This film tells the story of Axe, nicknamed Axe. He was once part of a group of mercenaries. During one of the operations, he realized that it was time to quit.
Standard scenario. We've seen this more than once or twice. Nothing fundamentally new creators of this picture offer us. And that's a huge minus of the picture. Because compared to previous movies, Seagal doesn't throw himself into a fight every 10 minutes. No, only by chance he got into history, which simply could not but get into.
The first part of the film is drama. This is the story of a man who left bloody affairs, settled in the Asian hinterland and selflessly helps people. During the first hour of the film, we are shown only three short battle scenes, of which one is indicative, one instructive, and another is necessary. In the first part of the film, the filmmakers show us a new Stephen. A bunch of wise phrases, a mountain of instructive actions – he plays a very great changed person who is trying to atone for the mistakes of the past.
The first part of the film was a bit boring. For I was waiting for the thrash that filled his previous films. But things went differently. I thought maybe there will be no fights or shootings. But what about Steven Seagal?
And here begins the second part of the film. There is trouble - and besides the former soldier, there is no one to help the villagers. The old squad of mercenaries hastily assembles (and this is also clichéd, because I was waiting for this after the first shots of the film). The action itself comes only 10-15 minutes before the end of the film, but this is already a fat minus. I waited, waited for a big fight at the end. And after all, everything was for this - a charismatic squad, notorious scoundrels, the scene, the Seagal itself. But everything turned out easier than I expected, but I will not spoil about this. It just took so long to get serious, and it ended so quickly.
Directly about Steven Seagal. He’s the one responsible for watching this movie. His role surprised me a little. I won’t say he didn’t do the role well, but in some scenes, he used some very sophisticated phrases that elicited more laughter than respect. He had such a serious face, just impenetrable. Probably, during the shooting a lot of takes were done during these conversations, they laughed at themselves. But still not to notice that he still remains a great professional.
I also want to note that the role of one of the mercenaries in the film was played by Sergei Badyuk. For reference, this is the same Vacula from the trilogy Gogol. And without this quite often in our cinema began to appear Sergey. I didn’t like his character Hollywood at all. What kind of mercenary is he? Besides, with this beard, he only plays with all sorts of Vaculas. How did he end up in an Asian-American movie? For what merits?
At the end of the review, I declare that the film is not even bad, rather I even liked it. I was just waiting for a little different, and I was a little disappointed. A calm dramatic action movie, which is quite possible with the second half to watch. Fans Sigala I would advise you to pay attention to the new film.
Once Steven Seagal was one of the most promising actors of the Hollywood action movie, because he tried not only to destroy his opponent with a single gun in his hands, but also paid special attention to the problems of society that need to be solved. The actor organized several schools for the children, where they taught martial arts, was a frequent guest of various conferences to preserve the delicate natural balance on Earth and at the same time starred in box office films that thundered throughout the 90s. It seemed that the new century will meet Seagal with open arms, as he was a favorite of the public even though his dramatic talent left much to be desired, but after the film 'Through wounds' Andrzej Bartkowiak, filmed in a large studio and with a decent budget, began the long agony of Seagal, which lasted at least two decades. Of course, the changing trends of big cinema were reflected in other cult actors of the genre. Moreover, even Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger experienced incredibly difficult times, but it was Seagal who fell so loudly that they talked about it for an extremely long time and were surprised by this fact, as if some universal catastrophe. Problems with the mafia, religious throwing, family disagreements led Seagal to a list of endless monotonous films that were not much different from each other. And such crafts as ' Wear', despite certain advantages, are unable to pull the immersive and tired actor out of the quagmire, where he was driven by his own reckless actions and inability to adapt to the wishes of the audience.
Directly the plot of the film introduces us to the former mercenary Ax, who is also known in some circles as ' Axe' (Segal). In the past, the hero was a lot of dark spots, he did not do the most pleasant things, but he chose his own path, which means that everything that was in his past will remain with him forever. Having managed to retire from active business, Axe felt that it was time to engage in his soul, as well as the atonement of sins, from which he abandoned civilization and returned to a remote Asian village where no one could find him. Having laid down his weapons in a distant closet, Axe took up the most mundane things, began to live the life of a completely repentant and at the same time wise man who will never refuse help to those in need. Locals began to treat the hero with respect, although they did not hide the slight fear due to the fact that he is clearly not as simple as it may seem. But one day in this green paradise for lost souls comes a misfortune that cannot be dealt with by philosophical speeches. Armed to the teeth bandits are going to commit real terror for the village, and only Axe is able to prevent them. Only to begin with, he needs to assemble a team of old comrades and remember his fighting youth with them. So in addition to the singing of birds and the rustling of leaves in the jungle, a real fireworks firework will begin, which, unfortunately, we have seen more than once, which means that it will not hit us with something surprising.
