Travis Phelan

24 May 2012

The Very Best Action Film And One of The Very Best Films of The Entire 2011 Hands-Down! Strongly Recommended!

This Movie Is Awesome! I 100% Seriously Truly, Honestly, Sincerely, AndAbsolutely Loved It! It's Definitely Worth-Seeing! It's Action-PackedAll The Way Though It And It's Also A Character-Driven Story Both AtThe Same Time! It Went Way Passed Above My Expectations Although It WasAlready My #1 Very Most Anticipated Film This Year Before I Saw It! IGive It 10 Out of 10 Stars Without A Doubt! I'm Definitely Getting Iton DVD When It's Released on DVD Within The Next Couple Months! It'sOne of Jason Statham's Very Best Films And Performances! Clive Owen And"THE LEGEND" Robert De Niro Are Also Excellent, Awesome, And Great ButEverybody Was(Like Such As The Stunningly Beautiful Yvonne StrahovskiAnd The Extremely Underrated Dominic Purcell)! "Killer Elite" Is The #1Very Best Action/Thriller Film of The Entire 2011 And Is Also One ofThe Very Best Films of The Entire 2011 Hands-Down! StronglyRecommended! Please Go And See This While You Still Can, It'sDefinitely Well Worth The Money! Don't Listen To Some of The CriticsWho Gave This Film Bad Reviews! As of Friday September 23, 2011,"Killer Elite" Is Now Officially One of My Very Most All-Time FavoriteMovies (Seriously, No Joke Whatsoever).

Projit Mookerjee

24 May 2012

Satisfying entertainer.

This movie is based on the novel "The Feather Men" by Sir RanulphFiennes, which talks about the involvement of British SAS in the Omanwar and the retribution of the disposed Sheikh. The movie moves with abrisk pace and never lets off steam depicting the 1980 as accurately aspossible. If you thought, that this was an out an out Jason Stathammovie, in line with Transporter & Crank, and features high octaneaction, then you would be pleasantly surprised. It actually has a neatlittle story tucked inside the assassination plot line. In addition toStatham, the movie also features Clive Owen, Robert De Niro & DominicPurcell (Prison Break) in interesting leads. If you are looking forsome action on a lazy afternoon, then this would fit the mold of apopcorn entertainer.

21 May 2012

Womb of Conflict

A poem. Without words or rules.Sea of fears and obsessions. Amazingtravel. A chain of feelings. Slices of mystic atmosphere andnaturalism.Rich in subtle nuances, strong and delicate picture aboutthe end of world. A form of Tarkovski and a strange fly. A hit-man, awedding and bad vibes. Wagner and delicate nuances. Few drops of IngmarBergman and waves of silence. A film like a punch in stomach. That isall. The cast, the acting, the scenes are crumbs of a strange dinner inwhich definitions, expectations and conclusions are nothing. It is, insame time,a beautiful movie and a subtle memento mori, exploration ofdeep crisis and new Gattoparde of Visconti, a masterpiece and a confusesentiment. In fact, only another Stratham vehicle. Same mark but newhigh. An occasion for Strahovski to be amazing primadonna. Amasterpiece, indeed. And for director to give answer to his searches inskin of impressive question. Killer Elite is an special experience. Therest is silence.

