Bullets, Babes and a Boatload of One-Liners

"Shoot Em Up" (2007)
Directed by: Michael Davis (Monster Man, Eight Days A Week)
Starring: Clive Owen, Paul Giamatti, Monica Belluci
Running Time: 86 minutes
Rut's Rating: 5/5

Explosive. Action-packed. Fast-paced. Hysterical. So ridiculous and tongue-in-cheek that the filmmakers had to have a smile on their faces every day on set. But here's the thing - this movie KNOWS that it's over the top. It KNOWS that audiences don't need to take it seriously. "Shoot Em Up" is a satire, almost a parody of all those bang-bang action flicks from the 80's and 90's. It needs no plot. Just a hero with someone to save, and a bad guy intent on killing that someone. Its almost a "leave your brain at the door" instruction for movie-goers. But if you love action, one-liners aplenty and bullets flying, "Shoot Em Up" is right up your alley.

The movie opens with Smith (Clive Owen) waiting for a bus in a crummy neighbourhood. He sits, munching on a carrot, (something he does A LOT of in this film), and waits. Just then, a pregnant lady walks past him, almost running, trying to get away from the man behind her holding a gun. Smith sees him, sighs, and comes to her rescue. What follows is a huge shoot-out with many cronies lead by Hertz (Paul Giamatti). Smith manages to deliver the baby but the mother dies shortly after. He's now thrust into the role of protector as he escapes the gun battle after having a staredown with Hertz.

Smith visits a friend, a prostitute named Quintano, (Monica Belluci). He tries to get her to take the baby off his hands so he can figure out why bad guys want the child dead. She refuses and ends up going with Smith. They pack up and retreat to Smith's hideout, and this results in yet another gun battle. It seemed to me that with each gun fight, more and more details were revealed about the plot. What it actually IS about I won't say, you'll just have to see it yourself. Either that, or you just won't care. I didn't find myself giving too much of a damn; all I saw was a man trying to protect a baby from bad guys, and that was good enough for me. And I think it was good enough for the filmmakers. The actual plot behind it seemed to be thrown together at the last minute while writing the screenplay, but that's OK.

"Shoot Em Up" is like watching your friend play a video game. The hero has his task, goes from Point A to Point B in order to unravel the informative details, and blows anyone in his path away. Its fun, mindless entertainment, just like a video game. Director Michael Davis must be a gamer, and had to be playing something like "GTA: Vice City" or "The Punisher" when he came up with his premise and ideas. Whatever he did, it works.

Clive Owen is very enjoyable as Smith. He has fun with the role and looks to be a great fit as a leading action star. Paul Giamatti is perfect as the hilarious bad guy Hertz. I don't think any other actor could have been used here except him. He's on-edge, spastic and quick with one-liners. Any scene involving Giamatti and Owen is full of chemistry and you can't wait to see what these two will do to each other next. You can tell that they're having fun and that makes the movie more enjoyable.

You'll enjoy "Shoot Em Up" only if you understand that its a satirical look at violence and action movies. There's no point in trying to blast the movie for being ludicrous and over the top, because everyone who had a hand in producing the film knows it already. See it if you love action. See it if you love the classic good guy/bad guy confrontations the way they used to be. Or see it if you just want to see a gun fight take place while sky-diving.

For whatever reason, just see it. You won't be disappointed. You'll be grinning by the time you leave the theater.