सोलो

When I saw this film, I didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the ridiculous plot, with bad acting, bad effects etc. it was probabaly worse than the butt ugly operation: Delta Force film series! I really smell a huge rip- off of good films with human/ robotic cyborgs eg. Terminator, Robocop, even the British TV show Red Dwarf. SOLO, aka Mario Van Peebles attempts to create an atmosphere that is spoilt by a commando team searching for SOLO and the scene where he throws the knife with the wire on it is pathetic, especially where he shimmies down the wire on his bare hands without any scratches, comedy, and definitely a bargain bin classic!

When I stumbled on SOLO on cable TV and realized Adrien Brody, one of my favorite actors, was third-billed in this Mario Van Peebles action flick, I decided to record it and check it out later for the heck of it. Turns out that was a good idea, since I got the most enjoyment out of this derivative SF/action/adventure when I simply gave up and fast-forwarded to Brody's scenes as Solo's endearingly scruffy creator Dr. Bill Stewart (sounds like the kind of bland name they'd give the hero in a 1950s creature feature -- told you SOLO was derivative! :-). Brody's one of the few performers in the film who actually says his lines with heart and conviction. When he was emoting opposite Van Peebles & Co., I wonder if Brody ever thought one day he'd be winning an Oscar for his starring turn in a Roman Polanski drama? :-) Adrien Brody fans, get the VCR ready; genre fans, try renting THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN, FRANKENSTEIN, THE TERMINATOR, or any of the other movies that SOLO rips off! :-)

Solo is an action movie about a Terminator-like android that is constructed and trained for the military. When a flaw is discovered, he is issued to be deprogrammed. Rather than face death, he chooses to flee into the jungles of Central America, where he takes refuge in a village. The military chases him into there, leading into a big action feast.

Mario Van Peebles does a decent performance the android. His movements and gestures look mechanical enough to get the job done. Actual scientific realism is abandoned in order to make a good action hero. And it works out; the action scenes aren't that spectacular, but they aren't all too bad either. The acting from the other characters is pretty bad, but I was not expecting anything too good. The special effects were decent as well.

Solo is decent as an action flick, but very forgettable. It lacks the substance that most movies possess. But if you just want to pass a couple hours without much thinking, this will get the job done.

I saw this free on TV and I still feel robbed. Mario Van Pebbles takes on a role that suits him - one that requires him to be wooden and slow. The story is so predictable and boring that 2 minutes in you now how it's going to go. The special effects are poor and the fight scenes have no real excitement.

I suppose if you're drunk then it's enjoyable, but really it is a waste of time and will leave you wondering what else you could have watched instead.

I just watched "Solo", and I don't think it's as bad as some reviewers have suggested. I'm not an action movie aficionado, but I found the movie an enjoyable, maybe mindless, hour-and-a-half. Mario van Peebles did his best to present himself as a cyborg with human tendencies. Barry Corbin is always enjoyable when in his Maurice Minnifield persona. Adrien Brody is wonderfully emotive as the scientist who cares about his creation. My only question, after watching the movie, is how Solo continues to survive without anyone to repair his power management chip.