Beckman

First off only ignoramuses would think that this is Christian film, that's just asinine. This was an action movie center around a man seeking redemption, vengeance and a struggle with being someone of faith without hypocrisy or contradiction. So all you self righteous zealots go sell all your goods and give to the poor. Back to the movie, a bit too long get to the point but this was a Taken, John Wick and a Boondock Saints surrogate. Good time killer. 3 stars for the effort. BTW, William Baldwin sucks major ass as an actor.

To decide how to rate this movie, I was entertained to an average level. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. Most of the acting was on the cringe side, so beware of that. Felt like it was based on another movie that starred Keanu Reeves. If you have nothing better to do and want to waste an hour and 30 minutes, knock yourself out.

Well we just finished this movie after giggling at the trailer and imagining David A. R. White thinking himself a blockbuster action hero. Ooof.

The script was abysmal, the acting was sub-par, but the puffs of blood after every gunshot like they were done by the MS spray-paint effect was a nice touch.

Just get a different haircut already.

For those who like suspense and action movies, check this out for sure! There's plenty of movies like this that are just empty shoot em up, chase the bad guys, blah, blah, blah junk. This movie has the drama, action and suspense along with a good spiritual message. A must see for all!

BECKMAN is weird. It's weird in concept, and it's weird in execution. Not because of the filmmaking or anything, but because of precisely how...normal it all is. Unless you knew David A.R. White on-sight or were a Pure Flix obsessive (I'm sure they exist), nothing about this film would indicate that it's from the same people that brought you such classics as GOD'S NOT DEAD and GOD'S NOT DEAD 2: THE QUICKENING. By all measurable standards it just seems like another one of those DTV action flicks that, in this particular instance, apes JOHN WICK. Frankly I think that's kind of an achievement in and of itself, a Pure Flix movie that just seems like...a movie.

The story, of an hitman-turned-preacher (David A.R. White) struggling to escape his violent past after his adopted daughter is abducted by a monologue-loving cult leader (William Baldwin) and his mercenary army of assassins and human traffickers, isn't terribly original (obvious nods to TAKEN, JOHN WICK, and MAN ON FIRE abound), but those are fairly solid potboiler plots and they're effectively recreated here. The inescapable hand of evangelical Christianity that normally pervades Pure Flix's output is kept to minimum here, and the film's much better for it. Sure you could argue that its message of forgiveness and nonviolence is at odds with the unending stream of violence and mayhem, but then again this isn't a movie that you should think about too hard. The religious themes aren't any more pervasive than, say, MEAN STREETS; which might be Pure Flix's attempts at securing a more mainstream audience, but also could be a sign that they've learned the art of subtlety (I hope it's the latter).

Action, performances, cinematography, score, editing, directing. All of these things aren't really that much more than average, but I think when the bar's set so low that has to count for something. My brain still refuses to 100% accept David A.R. White as a gritty action hero but he does give a solid, if somewhat one-note, performance and is fairly believable in his plethora of set-pieces. William "No Not That" Baldwin, Jeff Fahey, and Burt Young (whom I'd hitherto thought had passed away years ago) are all tasked with little more than making glorified cameos, but they're all consummate professionals and Baldwin is at least an effective baddie. The rest of the supporting cast are likewise uniformly solid.

There's a pseudo-DIY quality to the low-budget filmmaking that's rather endearing. Clearly these people didn't have the same money or resources that Chad Stahelski and Co. have, but dammit if they don't try. The fights are well choreographed and staged (and surprisingly bloody in places), and director Gabriel Sabloff has a strong sense of style that helps elevate the otherwise unremarkable material in many places. It helps that Sabloff is no stranger to these things, a veteran of both low-budget action movies and Pure Flix dramas, he clearly knows how to stretch a low budget. His love of DSLRs and gimbals might take a little getting used to, but it never detracted from the viewing experience and actually gave the film a bit of a (possibly unintended) personal touch. Will Musser's score, with its clear overtures toward Vangelis and Jóhann Jóhannsson, is an effective mood setter and helps set the film out from the rest of the DTV crowd.