Allagash

They are getting old, the supernovas that held our nerves back in the 70's and 80's. they do of course need butter on the bread too, so why not make another film in the glory of ageing, before the stars fades out to oblivion, though tom berenger will survive in the memory of 3 generations to come, he has had his glory moments....and his caracterisation effort in blood and money isnt a lowdown at all.

hes a hunter, searching maine for deers, till he takes a devastating blow of shooting a fur coated .....female, with a fortune of money in her baggage. , then the human hunt is on, with all his might and blood clothing cough of vanishing physical condition fading fast due to old age. no more i shall tell, just say its intense, but very very slow.

what makes me drool is the scripted story, and the choice of support cast to this film.its not at all good. then comes the score, wich can tell if its a good or bad movie. is it a synth score, well its a cheap and most surtainly a bad flick.

so mr. berenger, the grumpy old man remembers you best from lurking in the viatnamese jungel, so ending the show in the state of maine remaines to see if it was a success or not. its a small recommend, ive seen worse, and ive seen better features.

After seeing previous recent Berenger films I was beginning to think he had lost a bit of his Platoon sparkle but after watching this I can still say there is life in the old dog yet.

The film is your basic casino heist and search for for the cash in the winter mountains of Allagash but what makes this rise above the usual drivel is Berengers performance. Now either he is old , weak and frail in reality or he portrayed the role with perfection. You almost feel every step he takes, every wheeze that comes out of his mouth as he slowly and lugubriously makes his way through the carnage and you really feel for the character, I was egging him on; you just want the pace to move faster but it does not and that is its strength not its weakness as some other reviewers have pointed out. It feels like you the viewer are walking through molasses with him and that is a great achievement for any actor. The movie may be too slow for a lot of the crash, bang, wallop brigade but stick with it as it pulls no punches.

Stir in some zero mercy / zero compromise action which is rather unexpected in these days of political correctness and the despatch of the bad guys is carried off with Platoon-like viciousness which adds to the movies allure, it does not have the usual Hollywood happy ending which is always a bonus and gives the viewer a deft little twist at the end which I always like to see.

It is not going to win any oscars but it does prove that Berenger is still a force to be reckoned with and it gets a solid 6.5/10 from me as I thoroughly enjoyed it and so should you if you stick with it to the end.

Underused Throughout His Film Career, Berenger is Still Willing to Step-Up and Brave the Harsh Shoot During a Winter in Maine.

He Carries this Modest Thriller Single-Handedly Disposing of Four Robbers and Murderers.

It's a Not-Bad Character Study with the Weather-Beaten Face and Body of the 71-Year-Old Thespian.

His Character is Next-to-Death Battling Lung-Cancer, Alcoholism, and Devastating Guilt of Killing His Daughter in a Drunk-Driving Accident.

He Fights His Demons as well as the Bad-Guys with Ex-Marine Gravitas.

Worth a Watch for Berenger's Performance and a Good Cat-and-Mouse Game within the Snow-Covered Mountains.

It starts slow, but reasonably. Yet once the 'action' starts, all logic goes out the window. It's like the filmmakers decided to re-write the script once they got on location and the cold froze their brains.

Was it written by a bunch of high schoolers? The amount of stupid, unnatural, forced and illogical steps the characters take is an insult to the audience and all who are in it. Particularly our old man Tom. And he does seem very old. He should have skipped the trip, driven home and drank a cup of soup.

Actually this boring, lame movie rips off a far better film with it's plot twisting act, being The Aura from 2005. Watch that instead. Even if they went on location without a script they could have come up with something more realistic. You have to blame the director for sticking to the script. The only redeeming quality is the location. And the photography. 5 is generous. Lame as a dementia ridden chipmunk with frostbite.

Yeah, I know what you thought when you checked the title. "Another Berenger sell-out." How I loved to hate him in Platoon - he is, after Gregory Peck, the greatest living Ahab (as of this writing). So, for this film... you will be pleasantly surprised.

Mr. Berenger (Jim Reed) actually gets to carry the bulk of the movie! That's right, you only get the glammy sell-out corn near the end, and even then only for a few scenes (essentially, wherever the dialog is overpowered by the f-bomb - I'm no prude, but - come on - get a thesaurus!).

So, you actually get Mr. Berenger at an advanced age playing a somewhat suitable character. While I believe the role is still perhaps ten years ago for most actors, Mr. Berenger plays it eloquently (with just the proper count of sighs, groans, and moans - take this from an old guy). I believe him, and I see echoes of Sgt. Barnes in his demeanor.

If the powers-that-be of this film had allowed Mr. Berenger to play it straight, in character, to the end, they might have had an "art film" on their hands. Such a shame.

Still. Bravo, Maestro. Bravo.

-S