High Concept doesn't live up to potential

Rating: 4/10 (25 June 2012)

Much like "Snakes on a Plane," the entire movie is pretty much described in the title. Having said that, the notion of the Great Emancipator as a Hunter should provide a lot of material to make a great film from. Unfortunately, Seth Graeme-Smith's screenplay and Timur Bekmambetov's direction drop the ball in many places. There is far too little characterization, nothing to really draw us in to Abe's desire for vengeance or Mary's attraction to Abe himself. I'll forgive the egregious historical inaccuracies, because this is, after all, an alternate reality. The action sequences are phenomenal and go a long way to make up for a very slow first 30 minutes, but overall this film misses the mark. The final couple of scenes set the stage for a potential sequel, and if so I hope the scriptwriter is more adept than Graeme-Smith at creating relatable characters.