Movie Review - 21 Bridges

Director: Brian Kirk
Genre: Drama/ Action/ Crime
Runtime: 99 minutes
Year: 2019
Starring: Chadwick Boseman, Sienna Miller, J.K. Simmons, Stephan James, Keith David, Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Siddig, Louis Cancelmi, Victoria Cartagena, Fary Carr, Morocco Omari, Chris Ghaffari

Description: An embattled NYPD detective (Chadwick Boseman) is thrust into a citywide manhunt for a pair of cop killers after uncovering a massive and unexpected conspiracy.

Review: If your father is a cop, you probably will be too. This is a fact in many cop movies, including “21 Bridges”. The father of detective Andre Davis was also a cop and was killed on he job. That didn’t scare Andre because he is determined to put every criminal behind bars.
He shows that in everything he does. When a robbery gone wrong and eight cops are killed, it’s up to Davis to catch the perpetrators. In order to make sure the killers don’t flee, he closes all the 21 bridges that connect the island Manhattan to the mainland. With the help of his colleagues and the FBI, he has four hours to catch the criminals. But nothing is as it seems.
“21 Bridges” is a fierce action film, with some moments that get you on the edge of the seat. The story isn’t very unique or original, but because of the fast pace and the shorter runtime the film entertains from start to finish. Chadwick Boseman, who we lost way too soon, is very strong in the lead.  It’s a solid action film with some nice twists.

Rating: 3,5 / 5

100 Movie Challenge 2014 - # 62: Battleship

Director: Peter Berg
Genre: Action/ Science Fiction
Runtime: 131 minutes
Year: 2012
Starring: Taylor Kitsch, Liam Neeson, Alexander Skarsgård, Brooklyn Decker, Rihanna

Description: A fleet of ships is forced to do battle with an armada of unknown origins in order to discover and thwart their destructive goals.

Review: For director Peter Berg making “Battleship” is a dream come true, because of the long love he has for the American navy. The movie, named after the well-known board game, is the perfect movie for him.
In “Battleship” the earth is under the attack of aliens. The only ones who can stop them are the marines. The main character is Alex Hopper, who joined the marines because of the lack of discipline. When they are under attack, Alex needs to take over the leader role after the captain dies.
Not really much is expected from the cast. There are no interesting dialogues or intriguing characters. They are standard marines, tough guys and very uninspiring. It’s still a mystery why Liam Neeson is in this movie, because he’s a brilliant actor. Taylor Kitsch fits his role perfectly, because it doesn’t involve a lot of depth. And Brooklyn Decker should stick to modelling, acting is not for her.
Like the characters, the movie is missing depth. It’s pure action, filled with explosions, fight scenes and more explosions. There is nothing wrong with that, it is an action movie, but it gets a bit old. Especially when you look at the runtime of the movie. Over two hours is just way too long. The macho act, bad dialogues, it’s just not entertaining. It’s sad that the movie isn’t surprising on any level.
“Battleship” is nothing more than a tough action flick that, besides the impressive explosions and special effects, doesn’t have a lot to offer. An action movie can succeed with just that, but “Battleship” fails. I prefer the board game.

Rating: 1/ 5