American Muscle

..is the reason why I gave this 1 out of 10. And that is quite fair as it's really the only attractive thing about the whole damn production. The movie was slow, very slow. The action lacked everything an actionscene needs. The effects were all computer generated including some very badly done muzzle flashes (even I can do better..) and very very amateur. And worst of all : The lead actor couldn't even act to save his own life. He just tries to look mean all the time and it just doesn't come across. There are occasional shots (not even scenes) where he comes off less bad. But I'm talking occasional seconds here and there. The director is either scared of this man as well or he's just a 12 year old kid who's just finished his school project. That's what most of this reminded me of. Give some dimwit a bag of money and a box of cameratricks and let him film the script his 8 year old brother wrote.

I started watching this knowing what to expect, hoping for some gratuitous violence, occasional ridiculous sexscene and downright cool crap. I was hoping for a grindhouse type production. Well. Hellride sucked, but it's a complete masterpiece compared to this turd. An absolute waste of time.

I have to agree with Maurice Grant's review.

The screenwriter knew exactly what he was writing and the director did a great job capturing the scenes, the faces - and well, other stuff. I truly got what I was looking for this evening while actually not expecting it. The movie is well cut too with perfect length, technically quite well done without pretending to be some kind of pseudo-70s movie. It's filmed in HD, it's clear, the colors are precise and great. I guess the director likes the work of his colleague from the TV show "Breaking Bad", while carrying it a bit farer in this movie.

I can't help myself but it felt like the whole crew had fun doing this movie, while they still kept bloody serious and honest about the genre. The actors might hate me for saying this but I've a heart for them. They did pretty well too, showing a honest performance and were playing well along.

There are bad bad movies, there are really terrible bad movies - and there are good "bad" movies. This one belongs to the last. Just hit the nail for my taste.

Grindhouse has become the cool thing to do ever since Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez made it popular again with their double feature Death Proof/Planet Terror. Those movies spawned a lot of ''homages'' throughout the years which have been deemed ''throwbacks'' to the exploitations of the 70's and 80's but most of the time just come across as stylized comedies. Some have managed to come close to capturing the movies of yesteryear and retain their essence but they're still essentially comedic homages more than anything, but brilliantly and respectfully done (Grindhouse, Hobo With A Shotgun, Dear God No, Black Dynamite), where as others have been very entertaining, stylish romps (Drive Angry), and others have just tried too hard and came up short (Bounty Killer, Machete Kills, Bitch Slap). All of these movies have screamed at us, ''Look At Me, I'm A Grindhouse Movie,'' I've found enjoyment in most of the modern, self-proclaimed, Neo-Grindhouse movies, even the ones that do come up short, but I've often craved something truly authentic. American Muscle does have an element of being a deliberate homage to the drive in movies from the golden era. It is very stylish, slightly comedic and written as a tribute, but what makes it more true to those movies is how unapologetic it is. There's no winking at the audience here. It's just a straight up balls to the wall action flick full of gratuitous sex, violence, drugs and cars. It is stylish but it's probably the grittiest of the modern Grindhouse features since Dear God No.

American Muscle is a revenge thriller about a man named John Falcon, who has just been released from prison. With vengeance in mind, he sets out to kill everyone who had a hand in sending him there and finding his wife, who happens to be a junkie. Along the way he has sex with every woman he encounters. Everyone he meets who he doesn't bone just gets added to the body count. Essentially, all this movie consists of is sex and violence with a few flashbacks of people doing drugs, having sex and committing acts of violence. There isn't much in the way of deep story or fleshed out characters. We know John's motives, why he's doing what he's doing and the rest is his violent rampage unfolding. Boyhood this is not, but it's one of the most fun movies you'll see this year provided you don't have high standards and you enjoy senseless sex and violence. If you don't love it your grandmother definitely will.

One of the better modern Grindhouse movies.

John Falcon (Nick Principe) is out for revenge/out for a kill. His muscle car and pump gun are ready. On the day he leaves prison, blood will be spilled. This is fun to watch. Didn't expect too much in the first place, was then surprised by the crew's obvious enthusiasm. Honest, low budget, hard hitting. Some superbly directed shots, some straight forward action. Some of the acting is better, some is worse. Altogether a good mix for a wild ride (some nude dance included). I wasn't too keen on Machete Kills (the second one) by Roberto Rodriguez, but this is the kind of Grindhouse I personally like. As this seems to be the director Ravi Dhar's debut, I guess there is more to come. I'll watch out for it.

Start with a hero who is big and strong, covered with tattoos and vicious looking, who kills without remorse and has a true cause: To save his wife from the clutches of his evil brother who betrayed him 10 years ago. Add in the trashy hot chicks and the resulting heedless adultery, the drugs and alcohol, the rampant killing of bad guys and a few mostly innocent folks as well, bikers (never forget the bikers), drug money and lots of guns..

And ta da, you have yourself a Mantasy. A compilation of all the animalistic, pointless behaviors associated with big, strong, dangerous looking men as they rage through the neighborhood being.. well, stereotypically manly. The idea is that men don't think. They react on instinct. Revenge, hate, rage, lust and delusion. It could be fun, but this time it wasn't.

In order to make this style of film really work, the hero (as it is entirely hero-centric) needs to be someone that the viewer can empathize with. If there is no empathy, there is no entertainment.

This hero is set up as a showpiece more than a character. I think the writers and director wanted to believe that he was the perfect manly character: with the perfect manly name, the right sized muscles, the tough looking exterior and tattoos, and doing all the right manly things like winning the fights, killing the bad guys, boppin all the ladies, fighting for justice, etc. But unfortunately all those shiny archetypes of the manly hero are tarnished when we add in all the little blemishes to his heroic luster: He cheats on his wife, he kills even mostly innocent people without remorse, he is clearly delusional on some level and irritatingly fatalistic, etc, etc. And we have a hero that you just don't feel inclined to love.

All in all, the film was simply just unsatisfying. The acting was not great, the plot development was handled as well as it could be for a plot that really makes little sense, and the camera work was only shaky when it really counted. It just didn't entertain, but instead skirted along in shallow waters, so to speak. It never achieved convincing depth, which is a shame because it tried too hard.