This Review Reveals Minor Details About the Plot.
Cleaning Up the Town
Plot Overview
After seeing action in Vietnam, Tiano
(Jean-Claude Van Damme) went into private security in civilian
life doing armed transport of dirty money. He established
himself in the family-friendly town of St. Jude where he stood up to gang violence,
but they got to his son anyway and Tiano ended up in prison.
There he took to mentoring his Oriental cell mate Mr. Hong (Cung Le)
who'd been busted doing a good Samaritan bit and didn't know the ropes.
Hong is a natural at martial arts and practices rigorously. When he's
released he goes to St. Jude at Tiano's
behest to restore it to a peaceful place to raise a family.
Hong makes waves with the three gangs
operating thereabouts: the (Anglo) Devil Dogs, the (Hispanic)
6th Street Kings, and the (Nigra) Eastsiders. The corrupt
(Guinea) police chief (“There's only one game here, my game”)
Mr. V (Peter Weller) puts Hong in charge of the St. Jude gangbangers whereupon
he instigates the “new way.” There are three rules: no
harming civilians, only sell to adults, and no guns. He also jacks
up the price of their product. The townsfolk like it 'cause now they
feel safe. The rival gangs in the adjacent towns don't move in on
their unarmed competition, because the users now come to them for
their cheaper product. Unfortunately, this is not the best business
model, which means it can't last.
Ideology
An enigmatic Ninja has taken to waylaying
the money couriers. As if that isn't bad enough, one day someone
hits the stashes of all the gang leaders, although, to be sure, their
security was lax: strong boxes/safes in the wall or floor with four-digit
pins. One genius reversed the factory
setting 1–2–3–4 to get 4–3–2–1;
another took the neighborhood patrol car number 0063 and changed
one digit in it to get 8–0–6–3. Some Ninja was able to
crack them all in a single day. This has really got their goat à
la (Prov. 30:33) “Surely
the churning of milk bringeth forth butter, and the wringing of the
nose bringeth forth blood: so the forcing of wrath bringeth forth
strife.”
The meaning of that proverb has to do with the continual
agitation of milk converting it from a liquid to solid & the
vulnerability of the nose on the whole face: comparing those to a
continual agitation of some sort—here the robbery of monies
in transport—or a single blow to a vulnerable
spot—here the main stash(es)—fundamentally transforming
peaceful ambiance to a state of war. The movie's opening scene of
a fight in the prison yard shows both inmates bloodied on the face, and
Mr. V's Russian roulette interrogation technique of
click … click … click … will eventually result
in a bang. For that matter the chop shop's meticulous working
in metal resulted in Tiano's smooth ride.
Production Values
“” (2012) was directed by John Hyams. It was written by Tim Tori using Dashiell Hammett's novel, Red Harvest as the template. It stars Cung Le, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and Peter Weller. A lot of martial arts talent was on display here. We meet a superb villain in Peter Weller.
MPAA rated it R for brutal violence, pervasive language, some sexuality/nudity and drug use. It's an intense story in a plain wrapper. Except for a showcased fancy car, all the scenery was drab and the clothing lackluster. The dialog was gang-lingo with one crazy gang member—Beech—to spice things up. It has mucho drama with conflicts being decided by fists, feet and bullets. Flashbacks were over-utilized. It was filmed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA. It's 1½ hours long.
Review Conclusion w/a Christian's Recommendation
This is not cinema at its finest, but it's a good vehicle for a fight story. If that's your thing, have at it.
Movie Ratings
Action factor: Well done action flick. Suitability For Children: Not Suitable for Children of Any Age. Special effects: Average special effects. Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day. Suspense: Keeps you on the edge of your seat. Overall movie rating: Three stars out of five.
Works Cited
Scripture is taken from the King James Version. Pub. 1611, rev. 1769. Software, Print.
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