The_Panther4180

21 May 2012

Killer Elite - Not getting what it deserves

I just saw this movie last night. From the first trailer i saw in thetheater and on TV, i KNEW that this movie was going to be awesome and iwas not disappointed. First of all the story itself is like somethingfrom '24' or 'Spooks'. And its based on true events. It is very much atime piece, lol God i almost forgot about those shorts lol...anyways,it takes place the year i was born, 1980. Second and no less importantis the cast. What more could one action fan ask for? Jason Statham vsClive Owen. Its a match many wanted and many UFC fans would pay to see,and they do not disappoint. Their scenes together, especially when theyare trying to out do one another are awesome. Their fight scene lookedreally genuine. Knowing Statham does a lot of his own stunts and CliveOwen is no push over either, it was just great! Add more GREAT actorsin none other then the man himself, New Yorker Robert De Niro, whoshines just as bright in what scenes he has, he may not have as muchscreen time as Jason & Clive, but he steals its, and wow :) DominicPurcell (Prison Break, Equilibrium and Blade 3) is a good looking dude,but in this film he looks very much the part of a grungie 80's man lol.Adewale is perfect, the ppl they got to play the supporting cast andthe feather men are great, and Yvonne Strahovski (Chuck & Heartland) isa site for sore eyes. Totally worth the money theaters charge. I verymuch recommend this movie and i cant wait till it comes out to DVD, andhopefully ill see it again soon.Killer Elite is not a remake of the James Caan movie. FYI. We areintroduced to Danny (Statham) and Hunter (De Niro) on a assassinationassignment in Mexico. They are mercs. Hunter is the voice of experienceand Danny is perhaps the best he has seen. The action is great, theytake out a two car convoy and take out the bodyguards and as Dannyopens the door to take out the main target, which he does, he isshocked to see the targets son, he freezes and gets shot by apoliceman, Hunter gets him out of there and they escape, but Danny sayshe is finished, he's getting out. Two years later he is trying tosettle down with a childhood friend Anne (Strahovski). But it all comesto a halt when he receives a package with Hunters picture in it, he'sbeen captured. His handler, (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who plays hispart SOOOO well) tells him that Sheikh Amr has him. He want Danny to doa 6 million dollar job. Kill 3 former SAS agents, agents who killed hisfirst 3 sons. But he must get their confessions on tape and make theirdeaths look like an accident, only after that would he get his friendand mentor Hunter back. He enlists the help of Davies (Dominic Purcell)and Meier (Aden Young) who are more then happy to kick some SAS ass. Onthe other end is Spike (Clive Owen), whose name says it all, he is thelead attack dog for the 'Feather men'. A group of old men and formerSAS, who are now businessmen. But they keep an eye on all former SASagents. Spike catches wind of Davies through contacts and puts togetherhis own team to check it out. As the movie progresses its Team Stathamvs Team Owen. And it is one hell of a ride. The fight seen betweenthose too is perhaps the best I've ever seen, even better then MathewMcConaughey vs Christian Bale on Reign of Fire, where McConaughey toldBale it would make the scene better if they REALLY fought...Balethought he was kidding...and Matt knocked him out with a head butt. Thehospital fight scene makes it look like a Sean Connery fight ;) But asDanny and Spike are about to find out as they try to kill each other,nothing is what seams. This is a must see, Gary McKendry does a kickassjob in his directorial debut. I see great movies in this mans future.Matt Sherring also makes his writing debut and does it just as good ifnot better then anyone, he adapted Ranulph Fiennes much controversialbook. Even though Fiennes later denounced his book as anymore thenfiction, the whole cast makes you start to believe that this is nothingbut the truth.

snowboarderbo

18 May 2012

Much better than I expected excellent pacing

Decent acting from the supporting cast, an interesting story that isthankfully absent any clichés, and a lack of any "gotcha" in the storycertainly help this movie stand out. But really it's the pacing thatmade it for me. Things happen FAST. They happen logically, andreasonably (well, reasonably given the nature of the story) but theyhappen quickly. The movie does not have any periods of introspectionfor our main characters. It suggests that they are having thosemoments, but doesn't linger on them or play them up at all; they arejust facts, like everything else that happens in the movie (fights,deaths, kidnappings, etc.).The story is complicated, involving at least 5 separately motivatedfactions, but at no time was it confusing (so there was no need for an"aha!" moment).The fight scenes were all exceedingly well choreographed and fit thestory so well that there was never a time when 2 people were facing offjust so we could see them fight; I really appreciated that.All in all, a very satisfying film: lots of action, lots of very goodacting, and lots of attention to detail (it really looked like it wasthe early 1980s).I was going to give this a 7/10, but as I was writing and thinkingabout it, I upped it to 8/10.

ArtandJoyofMovies

18 May 2012

More disjointed than Gumby!

