MovieChat Forums > Criminal (2016) Discussion > Watched last night

Watched last night

posted 9 years ago by birdsaw-442-457161
9 replies | jump to latest

No spoilers! Promise.

A buddy of mine had an extra seat for a free screening so what the heck? The premise seemed kinda cool and the cast is a who's who of comic book movies. I like the cast but some of the parts seem wasted. Ultimately, this is a Kevin Costner vehicle and something of a comeback attempt. I've never been a real fan of his, I enjoyed Field of Dreams, Bull Durham and Untouchables. His other movies, not so much. Seems like everyone's performance is centered around Costner's return to leading man status. Costner does some interesting work here, some good zingers and mannerisms. However, he seems to be trying really hard to win the affection of the newer generation of movie goers and not his usual demographic. It's almost a comic book hyper stylized version of that one movie where he plays the convict...Perfect World was it? A mix between Billy Bob from SlingBlade and Jason Bourne. It was obvious to me but in a way, I sort of liked it but not completely sold.

I really love Gary Oldman but he's not doing anything interesting acting wise. I would've love to see him as the main antagonist of the film, acting crazy like in Leon. A formidable foe to Costners anti-hero

Mr. Deadpool aka Ryan Reynolds holds back the sass and plays his guy pretty straight. I liked the contrast to what he was doing in Deadpool in the short time he had in this film.

Gal Godot is lovely but a bit too thin for my liking. I just didn't buy into her character and I blame that on lazy writing.

They didn't fully utilize actors Alice Eve and Tommy Lee Jones. I mean, their parts could've been integrated into the other actors parts.

The movie was just ok, considering the low budget, the filmmakers did a decent job of making this look slick and action pieces tight. Too bad the weak screenplay and weird casting dragged this down for me.

All in all, not bad but not that good. With the impressive cast and premise, this could've been so much better.

You trying to say Jesus Christ can't hit a curveball?

[–] eighteen_percent_gray 9 years ago

I saw a couple of TV ads. It looks good. Could you tell me if it's creepy, gory or sinister? You can put it in a spoiler if you think necessary.

[–] pietroricci 9 years ago

I saw it last night and thought it's absolutely worth checking out on the big screen.

I'll be going again once it's out April 15.

And yes, there are some pretty graphic parts.

[–] Shychick52 9 years ago

Studio plant is obvious.

[–] pietroricci 9 years ago

I'm no studio plant, I'm just a fan

[–] gamer_12 9 years ago

Some of the ageism on display in professional reviews is pathetic. Screen International basically calls Costner, Oldman, and Jones too old to be doing a big-screen non-VOD movie.

[–] rtodd110 9 years ago

wow that's some *beep* right there

i am starting to dislike critics more and more

[–] aGuiltySoul 9 years ago

That's NOT what the review said. They were very specific about what they didn't like and their reference to age implies that the players should know better than to make this kind of crap film.

Criminal’s plot – played out with a po-face - is perhaps better suited to a sci-fi channel pilot, although the heavy-duty cast demands a full theatrical roll-out, in a vein similar to last April’s Child 44, also featuring Oldman and released by Lionsgate, which managed $13m globally on theatrical release. Indeed, Criminal may well transplant successfully to the small screen, where it has the potential to go further

The leads are mostly shot separately and deliver performances which don’t always match in terms of intensity or pitch. Costner has the biggest part as this latter-day Frankenstein, but even his belief seems to waver in the face of some difficult script hurdles.

It's not what a movie is about, it's how it is about it.
RIP Roger Ebert

[–] Doc_Cochran 9 years ago

Thats tragic they tried to pull the same shyt with hateful eight. I go tot he theaters to see real actors not chris pratt!

[–] C-Younkin 9 years ago

Felt the same, the movie was ok, Costner I thought did a really good job but the rest of it was just kinda meh.

Trying to go for an informative, and hopefully something people think is funny, youtube channel so hope you guys like. Thanks.

Review of the film here- https://youtu.be/EtbBlklCZqo