Plot:
Niels Arden Oplev, the acclaimed director of the original The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, makes his American theatrical debut with the new action thriller, DEAD MAN DOWN. Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace star as two strangers who are irresistibly drawn to one another by their mutual desire for revenge.
As stated in the plot above, Niels directed Noomi in the awesome original Dragon Tattoo films. While those were amazing beyond words, I had a harder time dealing with the believably this time around. Noomi is a stellar actress and Colin, well good ole Colin is my future husband. He'll get the memo, eventually. With two actors who can spill their guts on the acting table, I wanted a story-line that could tailor to these powerhouses. What we get is a paint by numbers mob story with all the bells and whistles, throw in some badda-bing Albanian style meat-heads and upchucked action. Maybe that was a tad harsh, but the point is; Niels should stick to what he's good at. Drama.
Colin pretty much makes the movie for me. From beginning to end, his character is mysterious, dark, conflicted and intriguing. You can guess what's coming from a mile away and while that aspect of the film was pretty predictable, it's enjoyable to watch him throw the thugs for a loop. The man has Irish fire in his eyes and you team this up with Noomi's touching vulnerability and what you're left, with these two alone, is enough to carry the film.
The plot twists are a bit odd and disjointed at times, with a slow moving pace that takes a while to get the audience where it wants you to be. Again, what was meant to draw you in has a tendency to make the eyes start rolling at the shear absurdity in parts. It's a bit silly here and there and overall needed some finer tuning with the script and editing in general but that's just really getting on the nit pick wagon. This is a ultimately a plot-heavy flick that's got some spastic sparks of hope, by the end you won't be shouting to the rafters over the awesomeness of the film, but you will be entertained enough to feel half way okay about the hefty box office ticket price.
Overall, catch the matinée or better yet wait for the dvd. Colin is smoking hot for sure, but if you're needing some Colin love check out Fright Night for better chills and thrills!
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