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.

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.

"Guns Akimbo" or, in other words, Jason Lei Howden's millennial, culturally relevant in 2019 spiritual relative of "Crank". Jokes (and Howden's twitter mess) aside, "Guns Akimbo" provides some real fun, mostly in terms of action and other visual treats, with Radcliffe and Weaving adding bonus points. Other than that, it's flawed enough.

"Guns Akimbo" introduces us to a world much like ours plus "Schism", which we, thankfully, don't have as of yet. The hero, or, in simple terms, a loser (un)intentionally steps on Schism's admin's toes and now has been pitted against the champion Nix with revolvers bolted to his hands. What follows is nearly 90 minutes of action - chases, gunfights, racing, explosions and so on and so forth. It's undeniably entertaining visually and is supported by creative and dynamic camerawork, vivid and explosive color grading and crafty editing that's reaching over the line of overkill at times. Rest assured that violence gets provided in satisfactory amounts. There's so much action that compensates for the lack of some other elements & eventually "Guns Akimbo" can turn out mind-numbing for some. Radcliffe and Weaving are definitely having fun, offer up playful performances and some hit&miss one-liners. The comedy in "Guns Akimbo" is indeed of the hit&miss nature, perhaps maybe even more on the miss side. Jason Lei Howden has tried to insert social commentary, talk about our generation's thirst for blood and utter necessity to feel better at all times, the awful mess that internet is, but that all finishes its run in like the first 1/3 of the movie. Point being, "Guns Akimbo" essence and point is mostly just high entertainment value. And it's good in those terms. Besides our two shining leads, Ned Dennehy also adds some fun, being maybe a little too comicky, but eccentric and pleasantly insane villain.

"Guns Akimbo" is a top tier action flick, top notch indie eye candy & an absolute blast for the hero of the day, Daniel Radcliffe. Past all that, it's just an okay movie. If you need some fast-paced, no-brakes, easy-on-the-brain fun, this goes out as recommendation especially for You. My rating: 7/10.

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.

If you loved the classic, Crank, give this a go. Damn, now I've over-hyped it.

Guns Akimbo is a cheap-looking, cheesy, pop-culture-quoting, ridiculously over-the-top relentless assault in the senses and that's what makes it so fun (or not, if you're one of the viewers who gave the film 2 stars).