Guns Akimbo

The negative reviews for this movie are hilarious. Are you expecting Shakespearean grade storytelling from a movie whose main character has guns bolted to his hands? This is meant to be pure entertainment and it delivers balls to the wall action mixed with over the top humour. I was genuinely entertained while watching this and I'm glad I decided to ignore the negativity surrounding it. It's best to just suspend belief and enjoy this film for what it is.

..and I loved every minute of it. How Radcliffe was talked into signing on to this movie I don't know, but I think every actor needs to star in one straight up, nonsensical, fun-loving trash movie. They don't all work but this one does. You just have to be willing to suspend belief and realize what you're signing up for for the next hour and a half ( let's be honest, you have to do that with almost every movie). It's a nonstop shoot 'em up, blood everywhere but still not particulalry gory kind of movie. If you don't mind trading in a great plot and fine acting for a dude with pistols bolted to both hands and a psychopathic hit woman intent on killing him, I highly recommend it.

Slacker coder Miles Lee Harris (Daniel Radcliffe) is trying to get back with his ex Nova. He likes to troll other online trolls. He makes the wrong enemy in Skizm, an underground killing-for-entertainment society. They follow their leader Riktor in breaking into his apartment and knocking him out. He wakes up with two guns bolted to his hands. He receives texts telling him that he has 24 hours to kill expert player Nix (Samara Weaving).

The premise is fun but it can get repetitive and tiresome. It reminds me a lot of Crank which is a bit better than this. Radcliffe has this adorable personality which keeps the movie going for the first half. At some point, the concept wears thin and the movie loses the thread. I'm not sure if it's Nix's convoluted story or the unrelenting action grind. It stops mattering. So it's fun for a good while and then it's not.

I loved it and so did the two people I watched it with.

Yes, the movie is super violent. Yes, the violence is gratuitous. Yes, it is funny, but the humor is pretty NZ. (I actually laughed at one liners!!! Those that know me, know this is not my M.O.)

This movie is smart and silly and cliche in all the right ways. The camera work is crazy fast and a little nauseating at times, but you have to admire the creativity and sheer manic dedication. We all particularly loved the video game flourishes.

In fact, visually the movie is excellent, and we all agreed that the production value is off the chain. (Good work, everyone!) Acting is also excellent.

My personal favorite: the script is pretty tight- especially for a shoot 'em up, action film like this. It is fast and you have to pay attention. The writing doesn't spoon feed you anything, you have to keep up. Is the story ridiculous? YES! Does it follow some sort of logic? Yes again! I wasn't going to review this film until I saw all of the negative reviews which are frankly unmerited. I think a lot of people are put off by the female bad ass who shows no tit, does not fall in love, and remains a bad ass to the end. Yay sexism!

People complaining about plot and and style clearly don't understand that there are different genres of movies. Obviously this isn't an Oscar contender but it's a great ride. Daniel Radcliffe continues to show his range as an actor by taking on roles that most A-listers wouldn't go near. His success as the boy who lived has given him the freedom to chose the roles he wants and to actually have fun making movies. Something that is very refreshing to see. Samara Weaving is brilliant and it's a joy to see her as the character Nix. She's gonna be huge in the next few years.

If you enjoy action movies, with outrageous violence, well choreographed fight scenes and over the top characters then you'll enjoy this film. It moves fast and doesn't take itself too serious. It's an easy watch, and slightly predictable. Although that's what you sign up for, and the movie makes you well aware of that.