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Movie Review

All the Devil’s Men (2018)

Director: Matthew Hope

Writer: Matthew Hope (Screenplay)

Starring: Milo Gibson, William Fichtner, Milo Gibson, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Elliot Cowan, Joseph Millson, Yavor Baharov

 

Plot: A battle-scarred War on Terror bounty hunter is forced to go to London on a manhunt for a disavowed CIA operative, which leads him into a deadly running battle with a former military comrade and his private army.


Tagline – The World is a Battlefield

Runtime: 1 Hour 34 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers in the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Late Night Action 101

 

Story: All the Devil’s Men starts as we meet the bounty hunter team working for CIA agent Leigh (Hoeks), we have Collins (Gibson), Brennan (Fichtner) and new member Samuelson (Akinnagbe), whose latest job was a success, now in London they start to investigate the latest mission.

When the team gets set up Collins must lead the remaining members of the team in an operation around London which puts him against an old military brother Deighton (Millson).

 

Thoughts on All the Devil’s Men

 

Characters – Collins is the seal that has been working as a bounty hunter for the CIA, he has a dark past with missions he has completed and knows to trust the team around him, he won’t give up till the mission is complete. Leigh is the one that runs the operations, she puts the team together and tends to be their eyes in the sky, though she is willing to do anything to close the deal for the good of the country. Brennan is the older member of the team and the member that Collins has worked with the longest, he knows how the system operates and who to bring in when needing extra hands. Samuelson is the newest member of the team, he doesn’t want to be known as a bounty hunter more of a shadow warrior, he does following instructions well, but talks more than Collins wants him too.

PerformancesMilo Gibson as the leading action man is solid, he doesn’t have too much to do that is overly difficult, few driving, shooting and ducking scenes, no real emotional moment required. Sylvia Hoeks was fantastic in Blade Runner 2049, which is a disappointment here because we know how great she can be, it feels like this wasted her talent. William Fichtner is solid enough which is here to give the biggest name for the film and Gbenga Akinnagbe gets laughs for the film when needed.

StoryThe story follows CIA bounty hunters that are tracking down suspects in London over one night before a major deal goes down, which could see weapons being giving to the wrong hands. The story gives us a chance to see how the unit uses their skills to track and try to stay ahead while also showing the villains planning for what happens next. For an action film the story is very simple, it doesn’t have anything overly complicated when it comes to twists and can be watched without needing to give the full attention. This is a late-night action film story which is all we want at times.

ActionThe action gives us set-up location for confrontations with bullets flying around, the fights are simple, though not shot the best with too many cuts. With the bang, bang and bodies falling it is easy to watch.

SettingsWe are mostly set in and around London at night, which is fine, we know London can be busy and full of deals going on, we do seem to stay on the outside of everything going on though.


Scene of the Movie –
Plane chase.

That Moment That Annoyed Me It does waste Sylvia Hoeks full talents.

Final ThoughtsThis is good for a late-night action fans, it keeps everything very simple and could easily be put in the lists of any straight to DVD Seagal or Van Damme movies.

 

Overall: Simple actions film.

Rating

 

 

Categories
Movie Review

ABC Film Challenge – Comedy – W – War Dogs (2016)

Director: Todd Phillips

Writer: Stephen Chin, Todd Phillips, Jason Smilovic (Screenplay) Guy Lawson (Article)

Starring: Miles Teller, Jonah Hill, Ana de Armas

 

Plot: Loosely based on the true story of two young men, David Packouz and Efraim Diveroli, who won a three hundred million dollar contract from the Pentagon to arm America’s allies in Afghanistan.


Tagline – Money, corruption and the American dream

Runtime: 1 Hour 54 Minutes

 

There may be spoilers the rest of the review

 

Verdict: Enjoyable Crime Comedy

 

Story: War Dogs starts as we follow David Packouz’s (Teller) story, he was a massage therapist and lost his money in a bad investment, with his girlfriend Iz (Armas) pregnant, he is left with little ideas for money until his old friend Efraim (Hill) returns to town. Efraim is an arms dealer that has been finding a way to sell weapons in the war.

We follow the two young men as they find a way to get one of the biggest deals done, but is this going to take a toll on their personal lives.

 

Thoughts on War Dogs

 

Characters – David is a young man, he works hard with his massage therapist job while trying to make a business of his own. When this goes wrong he is saved by his old childhood friend that introduces him to the world of arms dealing, he is telling the story to us too. Efraim is the old school friend of David’s that brings him in as a partner, showing him the ropes and just how much money could be getting made in this industry. He has a reputation that doesn’t make him one to trust at the times, which could ruin deals and friendships.

PerformancesMiles Teller and Jonah Hill are both great in these roles, they have great chemistry between them and it shows in their moments together and gives them both the time in solo scenes to be their own characters.

StoryThe story shows the rise of two unlikely young men that became one of the biggest international arms dealers in recent American history and how the greed can take over even the strongest friendships. We are told this story through one of the two men involved, so we do only get to see their own point of view of everything, when you feel there might be more to certain moments in the film. This is an easy to watch film and plays out just like Lord of War which does feel slightly more entertaining though.

Comedy/Crime/WarThe comedy comes mostly from the idea of this feeling completely out of place watching these young men enter this world of crime during the war time of selling weapons.

SettingsThe settings show how the characters go from comfortable America to countries with less money that offer these men a chance of something massive, this is good for the clash of cultures idea.


Scene of the Movie –
The first deal.

That Moment That Annoyed Me Only seeing it from one point of view.

Final ThoughtsThis is a good Todd Phillips style comedy that we all know how his style comes through, it does have good moments throughout and strong performances too.

 

Overall: Good crime comedy well worth watching.

Rating