Member mpm74 Posted December 11, 2014 Member Share Posted December 11, 2014 I remember Stockwell for Losin' it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted December 14, 2014 Moderator Share Posted December 14, 2014 I watched this one over the weekend and was surprised to find it a pretty enjoyable movie, in all honesty I was expecting 110 minutes of B-movie tripe. Perhaps my biggest surprise was Carano, this was my first time to see her in a lead role, and only the second time to see her onscreen after watching 'Fast & Furious 6'. Unlike the current problem that HK seems to be going through of casting performers who are talented at martial arts, but don't have an ounce of screen presence or charm, Carano has both the moves and the presence to carry a movie on her own. After her husband goes missing thanks to a zip lining accident, desperately trying to find him in a foreign environment and not speaking the local language, she's entirely convincing as an upset and vulnerable newlywed for whom her honeymoon has just gone disastrously wrong. However when she's pushed to her limits after being suspected by both the police and her husbands family, she's also equally convincing as a one-woman army who'll stop at nothing to find out the truth. 'In The Blood' deserves points for going for its R rating, and in various scenes throughout the runtime it's easy to see why it was labelled as such. Carano literally doesn't take any prisoners on her mission, easily recalling a female version of Liam Neeson in 'Taken', and dishes out the pain in some squint worthy moments. Like others have mentioned though, there is a potential for disappointment in that very little of those moments include the MMA for which she is known for. Like most directors and choreographers, 'In The Blood' struggles in that it's very difficult to make MMA look exciting onscreen, and to set it apart from anything which hasn't been seen 100 times before in similar movies. We get the superman punch thrown in at least twice, some painful looking leg kicks, the flying armbar (the move which has pretty much established itself as being guaranteed an appearance in any movie which features MMA!), and a little ground and pound. Carano doesn't have any equal match though, so in the scenes which do feature MMA, the best of which is the first (despite taking place in a dark nightclub), the enjoyment comes from watching her beat the crap out of everyone. Not that there's anything wrong with that, and it's fantastic to see a US movie which features that rare plot - a woman going on a violent rampage to find out the truth behind her missing husband. Usually it's the other way around. The technical aspects don't always match the quality of her performance though. There's a couple of very odd editing choices - in one scene she's putting the beat down on a couple of guys, then suddenly it cuts to the next and she's in the police station, with no connectivity between how she got there. In another it's revealed that she's been shot, and then when it cuts back to her she's in pursuit of a bad guy as if the previous revelation of her injury meant nothing. The biggest WTF moment though comes in the final scene, when Danny Trejo suddenly makes an appearance and gives a totally bizarre speech of how the local people shouldn't harm tourists, as tourism is the islands main source of income, which is then followed by the harshest act of violence in the whole movie. It's a very strange note to end on, effectively letting him deliver the final blow instead of Carano. Overall though, 'In The Blood' is a solid thriller with some quality action from an impressive female lead, which makes it worth a watch alone. I'm curious about a couple of things for anyone that has an opinion on them - Considering the Brazil setting, the plot of someone going missing, and the theme of a central character with a difficult past, is 'Falcon Rising' essentially the male version of 'In The Blood'? Based on the fact that I found the MMA action in 'In The Blood' to not be particularly exciting, how does 'Haywire' compare in relation to fight action alone? Worth a watch? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShaOW!linDude Posted December 14, 2014 Member Share Posted December 14, 2014 Based on the fact that I found the MMA action in 'In The Blood' to not be particularly exciting, how does 'Haywire' compare in relation to fight action alone? Worth a watch? Minireview here, bro. http://www.kungfucinema.com/forums/showthread.php?p=229206#post229206 You've read it, and even commented. Take another gander at it. From what you've said about "In the Blood", I think you'll find this to be more packed with fight choreography. There's some good throwdowns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member AlbertV Posted December 14, 2014 Author Member Share Posted December 14, 2014 Oh without a doubt, HAYWIRE had more fights and IN THE BLOOD more drama, but for the latter (which is the thread here lol), the minimal action complemented the more dramatic scenes well here and the twist (which I will not spoil) in IN THE BLOOD made the film even more interesting IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted December 14, 2014 Moderator Share Posted December 14, 2014 Minireview here, bro. http://www.kungfucinema.com/forums/showthread.php?p=229206#post229206 You've read it, and even commented. Take another gander at it. From what you've said about "In the Blood", I think you'll find this to be more packed with fight choreography. There's some good throwdowns. Yeah, I remember it as your 'come-back' review! Just took another look at it, and it definitely sounds to be more action packed than 'In The Blood', I may go for a blind buy of 'Haywire'. This movie is definitely worth checking out though, just don't watch it as a fight movie, watch it as a thriller. Carano has good screen presence for me, so the lack of fight action wasn't such a bother as it was for some who have commented before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member ShaOW!linDude Posted December 14, 2014 Member Share Posted December 14, 2014 This movie is definitely worth checking out though, just don't watch it as a fight movie, watch it as a thriller. Carano has good screen presence for me, so the lack of fight action wasn't such a bother as it was for some who have commented before. Cool beans. I'll just wait until it hits Netflix. Even as much as I like Carano, I ain't buying it. No fights, no $. