Résurrection

We all him as the original Highlander and as Rayden in the first Mortal Kombat film, but Christopher Lambert has been around for awhile and has made a pretty impressive number of films (however the quality of many of them is not that impressive). Though many of his films lack something to be desired he has made some classics and he always brings in a solid "Lambert" performance and every now and then he brings in a performance that even surpasses that. Resurrection happens to be one of those performances.

The film itself is actually quite good and it is a bit of a shame that it did not get a wide release in theaters, but unfortunately Lambert just can't bring 'em in anymore (however he is a staple in the straight to video market). The film is a gritty detective story (so NO SWORDS guys) in the style of SEVEN and re-teams Lambert with his Highlander director, Russell Mulcahy. What is interesting here is that the film is co-written and conceived by Lambert, which I think is a first for him (though I'm not sure). What makes this significant is that, Lambert gets to branch out a little and play a character with a little more depth. Which I'm sure is something he's been longing to do since GREYSTOKE. Another interesting thing about the film is that it has genius/director David Cronenberg acting in a small part as a priest(That's what I'm waiting for, the Crononberg/Lambert, Director/Actor team-up).

The film is well shot and acted. It is suspenseful and even a little more thought provoking than the average suspense/mystery. It has a twist that I believe works pretty well.

Well in other words, the film is good. See it if you can.

While I sat through the first half-hour of "Resurrection", all I could think about was how closely it resembled "Se7en". It had the same basic theme: two cops investigating a series of brutal (and unsettlingly gory) murders that follow a common theme. I couldn't help but dismiss it as a pointless, direct-to-video rip-off, but soon I found myself strangely immersed.

"Resurrection" is better than I thought it would be. Once the story started rolling along, I was surprised at how well the movie was made. The suspense scenes are first-rate, the screenplay is smart and intriguing, and the acting is well above average. Though it's not a great movie, it's definitely well worth a watch if you're into the serial-killer subgenre. 7/10

A precinct already working hard fitting every cliché of these genres(psychological thriller, cop crime investigative flick) into just one 100-ish minute picture is hit by several brutal murders where limbs are missing, and Lambert(who lost his daughter... son, I'm sorry, she... he... looks... uhm, great... anyway, he died in one of those ridiculously contrived sequences that only happen in this type of movie, and that could, by the way, easily have been avoided by the introduction of common sense... oh, and if you think that will pay off, don't hold your breath, it's a cheap setup with minimal payoff) is brought in for his experience with decapitations and paint-by-numbers plots. You can figure out the basics of where this goes, everyone talks in Hollywood Dialog(and immediately after, dramatically turn to walk away, signifying how deeply they feel about how lazily this is supposed to conjure up emotion(with that said, this does make you care about some of what we see... though at least once it utterly betrays whatever confidence they might have earned for that)... did I mention that the villain has impeccable luck in where he hides is a regular occurrence(planning...does...not...cover... it)?), for every good performance there is at least two that are over the top, but still, this is a cool enough concept(I will not reveal what the endgame is... though I will say that I don't know where the bad guy got it from, nor what his motive was, and there wouldn't have been a film if it had been slightly different, and less random...), it keeps to a fast pace(you're not bored...it does help to MST3K it), there are chilling bits(helped by the impeccably done practical FX) and, directed by the usually dependably visually interesting Russell Mulcahy, it's nicely filmed and edited, except for when the cameraman gets zoom-happy in a desperate attempt to increase the tension(which is successfully built here and there), the tracking shots(typically doing a semicircle on a character, so they can remain in place and still do a powerful change of position) that are so fast and start and end so suddenly, I've nicknamed them Whiplash-pans, and it, gradually, using the "nausea-vision" filter excessively. The DVD comes with trailers for Elizabeth and Rounders. There is a lot of strong language, a moderate amount of bloody, gory, disturbing violence and a little full frontal nudity of both genders in this. I recommend this to big fans of this kind of thing, as it gets the job done and has solid production values. 6/10

Resurrection is intended to be a dark and creepy ninety minutes of serial killer heaven so probably the first thing that will jump to mind is 'that other movie'. You know the one I'm talking about. As such, its bound to suffer the wraith of armchair critics everywhere. However if you can keep your expectations in check - you'll find a decent flick that stands on its own. Don't be too quick to judge this one.

The dark foreboding imagery, religious overtones and a crazed killer has been done. Constantly dreary atmosphere, dark locales. Detective with a broken past, the second string banana who's the direct opposite of his partner. The twist you're not supposed to see coming. These are the conventions. That is formula, but its unfair to label Resurrection a rip-off. It features some good production values and there's no denying this is one of Christopher Lambert's better efforts. He's one of those guys that has slipped into B-movie obscurity like some actors do. In fact, this was a pleasant surprise.

Not saying Resurrection is the best thing ever, but all things considered - it's better than eighty percent of the dtv offerings I've picked up off video store shelves. The acting might falter at times, but there are also moments that rise above. A satisfying flick in its own right.

Given the opportunity of clambering to the top of the directorial heap on the back of the magnificent Highlander, Mr. Mulcahy instead managed to shoot down his own chances by unwisely having any association at all with the not-quite-so-well-received sequel. Nevertheless, Resurrection, while not exactly a triple-A title, shows that the old dog's still got a few tricks up his sleeve - even if they are being deployed on straight-to-TV efforts these days.

With old chum Chris Lambert (a man equally cursed in his career choices, and looking very old all of a sudden) on board, the scene is set for another shameless reworking of Seven - which might be an obvious comment to make, but that doesn't make it any less true. While the deadly sins are replaced with the names of apostles, the relentless rain, gloom and gritty gore are still there in force, and the plot's just as threadbare.

But! That still doesn't make it a bad film, as such. It's decently performed and nicely shot, with a few nifty camera tricks thrown in to break up the free-roaming NYPD Blue feel of the general proceedings, and there are one or two genuinely effective twists encountered along the way (with some glaringly obvious ones to balance them out, unfortunately).

So it's worth catching, as long as you're not expecting mould-breaking brilliance. One of Lambert's better films, certainly, and an example of the sort of high production values he should be aiming for. So sit back and enjoy... all in all, it's better than you might expect.