With all the various versions of Sherlock Holmes out there you could mistake Alex Cross (Tyler Perry) for the next version. This is a guy who can look at a scene and immediately know exactly what kind of person has done it and why. Situational-awareness does not even begin to describe him; I bet he would clean up at partycasino.com, simply due to the fact that he would have his opponents figured out before the flop even hits the table. His wife can’t surprise him about her pregnancy because even though she hid it he already know because of some missing or new things in the house. He’s a cop who seems to be able to solve everything and is called out to check out a murder scene, which was executed by one of the best hitmen there is, Picasso (Matthew Fox). Will he be able to catch him?
Knowing that Tyler Perry was playing the main character I was expecting this movie to get a hard time. His movies are not widely loved and only watched by a dedicated audience so him in a starring role was bound to cause controversy. With an open mind I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt (I do think he’s funny when he’s Madea), but after seeing the movie I do understand the negativity. At first his character is like Sherlock Holmes, as he’s good at his work, but when the movie requires emotion I felt he wasn’t able to convincingly convey it. He’s on the hunt for a man who’s responsible for hurting someone he cares for, but it just doesn’t show. What doesn’t help either is that the script didn’t feel very strong and could have easily been mistaken for one for an 80’s action movie. It’s a genre I can enjoy even though this isn’t a great movie.
Still I did kind of enjoy the film, especially the character which Matthew Fox plays. He’s almost unrecognisable if the last time you saw him was in Lost. He lost a lot of weight for the role and is convincing as this twisted, cold-blooded killer.
There are a lot of better action movies out there, but if you can look past the 80’s action movie script and a disappointing performance from Tyler Perry there is something left to be enjoyed. Just don’t expect a very emotional ride with deeply detailed characters.
I’ve read all the Alex Cross books, and when you get down to it they’re very simple reads, quick chapters, nothing complex about them at all. I’m not surprised to hear say that the script sounds like it’s from the 80’s.
They are? I read a lot of reviews where people said it was a bad adaptation of the books. Nice to hear something different about it.
Yeah I tried to go into this with an open mind, but aside from Fox’s performance there was nothing really to get excited about here. Maybe wasn’t dark enough for me. I don’t know….
Yeah, it could have been darker. I never felt that after what happened to his wife he was willing to do anything and lose it all.
I just couldn’t muster the strength to endure this movie. It just never looked good at all. You review reminded me why! 🙂
Hahaha, sometimes reminders are good Keith 😉
I can’t imagine Tyler Perry as an action star. Nice review.
I was willing to find out but wasn’t convinced.
Good review Nostra. This movie was just crap, and there’s no way getting around it. Why the hell wasn’t Elba casted?!? Why!??!
Thanks Dan. Was Elba in the running for the role? It probably would have made it a whole different kind of movie.
I was disappointed in this film, but not because of Perry. I agree with your alluding to the fact that the story/script was weak. Which perplexed me, knowing that James Patterson was involved in the film itself.
I applaud Tyler Perry for venturing into something different than Madea, but this film wasn’t where he should’ve started. and Matthew Fox…nope
Yeah, I do think it is good he tries something else (although if I remember correctly he also was in Star Trek right?). I did like Matthew Fox though, he came across as a very highly skilled and dangerous assassin.
I’ve only seen one Tyler Perry movie and it was at a gym with no sound on. Let’s just say I’m not interested in his movies, this one included. Matthew Fox as a highly skilled and dangerous assassin??? I have a hard time believing that, but I don’t know if I want to see this movie to prove me wrong, ahah.
Well, he did convince me. He was scary…