The Fans Scott Adkins can rejoice! Another film with his participation has arrived, and, moreover, not just any film, but a continuation of one of the most prominent representatives of the Hollywood period John Woo - action movie "Hard Target", the same one with Jean-Claude Van Damme starring.
In fact, this film is not directly related to the first part, that is, they do not overlap in characters, but are similar only in the name, basic plot lines, several visual references to the original and the image of the main villain. But if Wu’s film had a director’s style, cinematographic delights, classic heroic pathos, Van Damme and Henrikson, then the second part has nothing. Another attempt to appear better than it is, driving more viewers to the film by using a famous film brand and poor Adkins, who needs to pay his mortgage. In general, it's an old story.
Acquaintance with the hero begins with a fight in the ring, which was supposed to reveal to us the dramaturgy of the character (which, by the way, was not useful at all in the end), and it becomes clear to us that the main character is an idiot, and the fights in the film will be very bad. It gets worse. What motivates the main character is not clear. What's wrong with this friend? Is this really a friend, otherwise it doesn’t look like it at all? Why, why all this? Does he repent? Why then fight in all these battles? Forget grief, or maybe seek death? Then why does he win? What kind of person he is is not clear, what kind of character he is is not clear. Should I sympathize with him? I don’t need to. What kind of fighter he is is not at all clear.
Then he lies in the room almost covered in pigeon droppings (white pigeons, hello to John Woo), touches his wristwatch, which is as dear as a memory, drinks, either grieves greatly, or has heartburn, the devil can tell him in this “assortment” of Adkins’ acting techniques . Then it turns out that he is a greedy son of a bitch and doesn’t grieve at all, but just wants a million dollars and a house by the sea.
But then the main action begins. And everything is bad there, because the amount of nonsense and blunders even for a simple action movie a la the 90s is wildly off the charts.
You can stand waist-deep in water with an enemy, hit the enemy with a stun baton and not get charged.
When killing enemies, never take a knife, a gun, or a machine gun from a dead person. Then run like a goat throughout the jungle and seem either helpless or invincible. It’s not clear whether you’re just a kickboxer, or if you’re a special forces unit, or if you have kreptonite in your chest.
You can jump on two motorcyclists like Superman, without realizing that they may have weapons in their bosoms and generally have rocket launchers attached to these same motorcycles. Then kill the motorcyclists by kicking them in the helmet. (Hello to John Woo and Van Damme). Having realized in seconds that the motorcycle has not only rockets, but also a mesh, you can instantly learn how to use it all. Do not kill the enemy's woman, in order to avoid sexism, in order to ensure a classic clumsy female fight in the finale, meaningless and merciless.
Suddenly take a machine gun at the end of the film to speed up the development of the plot, and accurately, professionally, without blinking an invincible eye, shoot at the enemies like a real warrior... why couldn’t you do this right away?
The villain suddenly becomes merciful to his colleagues and forbids killing them, at a time when, it would seem, to hell with them and their colleagues, because all problems can be solved at once.
The theme with the general, the village and rubies is actually some kind of space, I don’t even understand who came up with this idea. Then a company of soldiers shoots the main villain without catching the main character, who is standing almost two steps away from him, this is just a miracle of miracles. In general, this is a clinic, comrades.
The dialogues in the film are so primitive that it is better for the characters not to talk.
The fights in the film are rare, bad, and there is nothing to grab your attention to. If in the same "Close Range" Although Scott was, in my opinion, replaceable, he showed at least something. And in “Hard Target 2” it is replaced in a square and does not show anything. Both final battles are regression and yesterday, there’s nothing even to describe there, some kind of fadedness, lethargy, negligence, lack of ideas.
What's good about this movie? Beautiful waterfalls, beautiful elephants and beautiful Buddha statues. The villain, played by Napper, was chosen specifically for Henriksen, so much so that even his weapon was made the same. The references to the original film and to traditional John Woo elements are pleasing: the very beginning of the film, some camera angles, rapid shooting, flying white doves, motorcyclists. True, it all looks a bit pale and doesn’t help the film at all.
To watch or not – decide for yourself. After the second part, I rewatched the first and really enjoyed it. And even the retro fights from 1993 from Van Damme look cooler than the 2016 fights from Adkins. It's sad, gentlemen. Worse and worse.