The movie needed quite a bit more De Niro. No, not dinero. Cash andMexican scenery is abundant in this film. I am just unclear why a greatactor like Robert De Niro was used so sparingly a dinero issue perhaps?And don't confuse this film at with the Sam Peckinpah film of the samename from 1975 with Robert Duvall, Arthur Hill and James Caan. There isno relation.This is a professional assassin film. The basic plot is simple.Ex-British SAS (Special Air Services) rogues Danny (Statham) and Hunter(DeNiro) are free lance assassins. The time period is somewhere in themid 1970′s we assume. There were no cell phones or Mac productplacements in this film. DeNiro gets abducted by an Oman based sheikh.For his freedom, the sheikh wants Danny to obtain confessions andexecute three British SAS officers who killed three of his sons in araid. Danny sets out to kill them all while current SAS rogue Spike(Owen) tries to stop him. And of course, the ultimate trump card tomake Danny comply is by threatening his new girlfriend Anne (played byhottie newbie Yvonne Strahovski). Nothing new here. Fast, fun andfurious fights are all that really hold the film together.It is hard to say more other than point out some nuances and faults.Number one is that the movie is a bunch of disjointed scenes pastedtogether with absolutely no foundation or relationship. The charactersare hard to follow and while we get the plot, we don't reallyunderstand the storyline. It is just very convoluted for no realreason. There is lots of great fighting, car chasing and gun shooting.We do learn (quite convincingly mind you) that all the bullets, eyegouging, stabs in the skull, blows, crashes and hits dished outgratuitously in this film don't stop a man nearly as quickly as oneswift kick or grab to the groin—ouch!. We also get a real doozie of ascene where one guy gets smacked dead on by a car. This is the thirdfilm in three weeks to feature such a scene. The Debt and Contagioneach had such a feature. We are not speaking of your normal car crashwith a person here—we mean dead on, total smack, run over like araccoon action. Joy Lynn and I are always looking for new trends infilms and this may be one of them. It is starting to overshadow thegratuitous urination scenes and our latest, P Factor rating.Based upon a 1991 novel called The Feather Men by Ranulph Fiennes,there are supposed to be half-true elements in this story. TMG is notso sure. Fiennes himself admitted that much of the story was justfiction. What is clear is much of the dialogue was borrowed from otherfilms. Candidates for worst lines in this movie are : An exchange thatwent " He was lying." "How can you tell?" "His lips were moving"Really? Borrowing old cliché jokes like that is the best the screenplaywriters could muster? There were many more. Statham proclaiming"Killing is easy, living with it is hard." Oh brother, now that tookgreat imagination to steal that line from a hundred other films. Orperhaps Clive Owen blurting out "What the "f' is that supposed tomean?' or "You have no f-ing idea who you are f-ing with!" or perhapsbest yet, "This f-ing thing ends today." The lines just arrived sorehearsed, cliché and corny. I expected any moment for someone to utter"Go ahead, make my day."And for crying out loud (I love that old cliché expression) letsdispense with the Batman style scenes where one guy has the othercornered with a gun, but has to explain the whole plot and his lifestory first. Missing the sure kill and freedom, blabbing long enoughfor the other to engage and then kill him never works. In the realworld, bad guys just shoot first.The film goes on about 20 minutes too long as if they cannot figure outhow to end it. Maybe a 5.0 rating was being too generous, but TMG is asucker for hot action films–even ones with tons of flaws.

GoneWithTheTwins

17 May 2012

More intricate than a typical Jason Statham actioner.

