Innovative on one level, tired on many others.

Rating: 5/10 (25 April 2005)

The word "innovation" is thrown around frequently concerning this film. This word is indeed apt, but on very specific grounds. Credit must be given to how the action hero's personality is treated here. In 1988 the summer blockbuster action hero's demeanor as dead-serious stud was near-universally accepted as the only way to do it. Here we have Bruce tear down the archetype by playing it anything but serious, and letting the viewer know it. A unique delivery given the genre, and I suppose Willis deserves almost all the credit. But when considering that an actor's delivery is usually a minute percentage of a film's makeup this movie falls flat.
Consider: Common-man hero minding his own business is thrown into an oppressive situation. Reacts to oppression with a fountain of wisecracks. Proves that a lone righteous vigilante is far more effective than the combined efforts of the rest of law enforcement itself (represented here by the FBI, played by ugly actors). A seemingly irreconcilable personal relationship that is solved merely by our hero's courage ("Only John could irritate someone that much"). The obligatory--- one more villain crash the victory parade only to be shot by secondary hero--- bit. Lots of guns. Lots of big fireballs. Lots of money. Lots of punching. The list of tired movie clichés goes on and on. Not much original here.
And though the hero's personality is celebrated, it ultimately comes down to the tried and true notion that his ability to kick ass is his most important attribute. Like any action blockbuster, we leave the theater having learned nothing from our hero, experiencing no profound admiration for him, but merely acquiring a desire to kick as much ass. A kind of hero envy. Not unlike how "Over the Top" left us with the desire to enter an arm-wrestling competition. It seems that that quality is indeed all that matters. (The deaths of innocent civilians and FBI agents alike are ignored during the finale's party-down celebration.) All's well that ends well for the stud. The filmmakers here even show us how to channel our newfound heroic inspiration by showing the everyday wife punch out a journalist at the end.
So while this film may have re-invigorated the genre (not re-invented) it certainly did not do so in a particularly healthy way.