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Tags: Hard Target 2, Gija Yanin, Patrick Tang, Robert Knepper, Roel Rein, Scott Adkins
Tags: Hard Target 2, Gija Yanin, Patrick Tang, Robert Knepper, Roel Rein, Scott Adkins
Nah. Lately there have been very few positive reviews of modern films on this site. One might get the impression that nothing really good is coming out of our topic today. Perhaps this is really how it is.
I haven’t seen the film yet, but something tells me (at least the trailer) that I will completely agree with the review :)
DIV,
Don't worry, I'll throw in a couple of negatives for the old stuff to balance it out)
uranium, it would be better to have positive ones that are worth watching.
From what I hope for, I’m looking forward to “Re:Born”, “Headshot” and “Unlucky stars”. I would like “Templar”, but it’s completely deaf.
Ps I should look through the site to see what I missed... Otherwise I remember that there were trailers with a wow effect and “I want, I want, I want.” But in the end there is nothing to see.
Wave,
“Unlucky stars” is already lying around on the Internet somewhere without translation. I watched it a long time ago. The impression is the same. To put it bluntly, it's not a hit.
Ravenside, thanks for the tip, I found it and am downloading it. I also remembered “A Million K(l)iks”, I also haven’t watched it, but it’s been around for a long time. I suspect it’s also not a masterpiece, but it certainly doesn’t suck either – Möller is an interesting film fighter.
Wave,
I'm sorry, but is it possible to provide a link to Sparta? (I couldn’t find it anywhere)
Dmitriy, the comment about Sparta is not mine, I have not seen it and do not know about it. I'll look and see if I have a chance.
A work filmed by stuntmen for stuntmen. Jumping, skipping, tricking, somersaults... such a full-length showreel, a demonstration of Möller's capabilities. But as a movie (feature or semi-feature film) it is not interesting to watch. Even as an action movie.
Ravenside,
I would like to ask some advice - have you seen anything worthy from Russian/CIS countries in a couple of years? Is all of YouTube filled with action films made by us and half ours? Thank you in advance.
uranium,
Sorry for interrupting! Look at "Sparta", it looks like it turned out to be an action movie.
uranium,
I can’t yet remember anything decent from our new...
Wave,
All “I want-I want” trailers are duplicated in the group, you like them and they are bookmarked. You watch it later so as not to forget - that’s what I do. There are really a lot of films.
Regarding reviews - if you suspect that your opinion may not coincide, watch the film yourself and evaluate it yourself. I myself haven’t watched TM-2 yet (but I suspect that Raven will be right) and I will also review it, but most likely as a line-up of films.
uranium,
I want to use a ruler to write reviews of all Seagal’s films this year. So far nothing good has come across. I wanted (want) to write a positive review of the Japanese “Tokyo Clan”, but lack of time is not conducive to this :(
DIV,
So WRITE!!!!
I'm unlikely to review Seagal in the near future. write his filmography in several parts and your opinion about the most sensible/unhealthy films.
uranium,
I don’t have time, but what I can spare I spend on news for the same site :)
I definitely won’t do the entire filmography of Seagal. Only his latest films.
DIV,
Well, we'll wait.
I adore the work of John Woo and the film "Hard Target" was watched many times on videotape and I could not miss "Hard Target 2". To be honest, the film is not bad to watch. I didn’t expect anything worthwhile, because the director was Roel Rain, and he’s not John Woo, who for a small budget could put on decent action, like “Blackjack” with Dolph Lundgren. The film is ok to watch once.
In general, it would be cool if John Woo returned to his old ways.
What's stopping John Woo from making more action films? Is the genre extinct?
But historical melodramas are bombing...it’s kind of sad
Lech,
It wouldn't be sad. The master of the genre - pigeons and bullets - hid his signature style in his pocket. Well, nothing... let's wait for his DANGEROUS CHASE. Perhaps he will return to this genre further. Who knows....
Guys, you are all right in your own way, and I will repeat for the hundredth time - real fans of their craft have left the cinema! Those who wanted to express something and say something on their own behalf. Who were simply crushed by all these producer races for money. But if earlier the money was skilfully cut, now with incredibly huge information on the same network, people have simply lost their grip. A shame!
