all the better for not having any cheap sequel coming along to sully the memory of it. Yet.

8/10

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Layer Cake (2004)

Layer Cake is an important movie for a number of reasons. Firstly, it's the film that saw the hugely talented Matthew Vaughn step out from the shadow of Guy Ritchie (he'd previously been producer on Ritchie's movies). Secondly, it showed Daniel Craig's leading man potential and even, yes, gives him a Bond moment. Third, it showed that British crime movies could still be fresh and entertaining without coming across as some pale Lock, Stock-wannabe. Fourth . . . . okay, I'm not sure if there are any more reasons so I'll stop there. But Layer Cake is certainly more, thanks to what it achieved, than just another UK gangster movie.

The story revolves all around Daniel Craig's smart drug dealer, a man who wants to make his million and get out of the business. Of course, anyone who makes the big shots a lot of money will always struggle to extricate themselves from the criminal lifestyle and that's exactly the case here. Avoiding the police, trying to stay alive and setting up a deal involving a million stolen pills, Craig really has his work cut out for him.

Mixing a smart script with great performances (Craig is superb but he's more than capably supported by the likes of Kenneth Cranham, Colm Meaney, Michael Gambon and everyone else who appears alongside him), cool visuals and an ideal soundtrack this film may not cover any new ground but it gives everything a fresh coat of paint with it's easygoing, effortless air of . . . . cool. This film has style in abundance. That's not to say that it glorifies the lifestyles shown or any of the violence we see, hell no. There are people here we'd never want to meet in real life and when things erupt into violence they do so with absolute brutality, impacting on the lives of those involved. There are no consequence-free, thoughtless actions here. Everything is weighed up and accounted for, even if it's after the fact.

It's an absolute corker of a film that has grown on me with each subsequent viewing. I'm sure that many others will still simply cast it aside as "yet another British gangster flick" but that's not the case and I hope that others give it a chance and end up enjoying it as much as I do.

9/10

 http://www.amazon.co.uk/Layer-Cake-DVD-Daniel-Craig/dp/B0006HIPOK/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1371682047&sr=8-5&keywords=layer+cake

Mirrors (2008)

Mirrors, I've always been fascinated and a little bit spooked by them ever since I read about what happened when Alice went through the looking glass. Then reading the fantastic Mirror by Graham Masterton didn't help. Perhaps it's the result of watching horror movies for years featuring the old close-the-medicine-cabinet-to-reveal-figure-in-the-mirror trick but I've always had a belief that if I ever see something truly inexplicable and terrifying it will be in a mirror. I simply don't trust 'em but they're everywhere.

Which leads me to Mirrors, yet another remake from director Alexandre Aja. It's not an exact copy but Aja co-wrote the screenplay with Gregory Levasseur based on the Korean movie entitled Into The Mirror (a film I enjoyed but that I also need to rewatch for reviewing purposes). While I agree with many people who say that they'd like to see Aja direct something truly original* I also have to say that I don't really mind his preference for helming remakes when they're as entertaining as this.

Kiefer Sutherland plays Ben Carson, a cop who is no longer acting as a cop due to the unfortunate incident in which he accidentally shot someone that he shouldn't. This has led to him struggling with his feelings, struggling with alcohol abuse and struggling to keep a relationship working with his wife (Paula Patton) and two young kids. He's sleeping on a sofa in the home of his sister (Amy Smart) and trying to get back to his best, one step at a time. When he takes a job as a security officer in a grand department store building that was majorly damaged by a deadly fire he hopes for the best. Unfortunately, the mirrors in the building have seen so much that they act differently from normal mirrors and Ben soon starts questioning his sanity while seeing more and more disturbing images. As if that wasn't bad enough, abnormal reflections may also aim to harm his family.

Mirrors works well because a) it's about mirrors (please refer to my first paragraph) and b) it mixes some nice strangeness with many jump scares and one or two excellent gore effects. In fact, one highlight is so good that I'm barely restraining myself from going into more detail but when you see it you'll be very impressed. Okay, the first half may actually have one or two jump scares too many and the finale is a bit of a letdown but the rest is solid entertainment. Decent performances from the cast (Sutherland, Patton, Smart, Cameron Boyce and Erica Gluck as the kids, etc) help to keep you engrossed and the threat to the characters is actually palpable once the film moves into top gear.

It may not be a modern classic but it's certainly a very well made, entertaining movie that makes good use of the central concept and may make you look twice the next time you catch sight of your reflection.

7/10


*I think everyone knows by now the clamour that occurred when the excellent Haute Tension AKA Switchblade Romance was released and people spotted how similar it was to Intensity, a novel by Dean R. Koontz.


http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mirrors-Blu-ray-Kiefer-Sutherland/dp/B001T9N53A/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1337273909&sr=8-3