Released: January 2018
Director: Brett Donowho
Rated R
Run Time: 87 Minutes
Distributor: Lionsgate Studios
Genre: Action/Thriller
Cast:
Bruce Willis: Detective James Avery
Cole Hauser: Deklan
Shawn Ashmore: Brandon
Ashton Holmes: Roman
Melissa Bolona: Mia
Sean Brosnan: Vince
Mike Epps: Max
Sophia Bush: Detective Brook Baker
Human trafficking is one of those topics that’s very difficult to properly integrate into an action/thriller. It runs the risk of turning what is a legitimate social issue into what could be considered a joke. While there have been a number of films that have tackled the subject of human trafficking seriously, there are also a number of films that have simply used the topic as an excuse to blow things up. Trying to find the balance between the two is a very short tight-rope to walk and very few film-makers have the ability to not only make us aware of the problem, but to also make the film entertaining as well. If not done right, the film can across as pretty trashy. Like-wise, when it comes to action thrillers, there is a fine line between having genuine white-knuckle tension and face-palming stupidity. There is a balance that has to be maintained for a compelling thriller. This year, we have a new action thriller involving human trafficking. How does it stack up with the others?
The film opens as Detective Avery is tracking down a young girl that’s gone missing and forced into prostitution, after finding her body, Avery resigns himself to a desk job while trying to find missing people. At the same time he’s trying to fight a corrupt justice system. At the same time, young Roman is celebrating his engagement to his new fiance, Mia. After an initial fight with Deklan, Roman’s oldest brother, Mia goes to a party where she gets kidnapped. Discovering Mia’s been abducted, Roman, Deklan and a third brother, Brandon attempt to find her. When it comes to kidnap thrillers, it’s really important to have that sense of tension, because there is a time limit to finding the missing person. When properly done, the film can get you on the edge of your seat. I like it when movies do that. The story in Acts of Violence is pretty straight-forward and doesn’t really waste a lot of time with twists and turns and trying to pull the rug out from underneath the audience. For a direct-to-video action thriller, this is surprisingly not an awful movie. Does it fall into some really predictable moments? Sure, but then again, kidnap thrillers are not that easy to pull off.
The acting in this film is surprisingly not bad. Shawn Ashmore, Ashton Holmes, and Cole Hauser do a pretty good job at playing three brothers who are trying to hunt down the people that kidnapped Mia. Mike Epps plays the trafficking ringleader and does a good job at being a scummy gangster. That’s kind of surprising, given the actor’s comedic background. The gal that plays Mia, Melissa Bolona, is fine, but it’s a role that could be played by pretty much anyone. Bruce Willis…..oh, Bruce. He gets top billing, but he’s only in the film for maybe a total of 10-15 minutes, and he’s clearly there just for the paycheck. Bruce Willis has been one of my favorite actors of the past 30 years, but lately, he’s been kind of sleep-walking through his movies. He still puts forth some effort, but he’s newer stuff is nothing like what was doing 20 years ago.
The action in this film is pretty hard-hitting. It’s not overly gory, but it definitely earns its R rating. To be fair, when you’re dealing with human trafficking, you really can’t properly do a film like that with a PG-13. When it comes to action films like these, you would expect modern film-makers to utilize a lot of shaky-cam shots. Personally, I hate that shit. It gives me a head-ache and I can’t see what’s going on. There’s a little bit of that here, but the action is mostly done without shaky-cam, and I absolutely appreciate that. Being able to see the action goes a long way to keeping the audience engaged. While Bruce Willis does get in on the action a little bit, it’s mostly Cole Hauser and his team that are getting into the action. What I also like about this film, is that the actions that these brothers take have consequences. When you take on a notorious gangster, you can expect some serious blow-back, and that happens in this movie. It’s nice to see at least a little bit of realism in a thriller like this.
While the film only lasts 87 minutes, there are times when it feels longer than it should. I think the problem is that the issue of human trafficking is not being taken as seriously as it should be. It also comes back to the film’s predictable nature. There are moments that just drag. Unfortunately, a lot of those moments involve Bruce Willis. While the film is definitely hard-hitting in the arena of violence, we are not really seeing the truly ugly side of human trafficking. I’m not saying it should be exploitative, but we really need to understand what is at stake here. To do that, you really need to dive into the ugliness of the topic, almost to the point of making people uncomfortable. That would give the audience a better reason to root for the good guys. But that didn’t happen here. There were really no stakes beyond finding Roman’s fiance. We see her tied up periodically, but nothing really happens to her beyond that. I don’t know if it was time or budget constraints, but I feel that Acts of Violence could have been far more effective than it actually is.
Ultimately, Acts of Violence isn’t a terrible film. It’s a perfectly serviceable little action film that hits pretty hard, but not hard enough. I could think of worse ways to spend an hour and a half. You’ve got some pretty decent acting along with decent action, but it’s not something you’ll remember in about a week or two. There are better movies of this kind out there, but there are much worse as well. So…it’s kind of middle-of-the-road. It’s worth a rental at least.
My Final Recommendation: This probably could have been better with Liam Neeson. 7/10