And you have to be a complete idiot to attempt a remake of a JOHN WU film. A person with his own worldview and sense of life.
One over there recently swung at BEN HUR and what...? Justice has finally prevailed! Proving that by nature a person is just an idiot. Or an unpunished bastard.
I don’t understand one thing - where is Scott looking? It seems that he doesn’t really care what or how to act. Is it difficult to add something new from your fighting wardrobe?
Look at the same Möller. He may not be Boyka, but he works physically in and behind the frame, much cooler than Adkins! (May Pasha Belba forgive me).
Jaidev,
Ahh, I understand who you mean. Mike Möller, right? He's good, I watched his tribute from the group's VK.
Jaidev,
Well, it’s just that creativity comes first, and then business. And now - business, and then creativity (if there is time and money left). In any case. The main thing is to fight it off. Everything is too fast, life is like that.
So, try to shoot\write\draw\sculpt from clay (underline as appropriate) yourself if you are a fan.
True, sooner or later, you will have to face reality and compromise.
Jaidev,
I don't think Scott cares where he films. It’s Bruce Willis who doesn’t care where to film, but definitely not Scott) Well, even if he added something from the wardrobe, it would have changed. The operator would have leaked everything. The angles there are so-so. By the way, I’ve never seen Scott’s split kick anywhere before (well, that kick where it’s between the motorcycles). Although I have seen it before in many people. In general, all the action in TM2 - I saw it somewhere, and it was filmed more interestingly)
Ralf Möller or what? Well, I don’t know, I don’t know)
Of course, as a fan of Scott, I may be trying to protect the film, protecting it from the negativity that will already flow from fans of Van Damme and John Woo. Therefore, I have a lenient attitude towards the film; if only there were budgets or someone from the film crew of the original was working on the sequel, then it would be possible to compare) I like both Scott Adkins and Van Damme. I have no complaints about them, the problem is more in the film... and the number of shooting days.
But I respect Ravenside for his reviews. You evaluate everything strictly, pointing out all the shortcomings, every detail is important to you - that’s cool. You don't care what class - A, B, C. And this is right, either good or bad. This is one of the reasons why I come here - Ravenside reviews.
Lech,
And one more thing, about the details. Details are very important. From them the whole is formed, provided that there is an idea.
Here we take two films, for example, go two songs. One genre, about the same thing, similar plot, approximately the same budgets, etc., etc. But you watch some films all the time, while others you watched a couple of times and deleted. And the song too. And you can’t even always clearly formulate why. I like it and that's it. And it's all in the details. The composer did a little better and made the soundtrack original and in the right places. The actors did a little better job. The writers sat a little longer. The director and cameraman were a little more tired. the fight directors experimented a little more....
A little bit here, a little bit there. Here we take the original “Hard Target”. Is Van Damme's hero's clothes a detail? Detail. An earring in the ear, that long greasy hair, the funny name of the main character. The city where all this happens. OST Every villain is thought out, even that fat dude whose ear was cut off. And a bunch of such details that many people don’t even think about. But now, as soon as someone in a movie or advertisement wears the same clothes and has the same hairstyle, you immediately see, damn, it’s Chance Boudreau. Details are very important.
Ravenside,
Yes, no details. And the soundtrack to the first difficult target is a completely separate matter.
This is probably Graham Revel's best soundtrack - these notes of blues and jazz, it's something beyond the limit)
I still remember the themes from there (where Boudreau has lunch at a diner, or where he goes to Natasha, agreeing to her offer to find his father, or where the policewoman blows out a candle). Unfortunately, there is no such thing here, the atmosphere is not the same.
Lech,
Thank you for rating. And there really is no difference, class A or B. Class B often has more complaints. Expensive blockbusters fail one after another, major studios make complete nonsense. It’s a paradox, but the hope lies in low-budget, independent films made by fans of the genre and enthusiasts. But... it's sad for now.
He wants to buy a house for his wife, as if to fulfill a friend’s promise, to make amends. What does greed have to do with it?
I don’t understand these claims about what kind of fighter he is, how can you understand what kind of fighter he is?
In the original with Vanya, it’s also not clear what kind of fighter he is) He seems to be a former Marine, but in fact he’s a good motorcyclist, and handles horses, and does spins, although he could just shoot him).
