Bullet To The Head

Following the mediocre return of Arnold in my Last Stand review, Sylvester Stallone has never really dispersed. Bullet to the Head is a fine throwback to 80s action movies.

James Bonomo (Sylvester Stallone) is an experienced hit-man. He is given the opportunity to avenge his partners death through Taylor Kwon (Sung Kang); Washington D.C cop looking to nail the same enemy. That enemy is Keegan (Jason Momoa) a ruthless handy man for Robert Morel (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). 

Morel is head of a crime family who is known to have cops and judges under his payroll. However, it is the gruesome death of James's partner that leads to a portrayal of violence, as James and Taylor begin to wipe the gang off the map, one by one in typical Stallone fashion. 

Walter Hill's latest is pretty straightforward, re-creating a genre of movie that fantastically resembles the 80s retro theme. With very little to the plot but revenge, Stallone leads the way in fantastic shape, promoting a high level of violence, with fight scenes such as the massage parlour going down in epic fashion. Each scene is played out with typical buddy-cop interactions, with a routine chemistry similar to Walter's 48hrs (but fails to blend on occasions).

It was great to see Stallone on screen following Arnold's recurrence, taking me back to the bones of his career. The Last Stand failed to that for me. Sure, we could say that Stallone has a bigger modern day catalogue, but his presence on screen, along with his physical shape is overwhelming. We know Stallone fancies the violence, e.g Rambo (2008) and The Expendables, but the latest serves him well because he ain't directing anybody behind the scenes. Walter Hill, who comes with a serious amount of experience has taken Sly on board and made a good-guy bad-guy throw back to an era we know all too well. The retro theme tunes, fight scenes, iconic heartless bad guy and yes, one or two humorous quotes. And Taylor Kwon - who wasn't too bad either. 

Bullet to the Head is surprisingly enjoyable. It is weird because Stallone looks awful in some, yet terrific in others. Walter Hill mashed up all the pros of 80s action, some cons (bad actors) and ran with it. 

Overall: From modern day crap to 80s nostalgia, Walter Hill revives a genre of action that consistently proves forgetting your brain ain't such a bad thing. Bullet to the Head is a joy to watch, with Stallone starring in his best film since Cop Land.

7/10

Related material: Read up on more Sly Stallone with The Expendables 2 review.