Sequestro no Espaço

I believe that the enjoyment of a movie is directly proportional among other to your beforehand expectations about it. So with that in mind, let me tell you about this movie; It has a completely unoriginal story, terrible special effects and acting that will never be considered, even in a slow movie year, Oscar wordy. In short it's an action / science fiction that should leave you empty.

Yet, it is not boring, quite the contrary. It has a very special 'Je ne sais quoi' to it. I so wanted to use that in a review for which I want to apologies to you.

I enjoyed it more than most films I have seen this year. Perplexed to explain what makes it unique without spoiling it for you and considering my first sentence, I will say after much reflection, seeing it with very low expectations would be the best. It will allow you from the start to get into the world the directors are painting for you, couple that with a possession of a twisted sense of humor and you will find a gem of a movie in there.

In short, for what it is, it is a gem.

In 2079, in Washington, the ex-CIA Operative Snow (Guy Pearce) is brutally interrogated, accused of treason against the United States. The chief of the secret service Scott Langral (Peter Stormare) believes that he shot the agent Frank in a hotel room.

Meanwhile, the idealistic daughter of the president of the USA, Emilie Warnock (Maggie Grace), is visiting MS One, a maximum security prison in outer space expecting to find evidences that the prisoners are actually guinea pigs of a huge corporation. When one of her bodyguards loses a hidden pistol for the dangerous prisoner Hydell (Joseph Gilgun), he subdues the staff in the central control room and releases the prisoners, including his brother Alex (Vincent Regan) that becomes the leader of the riot.

Now the veteran agent Harry Shaw (Lennie James) offers freedom to Snow if he succeeds in rescuing the president's daughter. But the idealistic Emilie does not want to leave MS-One without the hostages.

"Lockout" is a movie with a well known storyline and nothing new, but also highly entertaining. The story uses the idea of "Escape from New York" and "Escape from L.A" with "No Escape" ("Absolom") and other prison movies. The tough Snow is a cynical and selfish antihero visibly inspired in Snake Plissken and the stubborn Emilie has stupid attitudes, but at least is consistent. The haywire villain Hydell is funny. My vote is seven.

Title (Brazil): "Sequestro no Espaço" ("Abduction in the Space")

When I watched Lockout, I didn't even know it was from Luc Besson until I saw his name at the start of the movie. This got me excited remembering how I like his past films especially "The Fifth Element". Besson's films seem to have that unique polish and style that places them in a class between A and B movies. They always have some ludicrous scenes and effects included similar to B movies but they are definitely justified in the end by how much "Class A" fun and twists the overall experience it generates for the viewers. If we measure this movie on those aspects, Lockout is no different from Luc's other films although this one is special in a way that it brought back fond memories for people like me who were already actively seeing films like this back in the 80's and 90's. Lockout is a modern version of those films with some new concepts added from this era.

Some of the non-Besson films/TV series that Lockout reminded me of are Army of Darkness, Cowboy Bebop, Die Hard, Escape from New York, Fortress, Firefly / Serenity, Minority Report, and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo.

I can see that Lockout, like most of the other movies I previously specified, can also have a cult following. So I truly hope the current generation will like this movie enough to give it a chance to have a sequel. Sometimes, you just need to relax your mind and allow it just the right amount of activity to enjoy a fun cruise like this type of films can provide. More power to Mr. Besson!

The only reason I didn't rate this higher than 7 stars is a few scenes, especially the ending could have been done with more action. That being said if you don't enjoy this, you've either never seen a real action movie or are too high and might to take it for what it is. This is a homage to the old days, when action movies knew what they were and embraced it, those with knowledge of the old days should recognize most homages instantly. Guy Pearce was a good lead for this, was he perfect? No I could think of a few guys who could do the role but it worked. Pearce stars as Snow...a chain smoking, hard nosed , wise cracking ex-special agent with one chance to regain his freedom. The movie is worth watching for the banter alone, it's constant and it's funny. There are some very nice action scenes, I expect no less from a guy like Luc Besson. However my main complaints are from a lack of brutality, an R rated movie centering around a prison riot should have plenty of that. My other complaint is the most memorable villain in the movie didn't get a very memorable send off. Overall I've watched this twice now and will again, take it for what it is. A homage to the old school action heroes, in that sense the film is near perfect

I found this to be a great, fun, well-acted, funny, and "unique" take on the typical action films of our our past. I say "unique", because it is not, in any way, unique. I give that the setting is something new, but all in all, this movie pulls from great movies past, and in doing so, made off with a seasoned, enjoyable film.

Guy Pearce was flawless and oddly fresh as the standard "I don't care" action hero. The Snake Plisken-gone right character was the driving point of the whole film, and definitely the best part. Maggie Grace pulls off her best performance yet, even well above her LOST and Taken characterization, showing that a "Taken"-style damsel doesn't have to be in distress. The villains were all over the board in this film, with neither one taking complete center stage. All of them equally hold the necessary torch for the situation.

This is a story that has been told before, but in a new way that is fresh and fun. The acting makes this movie truly what it is, and with solid action, and excellent pace, I believe this subtle action film may be the best yet of the year (future films not comparable).