More intricate than a typical Jason Statham actioner, Killer Elitesuccessfully maintains a surprising degree of intrigue and intensity,not through an overly clever storyline, but with an air ofunpredictability within its characters. It's obvious that nothing willturn out the way it seems, but with a cast comprised of so many viciouskillers, keeping track of which ones are the real heroes becomes anentertaining quest. While the plot bogs itself down from time to timewith an abundance of twists and a location change every five minutes,the seasoned actors will hold your interest – at least until the nextadrenaline-filled action sequence can take over.The past has a way of catching up with you. No one knows this betterthan Danny Bryce (Jason Statham), a former mercenary who's forced outof retirement to save his old mentor Hunter (Robert De Niro). When anexiled oil sheik kidnaps Hunter, Danny must carry out the tyrant'srequest – track down and kill the three British S.A.S. officersresponsible for the murders of his sons. Gathering his old partnersDavies (Dominic Purcell) and Meier (Aden Young), Bryce begins hislethal task while Spike (Clive Owen), the equally exacting enforcer ofthe secret watchdog society "The Feather Men", attempts to stop him(this movie is based on Ranulph Fiennes' novel The Feather Men, and notthe 1975 Sam Peckinpah movie, The Killer Elite).Like The Bank Job, Killer Elite is one of the least Jason Statham-likeJason Statham movies produced so far, thanks to a complex story,sinister political undercurrents, the slightest bit of a nonfictionbasis (at least a few of the names are real), and strong supportingroles. An extremely protracted fistfight in a darkly lit hospital,where both lead characters take a tremendous beating (but manage toshake it off in the very next scene), impressive stunts (including theever popular parkour), and destructive car chases ensure that thefundamental aspects viewers expect from Statham are still present. It'sactually unfortunate that he can't quite rid himself of thoseinclusions, although his acting abilities probably couldn'tsinglehandedly support a serious drama."I'm done with killing," nobly states Danny, bearing his true self as amercenary with a conscience, a hit-man with a heart of gold. Ratherthan observing the effects death and carnage have on trained assassins,like Munich (with a similar political tie-in), Ronin (also starring DeNiro), or more recently, In Bruges, this espionage film prefers to havecharacters describe their feelings to the audience. It's blatant andunconvincing when Danny is scripted to explain that killing is simplyhis occupation and that it doesn't define his ethos or disposition.These tired themes weigh heavily on the fun of the adventure sequences,which already take a backseat to the slow but nonstop chase, hunt, andplotting of hit list targets; when De Niro is given a chance to off afew baddies, it's to the sound of applauding fans. It's obvious whatsparks enthusiasm from target audiences. Killer Elite does boasthostage situations, secret British societies, spy games, governmentconspiracies, tricky assassinations, covert operations, a partiallysympathetic antagonist, and trigger-happy operatives – all theingredients for an entertaining thriller – but little of it isunexpected.- The Massie Twins (GoneWithTheTwins.com)

moviemaniac008

16 May 2012

Couldve been so much more...

Killer Elite is a Hollywood made version of supposedly true events. Itpretty much retells the story of a mercenary Danny (Jason Statham)whose best friend and mentor Hunter (Robert De Niro) is kidnapped by arich Arabic man, who in return, wants to avenge the death of his threesons to the hands of British S.A.S. agents. At the same time, an S.A.S.agent by the name of Spike (Clive Owen) tries to prevent the deathsfrom happening.This is pretty much a typical Jason Statham flick. If you like one ofthem, then chances are you pretty much like all of them. At times, theaction feels just like ''The Mechanic'' (who came out earlier thisyear). As for the performances, Owen and De Niro give out some strongperformances. While their performances aren't exactly what I'd considerOscar worthy (I'm talking about two actors who were nominated for/wonAcademy Awards before), the performances still remind us that they are,even today, some really great actors. Statham is as good as ever, butthis comes from a Jason Statham fan.However, the film could have been so much more, and I know what I'mtalking about. The opening scene, followed by De Niro's ''escape'' fromthe Arabic men, are very epic scenes. I actually wanted the film tocontinue in the same direction as it's beginning. However, the filmturns typical Hollywood/Statham movie, and the action (although thefilm says it's inspired by true events) quickly becomes over the top.Furthermore, a part of the film seems to slow down the plot for nearly20-30 minutes...The dialogue at times also feels awfully cheesy.So overall I'll give it a seven out of ten. Not because it's a badmovie per Se. I'm sure typical Jason Statham who pay to see this intheatres will get what they're looking for. But simply because it couldhave been excellent movie, and that it unfortunately decided to go downanother path. Still, for the most part I was entertained, with thefirst 15-20 minutes and the Clive Owen/Jason Statham fight being someof my favourite action scenes I've seen this year.

rightwingisevil

15 May 2012

not bad but not great either

another typical bang, bang, bang action packed movie with a biblicalcommandment: "thou shalt not kill!" interpreted in the modern form of"crime & punishment". the scenario is okay, but the screenplay is a bitmessy. there is also a hidden agenda to criticize the heartless overkills by the allied forces of the British and u.s., both done blind,heartless, atrocious killings in iraq and afghanistan without propercauses. the scenario of trying to save his old mentor and friend isquite similar to the scenario of "spy game", but the latter was a muchmuch better film in every aspect. to kill British sas members withextreme prejudice for war crimes by the request of a dying Muslim sheikis a pretty good creativity, but the sheik's son character is a verylame arrangement. beautiful and sweet supporting female actor in thisfilm that at least made this film not quite clichéd bored.

