Desert Gun

6/19/18. I thought it would be all right because Patrick Wilson was in it. But, I guess everyone is entitled to making a dud every once in awhile. Could have been better.

With the premise of this being a crime thriller, I must admit that I had very little expectations to the movie, especially since that particular genre is flooded with a lot of very generic movies.

However, it turned out that "The Hollow Point" was actually quite an entertaining and interesting movie to watch. Especially so, since the story was well-constructed and the acting performances really promoted the story quite well in transition from script to on-screen.

It was perhaps the brutality of the storyline that appealed to me. Because this was not your average cops against criminals story. And the storyline was really helped nicely along the way by some interesting and detailed characters.

The movie was really nicely carried by Patrick Wilson, and it was a nice surprise to see him excel at a genre like this, and that proves that he is actually quite a diverse actor. Furthermore, it was also really nice to see Ian McShane, John Leguizamo and Jim Belushi in the movie as well. It was a shame, though, that John Leguizamo didn't have a bigger role, because his character could really have been so interesting to get to see more of. There were some good acting performances from everyone in the movie, which really added to the overall enjoyment of the movie.

"The Hollow Point" was indeed an entertaining movie, and it was a good surprise how nice the movie actually turned out to be.

However, while this movie is entertaining, I doubt that the movie is one that I will watch a second time, because it just didn't have enough contents to support more than a single viewing. That doesn't make it a poor movie, just that once you have seen this the first time, there is nothing to support additional viewings.

My rating for "The Hollow Point" is a solid 6 out of 10 stars.

This illegal transportation take centres around the smuggling of bullets into Mexico. A retired lawman works with a new sheriff to stop a vicious hit-man who threatens their border town.

Director Gonzalo López-Gallego offers a gritty surprisingly violent series of graphic shenanigans with plenty of blood, gunshots, burns and severed limbs. It has the feel of similar to No County for Old Men (2007). Writer Nils Lyew delivers a modern take on the High Noon story with some smart dialogue.

López-Gallego's the on location shoot gives it a realistic backdrop. The characters are all shady with Lyew throwing in a few surprise moments, Brit Ian McShane continues to build on his Hollywood reputation. Patrick Wilson is on fine form and plays against his usual good guy persona, but it's John Leguizamo that steals the show as an imposing Mexican assassin. Notably Jim Belushi in a serious role as slimy Shep Diaz is notable.

Overall, worth checking out for its meandering story and gritty graphicness.

This is a Good movie (although we could spend days debating what 'good' actually means'). It's a modern western (which I usually hate). The concept is brilliant but it lacks a bit in the execution. One reason, perhaps is that the director also edited it (thank goodness he didn't write it!) so some parts are a little obscure.

It's low budget but with an excellent cast - Patrick Wilson, Ian McShane, John Leguizamo and Jim Belushi - and altogether very well done. And Juan Navazo does a great job with the music.

There are more than a few twists along the way, a few high action moments and a few 'if they knew that they wouldn't do this' and 'that would never happen' moments so your suspension of disbelief goes out the window. It's sloppy writing/direction but it happens in so many movies, so maybe we're immune to it. I call it the Commando effect after the Schwarzenegger movie (love him!) where at least 100K rounds are fired at him and not one hits. You get the idea, but maybe we're just a nation (world) of un-critical, non-thinking couch potato movie watchers. I dunno.

Anyway...

I struggle to find the 'point' of the title. 'The List' might have been a better/more apt title and more could have been made of that idea (you'll understand when/if you watch it). It sort of splits the theme of the movie in two which, perhaps, is why it's not as cohesive as it could be.

It drifts off in a direction you maybe didn't think of (which is good) but the writer, Nils Lyew, needs to work on theme and plot development.

The illegal arms trade between the USA and Mexico is the basis for the story in this crime-thriller. It involves world weary policemen, a shady local businessman, a professional killer and the dusty environs of a small town in the American South. It put me in mind of the recent Cold in July (2014) in its tone, feel and setting. Both films share quite well drawn characters and sudden scenes of strong violence. This one benefits quite a bit from a very fine cast, where we have Patrick Wilson and Ian McShane as a couple of police officers, both of whom have their own internal demons. McShane in particular seems to be having a lot of fun here and gives a very lively performance that is very good value. We also have John Leguizamo and James Belushi as the bad guys of the piece; the former doesn't perhaps get to do much more than exert an ominous physical presence (although he does it well), while Belushi is given his most interesting role in years in which he makes the most of.

The story-line is fairly complex at times, with a variety of characters interconnecting with each other in different ways. But I don't think the story is really the main selling point in this one. It does have some thrilling visceral moments for sure but this one ultimately is best enjoyed as a character-driven genre effort. A very solid and well-executed genre piece on the whole.