About the bloopers, yes, I agree. They didn't notice. The stun gun could have been removed, and the missile nets on the motorcycles could also have been removed (so that the split shot would have been more meaningful, because then the movie would have ended halfway through). The fact that he didn’t take a weapon is also strange. Regarding the shooting on the bridge - yes, it could have been limited to one bullet.
But the film does not focus on this. They said more about this village that the girl wants to ransom, although this is such nonsense that the guard. And the theme with the guilt and feelings of the main character was, by and large, lost. There were some half-hearted attempts to add drama, he once had nightmares in the cave... But as a way to motivate the hero, it all doesn’t work.
For an action film that was shot in 20 days, it's quite normal.
And yes, Roel Rein is not John Woo. It was obvious that the action would be worse.
Although, if Ross Clarkson had been there with Isaac as the cameraman...
I watched the film and was disappointed, I won’t say that it was crazy how I expected it, but I honestly had some hopes.
Scott, as an actor, is only capable of going on stage coolly, winning and leaving coolly, that’s all, unfortunately!
This moment is especially incomprehensible - from many video and text interviews, I understood that Scott is a big fan of Van Damme and so fucked up acting in continuation of the fact that on an internal level he had to have the passion to surpass or at least be on par ...(I put it a bit strangely, but let it remain that way as an example of a similar feeling from watching)
A shame. Not a movie. Now I'm afraid for Boyko. Correctly noted: there is not enough charisma. Somehow you can still forgive if the film had a different title. And so another spit in the soul. The idea really creeps in to film something similar in the mountains of the North Caucasus.
It was in vain that everyone attacked this film, a normal, beautifully shot action film, this director is not reliable, since he directed two series of death races, and both look terrible, but this time he succeeded.
Dave, pounced because they expected more from Adkins. Well, more was expected from the remake of “Hard Target”.
Van Damme's signature action from the pilot episode of the television series "Jean-Claude Van Johnson."
Please add a separate piece of news. Everyone needs to see this!
woakk,
Why these fragments when you can (need) watch the pilot episode of the series?
On the other hand, what did everyone expect from Mr. Roel Rain? Some quality action? Perhaps this will sound too cynical, but this director, in my opinion, does not have a single normal action movie. But this, I repeat, is in my opinion. Rain's only more or less decent films were two parts of "Death Race" and "Card Debt" with Seagal in the title role. The rest of the movie is generally not subject to discussion. And when last year there was information that this particular person would be at the helm of the “Hard Target-2” project, I immediately realized that nothing so cool and really worthwhile would come of it.
In the above review, the author took the film “Close Distance” as an example. But I must say that the director of the film, Isaac Florentine, will be cooler than Rain, and the editor, Irit Raz, is also a specialist in action films of a fairly high level.
And here we have what we have. By the way, there was information that John Woo would be, it seems, the producer of the second part, but in the credits, as far as I saw, his name is not listed anywhere. But there are two producers of the first part, James Jacks and Sean Daniel. Here they acted as executive producers. Couldn't they have brought in a more worthy candidate for the director's chair than Rain? Or did you want to save money on the operator?
Ivan,
Technically and technologically, so to speak, Florentine is, of course, a better director than Rain. But their approach is approximately the same.
The fights and action scenes in the film are staged not by the director, but by the appropriate people - the fight directors/choreographers. What and where to insert/cut later during editing is chosen by the project managers - the producers. The director in today's cinema is an ordinary mercenary, called only to set the tone for the film for an agreed fee. In all other respects, he dances to the masters' tune.
I agree 1000000000....% with the author of the article! And I will add: Disgusting movie!
Adkins either has no brains, or financially everything really sucks for him. BUT... he cannot understand the most important thing - for lack of charisma like Vanya Damm, looking at his old, same-type blows, and even filmed somehow, is already sickening.
What to expect in Adkins' next film? Nothing. Nothing could be better than AMERICAN SPECIAL FORCES and UNDISPUTEABLE 2. And that's a fact. Judging by Scott's life thinking. It's a pity. He is a good athlete.
Jaidev,
The offer to make a Rambo-style action film yourself is still valid. We have to do it ourselves, we won’t expect anything from them.
I'll take a look too. But it's sad if everything is so bad.
It's a shame, even though I wasn't looking forward to this movie.