Total b*****s and that's being kind

Rating: 3/10 (3 March 2012)

The opening shots of Shooter promise a reasonably tidy film. But from there on in it all goes downhill very fast indeed. No cliché is avoided, including the ubiquitous Ned Beatty in his celebrated corrupt senator role. I shan't waste time pointing out the various plot absurdities, not the least of which is the almost miraculous recovery of our man Mark Wahlberg from wounds fired from a handgun at almost point-blank range. Not only does survive a jump from several stories up, he then hijacks a car, is involved in a car chase - all the time apparently bleeding to death - plunges into the Delaware river, eludes and all-out man hunt, makes his way to Kentucky - and still has not bled to death - undergoes home surgery at the hands of his former buddy's widow - oh, I give up. It just gets worse and worse. Most certainly there will be many out there with brains the size of a pea who will cheer Shooter to high heaven. My advice is to give it a miss.