So, I saw 16 Blocks this weekend. Oh. Spoilers follow or could, I guess.
Anyway, a really enjoyable flick. I have nothing against huge, sci-fi FX spectaculars. But there's something really *great* about a nice, lean "realistic" action movie. Plus, more and more, I like action movies where the main character is "human" - as in, he makes mistakes or has limits. I'm a huge fan of middle aged action heroes. Bruce Willis as an old fart alcoholic with a bum leg? I am *so* there.
As always, the best part of any piece of pop culture is the theme. The plot of the movie is that Bruce Willis has to get Mos Def "16 blocks" to the courthouse - where Mos Def will testify against some dirty cops. This simple task is complicated as the cops who will be implicated in the case chase down Willis and his charge.
The best part is *what* the cops did wrong. These cops aren't assassains or drug dealers. Nope. They're "good" cops who were willing to do anything to get a conviction. They want to put bad guys in jail - even if that means witness tampering and collateral damage.
At its heart, this movie is about *order.* What the movie does is complicate our idea of order and stability. On the one hand, you have Bruce Willis who is defending justice, procedure and truth. On the other side, there are the "dirty cops" - who favor *utility* over the actual process of fairly achieving justice. Neither is exactly bad, but we can understand why one is better than the other. In a lot of ways, the movie acts as a nice - and not heavy-handed - question about justice in a post-9/11 world. In other words, serious times might call for serious measures ... But what is the cost? There's order and stability, and then there is violent authoritarianism .... The movie is asking: Which do you value?
Plus - they kick the shit out of a city bus. And that is aces.
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Anyway, a really enjoyable flick. I have nothing against huge, sci-fi FX spectaculars. But there's something really *great* about a nice, lean "realistic" action movie. Plus, more and more, I like action movies where the main character is "human" - as in, he makes mistakes or has limits. I'm a huge fan of middle aged action heroes. Bruce Willis as an old fart alcoholic with a bum leg? I am *so* there.
As always, the best part of any piece of pop culture is the theme. The plot of the movie is that Bruce Willis has to get Mos Def "16 blocks" to the courthouse - where Mos Def will testify against some dirty cops. This simple task is complicated as the cops who will be implicated in the case chase down Willis and his charge.
The best part is *what* the cops did wrong. These cops aren't assassains or drug dealers. Nope. They're "good" cops who were willing to do anything to get a conviction. They want to put bad guys in jail - even if that means witness tampering and collateral damage.
At its heart, this movie is about *order.* What the movie does is complicate our idea of order and stability. On the one hand, you have Bruce Willis who is defending justice, procedure and truth. On the other side, there are the "dirty cops" - who favor *utility* over the actual process of fairly achieving justice. Neither is exactly bad, but we can understand why one is better than the other. In a lot of ways, the movie acts as a nice - and not heavy-handed - question about justice in a post-9/11 world. In other words, serious times might call for serious measures ... But what is the cost? There's order and stability, and then there is violent authoritarianism .... The movie is asking: Which do you value?
Plus - they kick the shit out of a city bus. And that is aces.
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My Overall Artist Chart
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VIEW 10 of 10 COMMENTS
salome:
There won't be an announcement, exactly, but you'll soon see. 
toothpickmoe:
Ooh, make me some sort of a sultan, would you?