Running with the Devil

Caught this whilst browsing through Netflix.

I can never resist a Nic Cage flick.

Watchable, but pretty dire. The only interesting thing about it, is seeing how cocaine gets to the west from source and to be honest, that was a total mish-mash of clips and scenes and you don't really learn much from it.

The ending will leave you totally underwhelmed.

Love Nic Cage though!

I enjoyed this, but it's not amazing. One of those films that fills the time. Good enough story. Well acted and produced but it's not amazing. It's kind of by the numbers as even I could predict a lot of it and I'm not great at that - I never know who the murderer is on Death in Paradise. However, this film has Cage and Fishburne and is all the better for them. They keep things ticking along nicely. Drug running across Americas with expected murders and police alongside the bosses and general corruption. I liked that they updated the price of the drugs as they moved through the supply chain. Good with a beer or on a quiet afternoon. You'll need some snacks too.

Running With The Devil: Nicolas Cage has every opportunity and reason to chew up the scenery in this film but he resists the the temptation. A take of drug running, following the trail from a remote farm in Colombia via mexico and the US to Canada. Cage is sent by his boss to find out who is hijacking shipments and also to discover who is cutting the coke with dangerous additives. Laurence Fishburne is a middleman with Leslie Bibb as a DEA agent with a personal score to settle. Extreme violence, double-crosses, nobody ever quite who they seem to be and a few plot surprises. Nothing particularly original but certainly a watchable thriller. Directed and written by Jason Cabell. 6/10. On Netflix.

This is far better than you might expect from an under-the-radar Nicolas Cage film. The dialogue is very good and delivered honestly by a very competent cast. The story is believable (except for the bit about flying and skydiving, where they could have used a consultant). The editing made it concise and effective. There is a raw, unadorned feeling to the whole production. The arc finished the tale off in a very satisfying way without giving me time to check my watch. This is a successful film and one to be proud of. And, it shows that with good quality material, Cage is a very likable, convincing actor. I'm happy to see him in a film like this, for a change.

I'm a simple guy, I see Nicolas Cage - I watch the movie. Furthermore, he's joined by Laurence Fishburne, Barry Pepper, Clifton Colins Jr. and some other previously seen & heard names. To be honest, it's easy to get into these thrillers, because I already know what to expect, all it takes is 2 minutes long look at the cast, director, plot and ...the poster.

"Running with the Devil" is not a great movie, but it's hard not to enjoy it. Lets get the bad qualities off the table first. Despite taking place in over 15 different locations & across two continents, story lacks any narrative inspiration, rhytm or complexety. It doesn't even make sense at some points. The structure is choppy, the climax is weak & there's not nearly enough good old fashioned action. However, we have come here for the cast. It's indeed an enjoyable romp of many characters - Laurence Fishburne snorting coke and being extremely horny, Adam Goldberg being a bit*h, Nicolas Cage doing ...his thing, and so on and so forth. Seriously though, while the script is very, very weak and directing uninspiring, "Running with the Devil" is kept afloat with a steady pacing dragged on by the amount of characters and locations, with the awesome cast doing their thing & with a pretty fine cinematography and (sometimes questionable) editing.

You will be running with the devil because Cage & Fishburne runs with it & later You're going to be running for another movie. I'm sure that I can positively recommend this flick to anyone who's a fan of the cast and/or a fan of this particular & familiar low budget average thriller niche. The key is knowing what you'll get. I enjoyed this 5/10 quite a lot.