The Contractor is not a poorly-made movie. Its production values seem high, the acting is decent and it even has a very good soundtrack. It was interesting to have the protagonist helped by a 12 year old girl, but the plot, by and large, is a bit of a yawner. Though Snipes turns in a good performance, the people who rent or (sadly) purchase this film will do so hoping to see Wesley Snipes in martial arts fights. There are no fight scenes in this movie. There is one four-second scene where Snipes beats a guy up, but that's it. The action in this movie is very sparse. They could have played it more as a noir, but didn't. Instead it plays like a ho-hum espionage drama. What action scenes are present suffer from very bad editing. Not a very entertaining film.
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Another Fugitive Film
Added 9/11/2008
A heron flies across a country road in Montana. [No dog to bark a warning about visitors?] The cowboy is told about an imprisoned terrorist in London; does he know too much? Armed police patrol the London airport. [Are messages still passed in matchbooks? Would burning matches set off a smoke alarm?] The Contractor climbs into a steeple to perform his assigned task. The police seal off the area and stop cars from leaving. Will the Contractor escape? Will the surveillance cameras record all people? High-level police officers confer about this problem.
Why is there no help at the safe house? Would a young girl be so helpful to a stranger? Will he be recognized at the airport? The armed British police shoot at him. So does another person. If Jackson can't fly out of the country where will he go? Will the British SWAT team succeed in locating the fugitive? Could forensics identify the pistol that shot Superintendent Windsor? [Does the story get bogged down in the middle?] There is another chase through crowded streets. The British SWAT team uses H&K MP-5 machine guns like their US counterparts. Every telephone is Britain is tapped! [George Orwell's "1984" warned about this.] Will they intercept Jackson's call? Will the sound of gunshots alarm the public? There is a chase in the Underground. [A hooded jacket hides a person's face.]
There is another shoot-out in the kitchen of a hotel, done for dramatic effect. It doesn't disguise the lack of a good story. "It was never personal", they just followed orders. At the end Jackson rides out of town, like some cowboy in some old western movie. It is not a good ending. The use of mercenary assassins by a government is a topic that deserves a better film that this. You can read Norman Lewis' "The Sicilian Specialist", or Richard Condon's novels "Winter Kills" or "The Manchurian Candidate". Note that a professional killer will use a rifle so he can escape to collect his payment. A fanatic will use a pistol because he is willing to sacrifice himself for his cause.
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Unique action adventure
Added 8/7/2008
The storyline is very unique. The action is non stop. Basically, this is one of the best movies I have seen in a long time.
I give this movie a five star rating for its original storyline.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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Flawed but still entertaining
Added 4/5/2008
The Contractor stars Wesley Snipes as an assassin who goes to London to kill a terrorist but gets framed for another murder. Set in London, it has a good supporting cast of English actors including Charles Dance, Lena Headey and young Eliza Bennett. For the most part, it's a standard action story, and the occasional dramatic scenes feel a bit out of place, especially those between the young girl and her grandmother. I would have liked less drama and more action from this type of movie. Also, the motivation of the bad guys is somewhat unclear. Still, it was entertaining enough for three stars.
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reasonably weak
Added 12/26/2007
a couple of reasonable action/fight scenes, but overall weak movie. Not worth the time to watch it.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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The Contractor is not a poorly-made movie. Its production values seem high, the acting is decent and it even has a very good soundtrack. It was interesting to have the protagonist helped by a 12 year old girl, but the plot, by and large, is a bit of a yawner. Though Snipes turns in a good performance, the people who rent or (sadly) purchase this film will do so hoping to see Wesley Snipes in martial arts fights. There are no fight scenes in this movie. There is one four-second scene where Snipes beats a guy up, but that's it. The action in this movie is very sparse. They could have played it more as a noir, but didn't. Instead it plays like a ho-hum espionage drama. What action scenes are present suffer from very bad editing. Not a very entertaining film.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Another Fugitive Film
Added 9/11/2008
A heron flies across a country road in Montana. [No dog to bark a warning about visitors?] The cowboy is told about an imprisoned terrorist in London; does he know too much? Armed police patrol the London airport. [Are messages still passed in matchbooks? Would burning matches set off a smoke alarm?] The Contractor climbs into a steeple to perform his assigned task. The police seal off the area and stop cars from leaving. Will the Contractor escape? Will the surveillance cameras record all people? High-level police officers confer about this problem.
Why is there no help at the safe house? Would a young girl be so helpful to a stranger? Will he be recognized at the airport? The armed British police shoot at him. So does another person. If Jackson can't fly out of the country where will he go? Will the British SWAT team succeed in locating the fugitive? Could forensics identify the pistol that shot Superintendent Windsor? [Does the story get bogged down in the middle?] There is another chase through crowded streets. The British SWAT team uses H&K MP-5 machine guns like their US counterparts. Every telephone is Britain is tapped! [George Orwell's "1984" warned about this.] Will they intercept Jackson's call? Will the sound of gunshots alarm the public? There is a chase in the Underground. [A hooded jacket hides a person's face.]
There is another shoot-out in the kitchen of a hotel, done for dramatic effect. It doesn't disguise the lack of a good story. "It was never personal", they just followed orders. At the end Jackson rides out of town, like some cowboy in some old western movie. It is not a good ending. The use of mercenary assassins by a government is a topic that deserves a better film that this. You can read Norman Lewis' "The Sicilian Specialist", or Richard Condon's novels "Winter Kills" or "The Manchurian Candidate". Note that a professional killer will use a rifle so he can escape to collect his payment. A fanatic will use a pistol because he is willing to sacrifice himself for his cause.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Unique action adventure
Added 8/7/2008
The storyline is very unique. The action is non stop. Basically, this is one of the best movies I have seen in a long time.
I give this movie a five star rating for its original storyline.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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