caroeb

15 May 2012

Intriguing

The theme of this movie is "intrigue." There are layers of protagonistswith mysterious agendas. Not all the t's are crossed, but the mainstory holds firm.Which is the story of a reluctant band of experienced mercenariesplotting to kill, one by one, several British citizens as payback forsomething they did in a British skirmish somewhere in the Middle East.Each kill has to be cleverly disguised as an "accident," and evidenceof each successful plot has to be provided to the "client." To top itoff, another layer of protagonists senses what is going on, and plotsto stop said plotting. Intriguing, indeed!I still wonder what DeNiro is doing in this movie, but he contributes agreat character to it. Statham is in-your-face as usual, with brains.Clive Owen mysteriously disappointed me, as I generally enjoy his work.He struck me as weak in this role; like a thorn in my side, that keptbothering me and still does. The supporting cast is excellent, and theplot carries the day. Very enjoyable "thinking man's" action movie.

pashatr

13 May 2012

Awesome

Let me just say that in my opinion Jason Statham is my favorite actor,I don't know why some people are completely hating on this movie andthe acting.I agree with one point the came up in some reviews, you never reallyget to know the characters, they had the flash backs which wereawesome, and I feel like they should have added a couple moreMany movies I recently watched I have been disappointed, but KillerElite was awesome!STATHAM NEEDS TO BE IN MORE MOVIES AND THEY NEED TO COME OUT FASTER...one a week should be enough :P

del91

13 May 2012

Entertaining but not that dumb either

"Killer Elite", not to be confused for the Sam Peckinpah film of thesame name, is basically Jason Statham being Jason Statham kicking ass,but this time he's facing off against Clive Owen and a bunch of other,more sophisticated bad guys. But since Robert De Niro showed him thetricks of the trade, it just couldn't get any more macho than italready is.This movie is not just the typical shoot-em-up action fest. There is anactual espionage plot going underway, and though the screenplay isn'texactly original, the story unfolds in an engaging and intriguing waythat I became concerned of the story for once and not just awaitingevery action scene. The characters are fleshed out more often than mostshoot-em-up movies of late. There's some beams of intelligence incertain scenes, though it's clearly not on the same level of the JasonBourne movies. It tries hard though, and I have to give it credit forthat. Was it really based on a true story? The film certainly doesn'tsay so, as it presents the somewhat complex tale as the usual JasonStatham ass-kicking fest. No comment there.Judging from his previous movies I'd say "Killer Elite" is better thanStatham's previous outings "The Mechanic" and the dreadful "Blitz".Statham is still great at being badass and here he is no exception,although he actually gets hurt in this film a couple of times. CliveOwen is the best and most convincing actor in the film almost givingStatham a run for his money. De Niro is low-key here but I suspect it'sjust a warm-up for his next big project with Scorsese. YvonneStrahovski is just emotional fodder for Statham's character and hermoments with him are somewhat clichéd but still, not cheesy, althoughknowing her role from TV's "Chuck", she deserves better. DominicPurcell is also quite funny as one of Statham's assassin friends. Therest of the cast was not bad.Production wise, the settings all look gritty and downbeat andsomeone's bound to get beaten up or shot pretty good in one of thesesets. The music by Reinhold Heil and Johnny Klimek is alright butby-the-numbers. Simon Duggan's cinematography is good too - until thefight scenes. We do not want excessive shaky camera during ALL of thefight scenes, Mr. Duggan. The epic fight scene between Statham and Owenwas almost ruined because of this.If there were some things that would make the film better, they wouldbe - better dialogue at parts, more Owen, and much more De Niro. As itstands, "Killer Elite" is a pretty good, solid and tough action film,and will definitely score a home run with Statham fans.I eagerly await Statham's "Safe" because I feel that film is going tobe genuinely very good.Overall rating: 69/100

