Tad bit tedious at times and lacks a bit of substance, still gritty good

Rating: 7/10 (16 October 2010)

This movie is basically about a man with nothing to lose, trying to save a girl that got kidnapped for ransom. Sure it does have some over the top sequences, but overall it was a pretty realistic movie. Denzel Washington is very charismatic in this movie, like his other past movies and is pretty much a badass that will do whatever it takes to save a little girl's life. The plot starts off pretty well and the violence that is done upon the bad guys in this is more than satisfying. But I couldn't help but get bored a few times, cause it feels like body count after body count with the main character Creasy(Denzel Washington) tracking down up bad guy, gets information and moves on to the next bad guy. Which I wouldn't really complain about if it didn't come off as a tad bit boring and dull. It also feels formulaic sometimes as well, but I did like the gritty and realistic aspect of the film. Especially enjoyed Creasy getting his hands dirty to reach his goal of finding the little girl. Overall the movie had plenty of potential and could have been a amazing movie about revenge/redemption/kidnapping, but felt it lacked substance and story for a film that is over 140 min. Despite some flaws there is also many positive aspects in this film as well.
7.5/10