Pawn

Pawn. Pawn is the reason why I watch too many boring or just plain bad movies (or start watching), because out of every 20 bad movies there is one, just one, as awesome as this one. It comes at you as a freight train, just wrecking everything in front of it and it keeps going 'till it hits the end. Nerve-wrecking and incredibly intense, the thing that blew me away was the script with its twists and turns. And these were clever and well thought out twists and turns, worthy of a much bigger budget. Although I wouldn't change a thing in Pawn, the cast was phenomenal, a compliment of experienced and rugged actors who know how to do what the directors asks and when to do it. Production values were also great, so you will have a feeling that you're watching some big block buster.

Nick is a car thief who just got out of prison, determined to change his life, for his and his families sake. His wife is pregnant, and this is the time to man up and take some responsibility. He goes to a local diner, not knowing what will happen in just a few minutes. A band of criminals led by the ruthless and charismatic Derrick, storm the diner while Nick was in the bathroom. Soon they round up all the guests, all but one who's hiding in the bathroom. At the same time Will, a policeman stops his car in front of the diner and lights up a smoke. Then all hell breaks loose...

Used to Michael Chiklis as Detective Vic Mackey, it was a bit strange to hear him talk with an English accent, but as the wise hooker once said it is cute. The rest of the characters were well developed and with excellent and believable motives for their actions. There was nothing that was sacrificed to drive the story forward, and this is a very rare thing, although the very end was just a tiny bit rushed or it seemed that way because of all the excitement that happened earlier. Just at the time when you think that you know what's going on, and who is who another twists punches you in the gut. This freight train stops for no one.

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This can be heavy going at times. The complexity of who is and who isn't in on the scheme becomes a bit laborious and detracts from the tension. Although it does matter to be intriguing enough to enjoy as things move along with an economy of events. There are enough twists and turns to keep one interested as to who is involved but it is really overwritten.

That is to say that a few of the Characters motives have little time in this short Movie to play out and completely compose the story. All of the Acting is acceptable and right up to the end it is a rather tense situation, as most hostage Movies strive. It is just a little too full of itself to be fulfilling.

It's a pretty good nail-biter, but overall fails to nail down a completely satisfying wrap up as things get wild and quite muddled. This kind of stuff works much better on the page than on the screen. There have been a lot of Detective Fiction from the likes of Raymond Chandler to prove this time and again. This just tries to be a little too clever for a little Movie.

Pawn showcases the talents of the cast in this ensemble crime hostage thriller. The plot is a short term one but the film makes it work by analyzing every single detail, so I dare you to find a plot hole. With an over average script that contains a scene of really smart symbolism, the actors can not really mess it up. Action wise the film does not shy away, probably due to the fact of the directors background in being a cinematographer for the Saw films. The film shows a flashback to the backstory of why he was doing. Then the movie shifts and becomes a personal vendetta for Sean Faris to recover his pregnant wife from the mysterious captor, Ray Liotta, and get the hell out of the diner without dying. Throughout the movie, we never even quite know who he is, and it seems a bit random. Although the film does because quite clear towards the end, as it is an entertaining watch.

Pawn, is a surprisingly grisly movie that deserves a top ranking with straight to video releases. The performances aren't as terrible as most of these types of films consist of and you really get invested into the characters. For such a film, it's screenplay isn't as full with stale or artificial lines and it actually embodies it's characters. On paper the plot seems extremely stale/generic but with it's execution of a fresh style and simplicity it ends up to transform. Whitaker and Liota's role are really minor roles but it's such a treat to see them in a film like this. The plot is a short term one but the film makes it work by analyzing every single detail, so I dare you to find a plot hole. With an over average script that contains a scene of really smart symbolism, the actors can not really mess it up. Action wise the film does not shy away, probably due to the fact of the directors background in being a cinematographer for the Saw films. For a crime/robbery flick it isn't as brainless as you could have been led to believe and it really captures the scene in a full scale. Overall, the film is an acceptable straight to video release that contains sudden twists, fresh plot, and great character development

But unfortunately as things unravel, the movie loses its touch. There are quite a few good actors in it (Chiklis, Reed to name a few) and they're trying their best. For a low budget movie this is fairly well shot too. Of course it's almost entirely one location (with a few exceptions) and you'll either like that or not.

For a low budget movie, it's always better to have a few, but interesting locations. So that's a positive side aspect, until you realize there could be more to it. The story, especially towards the end, loses its drive and motivation a bit and gets a little too tricky for its own good. Sometimes simpler is better, if well thought trough ...