Movie reviews: Bulletproof and The Grey
Gary Busey at his Buseyest and Liam Neeson being awesome.
Bulletproof
This isn't the Adam Sandler-starring action-comedy from 1996, this is the lesser known movie starring Gary Buesy. Yes, you read that right. Gary Busey is the star! His fame was running high after is role of the villainous Mr Joshua in Lethal Weapon. It was only a matter of time before he got his own movie, and what cheesy fun this was!
Busey stars as Frank 'Bulletproof' McBain, a guy so tough that he keeps a jar full of bullets he has been shot with. McBain is one of those maverick cops that you always get in movies. The sort of guy that's always at loggerheads with his shouty police captain. This movie has pretty much every action movie cliche you can think of. A ragtag bunch of baddies has stolen a hi-tech bit of kit known as Thunderblast and has kidnapped those sent to safeguard the tank (one of whom predictably happens to be McBain's ex). The baddies are a who's who of America's enemies. Cubans, and Libyans, and Russians! Oh my! Of course, it's up to McBain to bring back Thunderblast and rescue the hostages. He's ex-Special Forces, y'see. They always are.
This movie was full of hugely enjoyable cheesy fun. It may have been damn predictable, but it is rarely boring. Apart from Busey in the starring role, there isn't many name actors in this movie. A baby-faced Danny Trejo played a bad guy dispatched by McBain early in the movie. I was amazed to see him looking so you. I always thought he looked like his face was made of leather. Henry Silva plays yet another villainous role as the Libyan Colonel Kartiff. The poor guy always seems to play the villain. Of the four movies that I've seen him in, he has played the villain in three of them. I seemed to recognize one of the Cuban guys from a villainous role in Crocodile Dundee II. I have no idea who played the lead Russian guy, but he sounded like he gargles with broken glass.
I recommend this movie if you fancy some good dumb fun. Plus, it stars Gary Busey! What's not to love?
The Grey
Just a warning before I start this review, don't watch this movie if you're feeling down and want something to cheer you up. This movie will only make you feel worse. Don't get me wrong, it's a good movie, but it isn't a happy one.
Liam Neeson stars as Ottway, a hunter hired to protect Alaskan oil workers from wolves while working in the wilderness. After their plane crashes, Ottway and the surviving oil workers must contend with the horrific weather and a pack of angry wolves.
Wow, this was an intense movie. From the plane crash at the top of the movie right to the end, it doesn't let up. There are a few quiet scenes where you grow to like the characters before they're picked off by the wolves or the terrible weather. Don't expect a feminine point of view in the movie, however. The only female part of any importance is of Ottway's wife, and she only appears in dream sequences. Liam Neeson is reliably awesome, but don't expect on the move being all about him punching wolves for 90 minutes. We don't even get to see the arguably most awesome moment of the movie. Ottway squares off with the alpha wolf in the wolves' den with a knife in one hand and a makeshift knuckleduster fashioned from broken miniatures from the crashed plane and duct tape. Then the movie ends. Disappointing, but it doesn't spoil the movie. Liam Neeson does get notably more Oirish when he's angry, however.
Another enjoyably good movie, if for totally different reasons from Bulletproof.
Next time: Heathers
Bulletproof
This isn't the Adam Sandler-starring action-comedy from 1996, this is the lesser known movie starring Gary Buesy. Yes, you read that right. Gary Busey is the star! His fame was running high after is role of the villainous Mr Joshua in Lethal Weapon. It was only a matter of time before he got his own movie, and what cheesy fun this was!
Busey stars as Frank 'Bulletproof' McBain, a guy so tough that he keeps a jar full of bullets he has been shot with. McBain is one of those maverick cops that you always get in movies. The sort of guy that's always at loggerheads with his shouty police captain. This movie has pretty much every action movie cliche you can think of. A ragtag bunch of baddies has stolen a hi-tech bit of kit known as Thunderblast and has kidnapped those sent to safeguard the tank (one of whom predictably happens to be McBain's ex). The baddies are a who's who of America's enemies. Cubans, and Libyans, and Russians! Oh my! Of course, it's up to McBain to bring back Thunderblast and rescue the hostages. He's ex-Special Forces, y'see. They always are.
This movie was full of hugely enjoyable cheesy fun. It may have been damn predictable, but it is rarely boring. Apart from Busey in the starring role, there isn't many name actors in this movie. A baby-faced Danny Trejo played a bad guy dispatched by McBain early in the movie. I was amazed to see him looking so you. I always thought he looked like his face was made of leather. Henry Silva plays yet another villainous role as the Libyan Colonel Kartiff. The poor guy always seems to play the villain. Of the four movies that I've seen him in, he has played the villain in three of them. I seemed to recognize one of the Cuban guys from a villainous role in Crocodile Dundee II. I have no idea who played the lead Russian guy, but he sounded like he gargles with broken glass.
I recommend this movie if you fancy some good dumb fun. Plus, it stars Gary Busey! What's not to love?
The Grey
Just a warning before I start this review, don't watch this movie if you're feeling down and want something to cheer you up. This movie will only make you feel worse. Don't get me wrong, it's a good movie, but it isn't a happy one.
Liam Neeson stars as Ottway, a hunter hired to protect Alaskan oil workers from wolves while working in the wilderness. After their plane crashes, Ottway and the surviving oil workers must contend with the horrific weather and a pack of angry wolves.
Wow, this was an intense movie. From the plane crash at the top of the movie right to the end, it doesn't let up. There are a few quiet scenes where you grow to like the characters before they're picked off by the wolves or the terrible weather. Don't expect a feminine point of view in the movie, however. The only female part of any importance is of Ottway's wife, and she only appears in dream sequences. Liam Neeson is reliably awesome, but don't expect on the move being all about him punching wolves for 90 minutes. We don't even get to see the arguably most awesome moment of the movie. Ottway squares off with the alpha wolf in the wolves' den with a knife in one hand and a makeshift knuckleduster fashioned from broken miniatures from the crashed plane and duct tape. Then the movie ends. Disappointing, but it doesn't spoil the movie. Liam Neeson does get notably more Oirish when he's angry, however.
Another enjoyably good movie, if for totally different reasons from Bulletproof.
Next time: Heathers