The Foreigner (Martin Campbell)

[TGM]

THE FOREIGNER

Director: Martin Campbell

imdb (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1615160/?ref_=nv_sr_1)

[Stay Puft]

It's a fun watch, but it does get pretty stupid (Chan walking in and out of a police raid like lolwut, cop running with bomb through airport screaming at the top of his lungs and tripping over a chair because of course, etc.). This is a good role for Chan, much better than stuff like New Police Story or Shinjuku Incident, and while the action is decent at best, it has a lean, sharp, rough and tumble quality that's a lot of fun to watch Chan navigate (comparisons to stuff like Taken seem apt). Watching Chan get hurt, and bleed, is surprisingly novel. Pierce Brosnan and Dermot Crowley are really good together, too. There's a great shot of the two of them arguing in Brosnan's farmhouse retreat, with the camera slowly pulling in closer and closer as the exchange gets more and more heated, to the point that the two are snarling at each other and basically eating the frame. Cliff Martinez also delivers a nice score, a measured and steady propulsion of synths and guitar riffs, giving the action an appropriate tempo that's more simmering than explosive.

Not great, but the perfect kind of Hollywood thriller to kill two hours with on a rainy Sunday afternoon.

[TGM]

I thought the movie tried to do a bit too much, but it was still fine for the most part.