Stephen Seagal was directly responsible for the script of the film, and therefore it is he who should be blamed for the slowness of the narrative and an attempt to play drama where it does not fit at all. Having fairly recovered at the waist, letting go of his beard and wearing his trademark glasses, Seagal decided to take a little break from the old fights and focused on conversations that did not require much effort from him and at the same time he could show himself as a thoughtful, prudent master who gives practical advice and looks at the horizon with a dreary look. But the fact that the years did not go to the benefit of Seagal as a dramatic actor, all his attempts to act out something special do not lead to anything. I do not dispute that in some places he looks quite interesting and you can believe that Seagal may well be a selfless sensei, but he does not manage to diversify his emotional potential, and when for half the films we see essentially the same thing, it cannot but disappoint. Still, Seagal never managed to play special roles beyond his role. And made in ' Depreciation' the attempt once again tells us that his times are somewhere out there, in ' The Siege', ' Death in Contrary' and other films where Stephen talks less and does more. Of course, he could return to his former height, but first it is critical for him to put himself in proper physical shape, but in his old age and understanding the dire situation in his career, this is impossible.
If Stephen Seagal was responsible for the attempt to play drama and monotonous philosophical conversations in ' Wear ', then the film as a whole and the action was already headed by director Mathieu Weschler, who cannot boast of extensive filmography and at the same time due experience. The main merit of Weschler in ' Wear' can be called a good frame construction, as well as agreement with the operator, who filmed for us all the splendor of the wonderful Asian nature. When the meager fighting begins, then there is nothing to watch on the screen at all, because the film clearly had a small budget, and the choreography of tense scenes was by no means engaged in the man from ' Reida' Fights involving Steven Seagal do not strike at all, the director does not command his actor, but tacitly allows him to do what he has been doing on the set for a decade, and the colleagues of the main star of this event are somewhere on the side and try not to interfere once again, allowing Weschler to fully pay some debt to old Segal. Had the director had his own special vision, he could well have pacified his main star, but instead he reduced the production to a strange mediocrity, crossing a faded action and unexpressive drama, which is completely unacceptable.
In the end, I want to say that ' Wear & #39; may not be the worst film in Steven Seagal’s career, but the dramatic pretentiousness did not find its adequate reflection, since everyone should do their own thing and not try to get where they are not worth. So ' Wear ' can only please loyal fans of Seagal, who are ready for him to make any sacrifice. Other viewers should look for other entertainment.
Steven Seagal's been bad lately. Even Van Damme tries at least occasionally to get into some one-off movie, which is not a pity to watch once, not to mention Willis, Stallone who do not consider themselves released (almost) players, and on the big screen still trying to light up. Steve also stars in the same type, optional "benches" on which sometimes even half an hour is ashamed to spend. However, the new film promised to be completely different, and, even according to the creators, "the best in the last 20 (!!) years." Yes, and Seagal is a screenwriter, come on.
Plot. Well, what can I say? I haven't seen much of the story, to be honest. Well, really, after the middle of the film I lost the thread and did not even try to tie the ends, because, in fact, it was immediately clear that the essence of the film is not in this. Yes, it is, but there is a film with Dolph “Skintrade” (I don’t remember how it was translated by our localizers), not such an old film, while there the guys really left not only for the production, but also for the plot. They decided not to get dirty, and I will not.
Director. Oh, I want to praise you as a director. I don’t know who this person is, but I am grateful to him, because for the budget of the average film for the DVD, he was able to make a normal picture, show the story of the characters, correctly dispose of the timekeeping. And the choreography of fights is something. No, honestly, they are short, but I have not seen such a production in a long time. It looks ecstatic, but for this level it is a class!
Operational work. 11 out of 10. I’d just come to Hollywood and stick every cameraman in the screen while watching this movie, so that they would understand how bad the “professionals” of this case are at the moment, that even a noname film could concentrate the picture better than they are. Fights, shootings, angles just chi-kar-ne-shi-e! No words, just to describe how happy my eyes were.
