Friday, January 5, 2018

The Foreigner (2017)

Director: Martin Campbell

Writers: David Marconi, Stephen Leather

Composer: Cliff Martinez

Starring: Jackie Chan, Pierce Brosnan, Ray Fearon, Rory Fleck-Byrne, Stephen Hogan, Michael McElhatton

More info: IMDb

Tagline: Never push a good man too far

Plot: A humble businessman with a buried past seeks justice when his daughter is killed in an act of terrorism. A cat-and-mouse conflict ensues with a government official, whose past may hold clues to the killers' identities.



My rating: 7/10

Will I watch it again?  No.

I dig revenge pictures.  The formula has been used so much that you'd think it would've worn itself thin but it hasn't.  It's not hard to give someone reason to kill or go after someone for doing them wrong.  The motivation is the easiest part of the equation.  The big picture of this one is by the numbers but what makes this one a little different is having Chan & Brosnan doing some good work.  Chan's now in his 60s so his pictures are no longer filled with amazing action.  What little he does here is fine if you haven't seen his pictures before.  If you have then you'll be disappointed if that's why you want to see this.  I love the guy and I'll watch anything he's in.  He's just fantastic.  The acting all around is good.  It's a great looking picture and it moves at a nice, brisk pace.  The problem is, if you can call it that, I never felt engaged like great thrillers should.  It's good, though, and I recommend it.  The one thing I liked above all was the complexity (of sorts) in Brosnan's character, Hennessy.  Chan is emotionally driven to kill those who killed his daughter and that's about as deep as he goes but Brosnan is a good man who's past and future converge in a neat way that surprised me.  I liked it but I can't see needing to watch it again.  The world needs more Jackie Chan and Pierce Brosnan.

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