Tokarev

I was hoping for some good old classic criminals-messing-with-the-wrong-guy rather violent action movie when I sat down to watch this one. I was indeed expecting it to be a B-movie but being a B-movie does not necessarily make it a bad movie. Well I was right about it being a B-movie and it was indeed rather violent but for the rest it did not turn out to be exactly what I hoped for.

Paul and his buddies does indeed start to crack down on the less desirable elements of society. This they do using the well-known strategy of applying a healthy dose of violence and if that does not work then you use more violence. In general the movie starts off fairly well but as we ride along it starts to degenerate into silly outbreaks of rage. I know the movie is called Rage (as well as Tokarev) but I was expecting the rage to be directed towards the bad guys and not just senseless shouting into the air. The further we go the more it degenerates. There is the classical cops-who-intervene-and-let-the-bad-guys-get-away stuff. Very annoying. The stupid screw-up of Danny and Paul's way of handling it was also a bit of a downer.

Still, the movie was not all that bad until we reached the end. Well, the end does have a twist to it that has to be said. It also had to be said that I did not like it at all. Even if I could have gotten over the twist itself, the actions of Paul afterwards and the final scenes really sunk the movie for me.

Nicolas Cage did not do a bad performance but, as far as I am concerned, he was given a less than stellar script to work with. Technically I would say that this was on the upper half of the scale for B-movies but the story, especially the ending, was not my cup of tea.

Nic Cage is a good actor. Ethan Hawke once said he brought back the character actor, the man who did not focus on making his characters as 'real' as possible, but instead focused on how that character can be used to entertain, shock and intrigue the viewing audience. Nic Cage is a man who isn't afraid to jump the shark a million times and 34 years into his career I would say a million is about correct.

His latest film is Tokarev and its pretty average if i'm honest. After the very good 'Joe' and after Cage saying he would focus on more introverted roles, roles that take thought and commitment instead of a lazy performance for a paycheck (cough, Ghost Rider - Spirit Of Vengeance, cough), I knew he would take on a role along these lines and I don't blame him, the film does certainly have a few things going for it and Cage turns in an above average performance here, there's quite a few moments where he really shines and a few where he doesn't but he's never down right terrible which, considering his good to bad film ration the past 10 years, he should be given a medal for that.

I would recommend you give it a watch, its again pretty average but there are 3 or 4 scenes that surprised me and showed Nic Cage is truly back and he should be watched for the next few years. I think we are going to see a lot of good things from Rage Cage very soon.

"No child should have to pay for their father's sins." Paul Maguire (Cage) lived a life of crime and violence but has since reformed and is straight. He is doing everything he can to make a life free of violence and his past and just raise his daughter the right way. One night when he is out he is told that there was a break-in in his house and his daughter was taken. The police begin to investigate but to Paul they aren't doing enough, so he takes it upon himself to find who did this and make them pay. It's no surprise by now that you know how I feel about Nicolas Cage. I do have to say though that this is one of the better ones he has come out with lately (for me at least). I'm not exactly sure why I think this was a good one because the movie was a little generic and the idea has been redone a million times. There are some twists in this to make it seem fresh and they do work but again this is nothing all that original. It could be because of my dislike for Cage and my very low expectations for this but it was better then I expected it to be. The fact that it's so overdone makes it hard to review but I will say that if you are a fan of Nicolas Cage you will probably enjoy this more then me. Overall, generic but had a few twists to keep it interesting enough to keep you watching. I give this a B-.

In my effort to see as many films of last years as I can, I come across a typical revenge film that is indicative of a Euripides tragedy. Reason giving was to passion as the protagonist attempts to avenge the death of his daughter.

At the end, one thinks of Karma at work. The sins of the past being balanced in the future.

But is is those sins that cause me to think throughout this movie. I see an Irish Catholic boy in Paul (Nicolas Cage) who presumably confessed his sins and received absolution, and who then went on to perform great works to put that sinful life behind him.

But, I also see the stain of those sins remaining in his heart and soul. They never truly go away, and he reverts to his previous character and commits even greater sins as his passions consume him.

Passion overcomes reason and causes Paul to reject those who love him, and to hurt his friends as well as his enemies.

The sins of the father are visited upon the son, or in this case upon the daughter, played by Aubrey Peeples of Lake Mary, Florida, and a famed Sharknado actor.

Nick Cage has made some good movies, some mediocre movies and some bad movies; Tokarev is the worst. A trite, improbable plot, terrible directing, awful music and inane car chases. I kept hoping it would get better, but though hope may spring eternal, this film dashed all hope. At the end, I presume this was some sort of money laundering exercise for a criminal gang. You know, take a dog's breakfast of a script, use a major star,pay cash everywhere and sell the rights for clean money.

There is nothing to recommend this film. All the acting is sub-par. Not once is there an ounce of emotion created that would reach the audience. To the criminals who made this film I say, okay wash the money, but find a better film. It may be a crime to laundry money, but the real crime is making such a bad film