Music. Creates the atmosphere of the film. Not to say that it is the most important, but a very good component. I cannot praise very much, because in the category “B” they rarely give this one of the main roles (the films “Baby on Drive” and “Explosive Blonde” to help understand when the music is in the first role). Same here. Atmospheric, but not always atmospheric.
Actors. Seagal started playing. A little, but I did. And also gives a bonus to the image of Mason Storm for a couple of seconds. The actor who played his brother played well, in the best traditions of the heroes of Chinese militants. The rest of the extras, honestly, zero characters, no desire to follow them do not cause.
Installation. A separate point, because I was upset. It seems that in a hurry, in order to get into the desired format, at the end of the film well very much cut: all scenes are torn, the plot does not go smoothly, you lose the thread of events even sometimes. And the gunman suffered as well. Of course, this is not the case.
The creators made a really good gift to fans of the creativity of Steven Seagal. It was like before, but somehow they tried better. They can when they can. In general, it is worth watching all his fans necessarily, especially if you are tired of the thrash that has been going on for the last 5 years. The rest, well, I don’t know, I’m not sure what will hook, because it really needs to be fanatic, I think. If you don’t have anything to look at, it will be fine for the evening.
Best movie with Seagal in 20 years? Well, no, I guess. For 10, since The Guardian and Born to Win - yes. This is about their level. If you saw them and liked them, if not, then this one is worth missing. The new Niko is not worth waiting for.
More recently, the thought came to my mind - something Stephen not to hear - not to see. In recent years, he has made four films a year. And this is silence (Chinese seller does not count). And this is like a thunder in the clear sky. I open the site and on the main page in the news section - The last mission with him on the poster. Not to say that I was delighted with his latest films, some frank nonsense, but from old memory I do not miss new products with his participation.
This film tells the story of Axe, nicknamed Axe. He was once part of a group of mercenaries. During one of the operations, he realized that it was time to quit.
Standard scenario. We've seen this more than once or twice. Nothing fundamentally new creators of this picture offer us. And that's a huge minus of the picture. Because compared to previous movies, Seagal doesn't throw himself into a fight every 10 minutes. No, only by chance he got into history, which simply could not but get into.
The first part of the film is drama. This is the story of a man who left bloody affairs, settled in the Asian hinterland and selflessly helps people. During the first hour of the film, we are shown only three short battle scenes, of which one is indicative, one is instructive, and another is necessary. In the first part of the film, the filmmakers show us the new Stephen. A bunch of wise phrases, a mountain of instructive actions - he plays a very great changed person who is trying to atone for the mistakes of the past.
The first part of the film was a bit boring. For I was waiting for the thrash that filled his previous films. But things went differently. I thought maybe there will be no fights or shootings. But what about Steven Seagal?
And here begins the second part of the film. There is trouble - and besides the former soldier, there is no one to help the villagers. The old squad of mercenaries hastily assembles (and this is also cliched, because I was waiting for this after the first shots of the film). The action itself comes only 10-15 minutes before the end of the film, but this is already a fat minus. I waited, waited for a big fight at the end. And everything was for this - a charismatic squad, notorious scoundrels, the scene, Seagal himself. But everything turned out easier than I expected, but I will not spoil about this. It just took so long to get serious, and it ended so quickly.
Directly about Steven Seagal. He’s the one responsible for watching this movie. His role surprised me a little. I won’t say he didn’t do the role well, but in some scenes, he used some very sophisticated phrases that elicited more laughter than respect. He had such a serious face, just impenetrable. Probably, during the shooting a lot of takes were done during these conversations, they laughed at themselves. But it is still impossible not to notice that he is still a great professional.
I also want to note that the role of one of the mercenaries in the film was played by Sergei Badyuk. For reference, this is the same Vacula from the trilogy Gogol. And without this quite often in our cinema began to appear Sergey. I didn’t like his character Hollywood at all. What kind of mercenary is he? Besides, with this beard, he only plays with all sorts of Vaculas. How did he end up in an Asian-American movie? For what merits?
At the end of the review, I declare that the film is not even bad, rather I even liked it. I was just waiting for a little different, and I was a little disappointed. A calm dramatic action movie, which is quite possible with the second half to watch. Fans of Seagal want to advise you to pay attention to the new film.
7 out of 10
P.S. I hope this film doesn’t become Steven’s last mission.