MBloodT

13 May 2012

Basic Thrills

The trailer was a false advertisement. It shows how crazy action packedfun this film will be. Even with the "Based On A True Story" tagline onit. Sadly, the trailer is quite different to the film. Both the filmand the trailer were good but it's strangely different. The film is athriller with an ordinary type of action film but it's not a crazyaction fun film that the trailer advertised. It's really disappointingbut the film stays a bit faithful to the story that it's based on.Although, it's quite absurd as a true story. Jason Statham is alwaysawesome to watch. Clive Owen does that too with his mustache. KillerElite is entertaining but it feels like it's just another afternoonboredom cure.It does not stand as a crazy filled action flick but it's stillentertaining. It's never tiring to watch Statham, Owen, and De Niroeven if they're playing their same old roles all over again. It's sadthat we don't see anything new about them except Clive Owen looksfascinating with his mustache. The film has action but not quite often.Most of it is spying and chasing each other. The fights areridiculously fun.It's all about the thrills. The suspense is well executed. In the end,we don't get to see anything new or crazy exciting fun about it. Thestorytelling was good enough. The script is a bit mediocre. Thedirection is just as basic as any other action films. You may noticethe film's runtime is 1 hour and 50 minutes but it feels kinda longer.Probably because of the quick pacing and the perpetual climax. It's atrue story but most of the picture is too unrealistic. But it's easy toignore that problem.It's an interesting story but it could've been more fun. But again thefilm is entertaining enough to cure your afternoon boredom. JasonStatham and Clive Owen will always entertain you no matter what. If youare in for some action violence then you might enjoy this. It's stilldisappointing. Someday, Killer Elite will remain just another JasonStatham film. His films are interesting actually but they end up beingmediocre by its script and sometimes the filmmaking. He's the only onewho's saving it. Then again, he will cure your boredom and nothingelse.

Chaz_233

12 May 2012

An extraordinary action movie.

Statham plays Danny, a mercenary who finds himself having to rescue hisfriend Hunter (DeNiro) who is in the captivity of a Sheikh in Oman, whois willing to release Hunter if Danny kills all the British agents whokilled his sons.Danny accepts and with his team manages to track down those men. Butthis gets the attention of a secretive group of former and currentBritish agents. Spike (Owen) is their main operative and he is hot onthe trail of Danny's team. The British government itself though istelling the secret group to stand down and to reign Spike in, thatwon't be easy though.When Danny thinks he's done it turns out there was a mistake in hishitlist and he has one more agent to kill. In the meantime some of histeam members are caught, others don't end up well because of the helpof amateurs. During the final mission both Danny and Spike realize thatthey are just pawns of a much bigger game- Oman has oil.Killer Elite is an exhilarating non-stop action movie, it reminded meof some of those British action series of the 70s/80s, that wereserious and no nonsense. In fact it even looks like these series, basedon the old cars they are driving. Interestingly it's not easy to tellwhen the events transpire. But aside from being an excellent actionmovie, much in vein of the Bourne movies, filled with intrigue, thereis the political and economical story that gives this movie anotherlayer of depth that you don't find in most action movies. Not tomention that it's based on real events. And those events are sointeresting and timely. We find out the sort of things that Britain wasdoing years ago, and which the US seems to be following, unfortunately.The movie could be a bit shorter and some of the characters manage toalways be at the right place at the right time. Nevertheless, KillerElite is one of the best story-based action movies in long time.

troy-manatunga

11 May 2012

Its only his second attempt behind the camera and he managed to work with some great Hollywood heavy weights and I am certain the next time it will just keep getting better.