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator KUNG FU BOB Posted December 14, 2014 Administrator Share Posted December 14, 2014 I watched this one over the weekend and was surprised to find it a pretty enjoyable movie, in all honesty I was expecting 110 minutes of B-movie tripe. Perhaps my biggest surprise was Carano, this was my first time to see her in a lead role, and only the second time to see her onscreen after watching 'Fast & Furious 6'. Unlike the current problem that HK seems to be going through of casting performers who are talented at martial arts, but don't have an ounce of screen presence or charm, Carano has both the moves and the presence to carry a movie on her own. Glad to hear that you dug it! A lot of people are saying she has no screen magnetism or acting chops, but I couldn't disagree more. I'm magnetized! Also, she clearly has the fighting skills, and unlike many other real-life fighters who don't transition well to movie fighting, Carano still looks like she's hitting with incredible power while performing the choreography. After her husband goes missing thanks to a zip lining accident... My heart was in my throat during this scene! 'In The Blood' deserves points for going for its R rating, and in various scenes throughout the runtime it's easy to see why it was labelled as such. I'm always happy when a film has the appropriate content for it's subject matter. If I'm watching an action thriller like this, I don't want the edges softened. Long live the "Hard R". Are you listening Sly? Carano doesn't have any equal match though, so in the scenes which do feature MMA, the best of which is the first (despite taking place in a dark nightclub), the enjoyment comes from watching her beat the crap out of everyone. Not that there's anything wrong with that, and it's fantastic to see a US movie which features that rare plot - a woman going on a violent rampage to find out the truth behind her missing husband. Usually it's the other way around. Seeing that nightclub scene would've been cool enough, but the fact that she was wearing that sexy dress made it extra special IMO. She did have to fight that violent bastard at the end though, and he was no pushover. I'm curious about a couple of things for anyone that has an opinion on them - Considering the Brazil setting, the plot of someone going missing, and the theme of a central character with a difficult past, is 'Falcon Rising' essentially the male version of 'In The Blood'? When I was watching FALCON RISING I was thinking that the two films had a lot in common. If the two films could've been stripped of their individual flaws and merged into one film starring Gina and Michael we would've had a new classic on our hands! Based on the fact that I found the MMA action in 'In The Blood' to not be particularly exciting, how does 'Haywire' compare in relation to fight action alone? Worth a watch? Much better. Great action! Lots of complaints that her final opponent was not worthy, but I felt that for who the actor is, he did a good job. Minireview here, bro. http://www.kungfucinema.com/forums/showthread.php?p=229206#post229206 You've read it, and even commented. Take another gander at it. From what you've said about "In the Blood", I think you'll find this to be more packed with fight choreography. There's some good throwdowns. I agree. You'll dig it. Yeah, I remember it as your 'come-back' review! Just took another look at it, and it definitely sounds to be more action packed than 'In The Blood', I may go for a blind buy of 'Haywire'. This movie is definitely worth checking out though, just don't watch it as a fight movie, watch it as a thriller. Carano has good screen presence for me, so the lack of fight action wasn't such a bother as it was for some who have commented before. You won't be disappointed with HAYWIRE. A very enjoyable thriller with Gina kicking ass in the most wonderful way. Cool beans. I'll just wait until it hits Netflix. Even as much as I like Carano, I ain't buying it. No fights, no $. There are fights in it, don't misunderstand. But enough for me to recommend it to you as a purchase? Hmmm... probably not. I think you'd think it was too lacking in that department. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member SamSeed Posted January 10, 2015 Member Share Posted January 10, 2015 Finally got around to watching this and I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would. I agree with KungFuBob's sentiments, Gina Carano is a beautiful woman and it had a relatively solid story. It was nice to see the twist in the 'Taken' formula. Bonus points for getting Danny Trejo to act as the local tourism guide/enforcer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member daman77 Posted January 11, 2015 Member Share Posted January 11, 2015 I thoroughly enjoyed In the Blood, for what a was.. a cool thriller, action movie. I don't think it was ever billed as "fight Movie", of course having Gina in it, it had it's share of great fights. One thing that I keep hear mentioned, is the "Brazil" setting? Maybe I missed it, but it was clearly filmed in Puerto Rico, the language was spanish in some scenes ( I recognized many of the settings being from there). Also ironically when the movie opens, that first dark scene is set in Bridgeport, CT, where I've lived most of my life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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