"I am done with this, I can't do this anymore, I am finished" are thefinal words uttered by wounded ex special ops agent Danny (JasonStatham) prior to his retirement to Yarra Valley in Australia. Dannywakes up one morning only to find a package left outside for him thatcontains an airplane ticket and a photo of his ex-partner Hunter(Robert De Niro) who seems to have been captured by some Middle Easterntribe from the looks of the picture. Danny packs up and is in Omanwithin 2 days. The whole idea of the film jumping from one continent tothe other can be quite puzzling at times unless followed quite closely.Something that director Gary McKendry does not seem to have paid muchattention to. Danny meets up with Sheikh who is thirsty to avenge thedeath of his 3 children. His children who allegedly have been brutallymurdered by the British Military aka SAS is the target; 3 agents to beprecise. This is the task Danny needs to accomplish in exchange forHunters Freedom.Based on the book The Feather Men written by Ranulph Fiennes KILLERELITE is a politically twisted thriller that is no more than hardfisted punches, gunpowder and pure uncontrolled testosterone. Without ablink of neither an eye nor an itch of the nose this is most certainlynot for a female audience let alone a majority of the male audience. Itwould not be wrong if I am to say that this movie is indeed one for thefans; The Fans of Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert De Niro!For those De Niro fans do not get carried away since De Niro is more acameo rather a star this time round. It also keeps me doubting as towhat made De Niro to agree on working on such a project? It seems thatsince of late the legend called De Niro is being calling the wrongshots since his last mega must watch production HEAT back from the90s.Correct me if I am out of line here, however I believe that sincethen there has not been a movie for the legend that truly did just tothe man!Statham, Owen and Dominic Purcell (Prison Break) delivers just whatthey are good at doing best. POW! BAM! SOCK! Just hardcore fists thrownaround, bullets and nothing else at all to be quite frank! It's as ifall Gary McKendry was trying to do was beat up every extra on the set.Indeed they did get beaten. A little more focus on the confusing plot may have kept it real to thenovel I feel. The novel indeed could not be as bad as the movie sincethey actually did a movie out of the novel! Well done on the effort ofGary McKendry. It's only his second attempt behind the camera and hemanaged to work with some great Hollywood heavy weights and I amcertain the next time it will just keep getting better.Title: KILLER ELITE Directed by: Gary McKendry Starring: Jason Statham,Clive Owen, Dominic Purcell,, Aden Young and Robert De Niro Rated: Rfor strong violence, language and some sexuality/ nudity Rating:5.5/10116 minutes

collipal-1

11 May 2012

Not boring, but a mediocre action film

Killer Elite is a mediocre action film, but I have to admit that itkept me moderately entertained at least, mainly because of theperformances from Jason Statham, Clive Owen and Robert De Niro.On some way, I appreciated the methodic rhythm from Killer Elite, aswell as the gradual introduction of characters, more intrigue and morehidden intentions. However, there comes a time when the screenplay getsexcessively complicated, to the point in which came a moment when itwas impossible for me to cypher who is working for who, and who the"bad guys" are and who the "good ones" are. Thinking it well, thescreenplay from Killer Elite might not have "good guys" in theconventional sense; all the characters in this movie are killersbecause of the friendship, the patriotism or the money. But after all,that ends up not being very important, because even though screenwriterMatt Sherring tried to transcend the pre-fabricated drama we usuallyfind in this kind of cinema, the unnecessary turns and twists from thescreenplay end up clouding any moral advantage the characters couldhave. I do not think it is bad whenever an action movie makes us think(in fact, I find it more satisfactory), but if we have to take downnotes and draw diagrams to understand the story, I think the moviefailed on the narrative aspect.Besides, I think that the historical period from the story isabsolutely useless. On the beginning, I thought that the '80s settingwould be justified by relating the movie with some socio-politicalevent from that time, but it was only an excuse to employ a "retro"style in the cars, clothes and other aspects from the productiondesign.However, as I mentioned on the first paragraph, the 3 main actors arewhat mainly make the movie moderately entertaining and worthy of aslight recommendation. The action scenes do not feel very exciting,while the screenplay stumbles too many times with its own anti-logic(Was it really necessary to organize a super-secret meeting in themiddle of the desert only in order to exchange a mallet? Yes, amallet); but Statham, Owen and De Niro are perfect as tough men defyingthe danger, chasing each other and competing with each other to see whohas the most threatening look. Because of them, and some interestingelements from the screenplay, this movie did not bore me.

ghasl1

11 May 2012

Loosely Based on a True Story or Fiction

First off I was excited to see this movie because of the action starsand the movie poster. The movie stated as a 'true story' I thought thatwas cool, that being said it ruined the movie for me because of myexpectations of the events. Its better off they didn't mention it atall because watching the action sequences e.g. (jumping roof to roof)made it unbelievable that it actually happened, the same withconspiracy and politics.If its your first time watching this movie don't expect it to be likeMel Gibson's Conspiracy Theory, Salt or Jason Bourne movies withexplosions and shooting all over the place. There is too much pacingand talking of little interest and unimportance, it felt like enduring2 hours with a badly written script and a average storyline, which iswhy it felt b-graded.What is good is the action stars with the dialogue from Jason Statham(Danny) and Robert De Niro (Hunter), everyone else seemed mediocreeither that or there roles weren't as important. They should of atleast focus more attention towards other characters that felt left outlike the Sultan or his sons. For some reason they have mixnationalities of hit men such as an American, welsh, englishmen and anassociate who is angolan (I assume). The question is why, its not likethey explained how they met together like the Expendables.It gives the benefit of the doubt that an American would considerhelping an englishmen without a reason or stabbing him in the back.Which I thought Robert De Niro's character was going to do in the end.So there is no twists in this movie.Other than that the main highlight of the show was the assassinationsof three SAS carefully executed. You wont like the movie if you expecta lot of action or a story that is complexing, just an average flick.

cmoyton

10 May 2012

Incoherent mess

Should have been so much better than this. The Killer Elite arrivedwith high expectations but disappoints hugely. Obstentially a JasonStatham vehicle De Niro barely has fifteen minutes screen time andphones in his performance (again). Some of the fight/action scenes workquite well particularly the opening assassination but don't expect toempathise with any of the players.Although based on actual events i found the portrayal on screen to beboth unengaging and ridiculous. The direction and editing were reallysub standard jumping all over the place as much as the meanderinggeographical locations.The director needs to go back to film school.You will be checking your watch after fifteen minutes. If you make itto the end - congratulations.

MosH

08 May 2012

Another Statham super-assassin movie over-complicated and illogical story underneath

Killer Elite starts with the Jason Statham super-assassin fare, somerandom Mexican or South American dude is getting whacked and JasonStatham as Danny here kills car-fulls of them. But, then it manages toenormously over-complicate things the way only a British movie can do.There is the secret society called the feather-men (because their touchis sooo soooft), some oil sheik who hires Danny by kidnapping hismentor and a whole slew of characters and sub-characters that inhabitthe Killer Elite world that all manage to be a little inconsistent withthe rules of the movie.Jason Statham, DiNiro and Clive Owen star, one gets the feeling theyaren't in the movie but are sort of doing their thing floating aboveit. Statham has to be the super-man, the assassin who can kill a wholearmy if he wants to, DiNiro has to have his intricate monologues anddialogs, and Clive Owen has to be a badass. It does claim to beinspired by a true story but it's hard to weed out the "it couldhappen" true part and the chaff that all the big actors drag into themovie. We have the hokey "it's easy to kill but the hard part is livingwith it" kind of assassin introspection and on the other hand it hintsat blood for oil military campaigns and political web but theydistinctly form two separate layers in the movie.As an action movie, it's full of it's shares of shootouts, grislydeaths, car chases and burly men punch-ups. It does that weird thingwhere goons are shot in the leg or punched in the head rather thankilled. I suppose if you don't really care how the plot stupidlyunravels itself, it's a decent action movie. But, as a plot, it'sover-complicated and borderline nonsensical.

smokyowl

08 May 2012

MUCH better than I expected

I sensed what the movie-making powers that be were thinking when theymade this movie: Take 3 action stars + 1 super hot blonde = money.Simple enough of a formula to get people in the theaters. Myexpectations were not that high for this film. But what I foundreminded me of a "Bourne Identity" feel for some odd reason, but withmore action and less suspense. Injecting the film with reality wasYvonne Strahovski, who made the story believable. I did like the whole1980 thing the movie had going on as well, which some of these reviewsmight've missed when they watched the film.There are many memorable moments, none of which I'm going to tell you.One of two issues I had with the film is the distance I felt with thecharacters. They felt close to each other on screen, but not close tome(if that makes any sense). I could've used 5 or 10 minutes getting toknow the characters a bit better. Halfway through the film I realized Ihad forgotten all the character's names, and it was all facialrecognition. Secondly, I could have used a bit more humor. I guess whenmaking movies on real events it's hard to get a good laugh withoutcoming off corny. I think they missed an opportunity there with YvonneStrahovski's character.I would've given this movie 7 stars, but it didn't seem rightconsidering just how much enjoyment I got out of it and such a solidperformance of the actors.